Western Farmers
Economic Development of the West-When the southern states seceded from the Union, Republicans saw the chance to make western states and territories free of slaves -Passed a series of acts in 1862 -Homestead Act -Granted a 160 acre homestead (farm) to any family who would live on the Great Plains -Must cultivate (farm) land for 5 years -400,000 families took up the offer -Pacific Railway Act -Land given to railroad companies -Develop transcontinental railroad -Morrill Act -Land given to states -Help finance agricultural colleges -In 1889, the gov’t announced free homesteads in OK -Land was former Creek and Seminole land -50,000 prospective homesteaders showed up -Railroads -Between 1869-83, 4 transcontinental railroad lines built -Given over 100 million acres of gov’t land -Only requirement was to build a t.c. rr -Railroad co’s sold the land to settlers--financing -Lumber industry exploded -Caused environmental problems (Erosion, etc.) -Who moved to the West? -At first, people moved to the West in covered wagons -Now, people used railroads--Faster, safer, easier -White Americans from the East -Most of these people were middle-class -Search for better soil -Civil War veterans wanting to start a new life -African Americans -Less discrimination -Many moved to Kansas -Exodusters--African Americans who moved west for economic and political freedom -Immigrants -Irish helped build railroads -Religious freedoms -Better life -Chinese farmed and worked on railroads -FREE LAND was the main cause
Western Environments-Just because 80 million acres of land was homesteaded in the Great Plains does not mean the GP became prosperous -Land was free, but supplies were expensive -Farmers had to learn new techniques -Irrigation -Hispanics developed efficient system -Few water sources -Trees were scarce--Built houses of sod -Difficult climate -USDA created in 1862 -Helped farmers adapt -Introduced new varieties of wheat -Dry farming -Planting/harvesting technique that uses little water -New technologies -Windmills, petroleum drills, better plow, self-binding harvesters
Large Scale Farming-The vast amounts of land available allowed companies to have large-scale farms called “bonanza farms” -Did not work -Boom and bust cycles of economy -By 1890s, most bonanza farms were broken up
Life on the Farms-Rough -Sod houses were not very suitable for life on the Plains -Summers were fierce--tornadoes, insects, HOT -Hard work farming -Labor-intensive -Women worked in the fields in addition to housework -Children worked on the farm -Routine work--fetching water, churning butter |
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