THE CONTESTED WESTConquest and Settlement

MYTHOLOGIES OF THE WEST

BUFFALO BILL CODY

FRONTIER THESIS That the frontier, the free and empty

land to the West, was the most defining element of America

One of the most enduring of the myths about the West

Written by Frederick Jackson Turner, historian

In reality, the land was never empty or free

FREDERICK JACKSON TURNER

TURNER THESIS Frontier as a crucible for American identity

In reality, the West was not particularly exceptional—facing the same challenges as other areas Exploitation of land Exploitation of labor Consolidation of capital Vicious ethnic and racial rivalries

WINCHESTER “GUN THAT WON THE WEST”

SAN JOSE’S FIRST AMUSEMENT PARK

DISNEY

HOMESTEAD ACT 1862 It promised 160 acres free to any

citizen or prospective citizen, male or female, who settled on the land for five years.

RAILROAD LAND GRANTS

RAILROADS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE WEST

Generous federal land grants meant that railroads could sell land next to track at a profit

Railroads received more than 180 million acres

They connected with major cattle trailheads to capitalize on markets

THE CHINESE By 1870, 63,000 Chinese immigrants

lived in America but were denied access to citizenship

1876 Workingman’s Party formed to fight for Chinese exclusion

CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT 1882 Whereas, in the opinion of the Government of the United

States the coming of Chinese laborers to this country endangers the good order of certain localities within the territory thereof: Therefore,

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That from and after the expiration of ninety days next after the passage of this act, and until the expiration of ten years next after the passage of this act, the coming of Chinese laborers to the United States be, and the same is hereby, suspended; and during such suspension it shall not be lawful for any Chinese laborer to come, or, having so come after the expiration of said ninety days, to remain within the United States.

CHINESE EXCLUSION

BUFFALO SOLDIERS

MINING

COMSTOCK LODE the Washoe basin in Nevada

where the richest silver ore on the continent

SILVER MINERS

SILVER MINING Silver mining required capital, technical

knowledge, equipment Rife with speculation, misrepresentation,

thievery Drew thousands, including immigrants,

especially Irish Virginia City 1870s, one out of 30 miners injured on the job;

one out of 80 killed Depicted as lawless, often urbanized and

industrialized

STAMP MILL

TERRITORY INTO STATEHOOD 1873 new vein uncovered, transitioning from small

scale industry to corporate enterprise, creating a radically new social and economic environment

Nevada statehood because of the mines 1864

DIVERSITY IN THE WEST New Englanders, Mormons, African-Americans,

Mexicans, Latinos, and immigrants from Asia, Europe and Canada

Complex blend of racism and prejudice

Violence between cattle ranchers and sheep ranchers; ranchers and farmers; miners and their bosses; rival Indian groups; and whites and Indians

‘SOD BUSTERS’ Extremely poor

farmers

OPEN RANGE Herds with as many as 3,000 head of

cattle grazed on public lands along the cattle trails

The invention of barbed wire in 1874 virtually closed the open range

‘fence cutters’ fought against big ranchers

EXODUSTERS In 1879 more than

15,000 black farmers made and ‘Exodus’ from Mississippi and Louisiana to find land in Kansas

EMERGECE OF COMMERCIAL FARMING In 1870, nearly 80 percent of the

nation’s people lived on farms Overwhelmingly rural In 1900, there were 5.7 million farms in

the US

IN CALIFORNIA Vaqueros (Hispanic cowboys) became

migrant workers on land their families had once owned

Blizzards and drought decimated herds and by late 1880s, the heyday of cattle ranching ended

VAQUERO California’s Mexican

cowboys

HENRY MILLER AND CHARLES LUX Pioneered investment and corporate

structures for the business of agriculture

Developed foreign markets for cotton and grain

Industrialized equipment and technique Sought control of land and water rights

HENRY MILLER

BIRTH OF AGRIBUSINESS “Cattle Kingdom” from Texas to

Wyoming revolutionized by barbed wire ‘fence cutters’ battled for free range Cowboys were wage laborers

OKLAHOMA LAND RUSH Opening of Oklahoma

territory brought as many as 10,000 settlers in one day

SURVEY CREW

LAND OFFICE