Westward Expansion Flashcards
Why were the Great Plains considered uninhabitable?
They were dry, and didn’t get much water. They were barren as well.
What factors encouraged cowboys to set out for the Great Plains?
The grassy land was great for supporting cattle so the cowboys could earn alot of money. Cowboys would use the five railroads crossing the Great Plains to ship the cows to markets.
Describe the lifestyle of a cowboy.
Long drives when they had to get cattle to the north;
would later lounge in saloons
How did the Homestead Act of 1862 encourage the settlement of the Great Plains?
The act granted 160 acres of public land to any settler who would live on it for five years.
What inventions made settlement of the Great Plains possible?
- John Deere’s steel plow, which solved the problem of turning the heavy, grassy soil of the region.
- Windmills could draw water up from deep wells. The latter device made irrigation of the Great Plains a reality.
- Barbed wire was useful in keeping cattle from trodding on and destroying valuable crops.
What events closed the American frontier?
The cattle men would race to get to the land and then the land would quickly runout since everybody was trying to get a set amount of land to start their families.
What jobs did women and men have on the Great Plains?
Women’s jobs often included cleaning, washing, child care, gardening, cooking, and sewing.
Men’s jobs often included farming, buying things from markets and making trades.
Describe a homestead and the way of life in the West.
A homestead is the property that a family lived on in the Great Plains.
Life was hard in the West because the settlers had to cope with the dryness of the region, the loneliness, grasshoppers, prairie fires, tornadoes, snowstorms, and the occcasional hostile Indian.
