How did the federal government encourage settlement in the west?
In the latter half of the nineteenth century, the federal government instituted a number of policies aimed at encouraging settlement in the West. Overpopulation in the East coupled with seemingly endless opportunities in the West meant that many Americans were hungry for new land to settle and cultivate. To address...
How did the government help the westward expansion?
These rules were followed throughout the west, with the one exception of disagreement over slavery in new states. The government protected western settlement with troops and pushed the Native Americans off western lands. The Federal government also financed the constructed of the first transcontinental railroad in the west.
How did the Homestead Act of 1862 encourage settlement of the west?
The Homestead Act of 1862 encouraged settlement of the West. A settler could buy land for $1.25 an acre or receive 160 acres free after working it for five years. The transcontinental railroad was finished in 1869. The U.S. government encouraged its construction through generous land grants to the railroad companies.
How did the transcontinental railroad encourage settlers to settle the west?
Another reason is the Transcontinental Railroad, which allowed settlers to travel much faster than wagons. Q: How did the federal government help encourage the settlement of the West?
What action did the US government take to increase Western settlement in the 1800s?
The 1862 Homestead Act accelerated settlement of U.S. western territory by allowing any American, including freed slaves, to put in a claim for up to 160 free acres of federal land.
Why did the Federal government encourage westward migration and settlement?
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE Born largely out of President Abraham Lincoln's growing concern that a potential Union defeat in the early stages of the Civil War might result in the expansion of slavery westward, Lincoln hoped that such laws would encourage the expansion of a “free soil” mentality across the West.
How did the Federal government encourage Western settlement quizlet?
To further encourage western settlement, Congress passed the Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862. It gave state governments millions of acres of western lands, which the states could then sell to raise money for the creation of "land grant" colleges specializing in agriculture and mechanical arts.
Why and how did the US government promote western migration after the end of the Civil War?
By the 1860s, two key laws—the Homestead Act and the Pacific Railway Act—further encouraged the westward migration. The government also assumed an active role on the ground, building numerous forts throughout the West to assist settlers and fortify the U.S. military presence.
What was a priority of the government to help westward expansion?
The large number of Americans living west of the Appalachians made the management of westward migration a top priority for the new federal government, which hoped to peaceably maintain political authority over its western citizens and allow the settlers to extend the political boundaries of the young nation with their ...
How did the government support westward expansion quizlet?
The Homestead Act and the sale of railroad land grants stimulated the movement of farmers westward. A governmental measure taken by the U.S. to encourage settlement of new areas in the West was to give away free land. Under the Homestead Act, people were given 160 acres of government land.
Which factors encouraged Western settlement in the nineteenth century quizlet?
1st : new technologies such as canals and railroads made it easier for individuals to travel. 2nd : the federal government passed laws that enticed individuals and business to develop the West. 3rd : the lure of silver and gold brought American fortune seekers West .
What encouraged migration to the West quizlet?
Signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862, the Homestead Act encouraged Western migration by providing settlers 160 acres of public land. In exchange, homesteaders paid a small filing fee and were required to complete five years of continuous residence before receiving ownership of the land.
What were the 5 reasons for westward expansion?
What were 5 reasons for westward expansion?free land railroad gold and silver adventure and opportunity cattleWhat were some challenges the cowboys faced on the long drive?Violent storms, wind, rain, moving rivers, stampedes, rustlers, hot sun, discrimination, and 15 hours on the saddle38 more rows
What helped the westward expansion movement?
That westward expansion was greatly aided by the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, and passage of the Homestead Act in 1862.
Why was westward movement such an important issue in the election of 1844?
Westward expansion was important in the election of 1844 because James K. Polk ran on the promise to annex Texas. Texas had been asking for statehood...
How did the railroads convince people to move west quizlet?
In addition, once the railroads were built that linked the country together, it was much easier for people to move out west. One reason people moved out west was to look toward new opportunities in the west. Some went to California in search of gold after it had been found there in 1848.
What were the main causes of the Westward Expansion?
For westward expansion, the government did a lot of things: 1 Provided protection against Indians (Army) 2 Gave huge land grants to the railroads to get them to push westward 3 Gave cheap land to settlers (Homestead Act) 4 Helped figure out the best ways to farm (Land grant colleges)
How did the West influence the East?
First of all, it took a lot of pressure off the problems that were coming with overpopulation in the region. This period of history coincides with a period of heavy immigration. With more and more people crowding East Coast cities, many people looked to the endless expanses of the West for opportunities. Once in the West, settlers sent a vast amount of resources to the factories back East. Furthermore, food grown in the Great Plains helped to feed the urban populations in the Eastern cities, allowing more people to settle there and work in the factories.
What did the Granger laws do to farmers?
Railroad owners overcharged Western farmers. State governments eventually passed Granger laws that limited the rates railroads could charge. But most farmers in the West faced severe financial difficulties and were in debt.
What did the government do to regulate industrial growth?
For industrial growth, mainly the government just didn't do anything to regulate the large companies. The government didn't impose any rules on things like child labor or minimum wage/maximum hours, things like that. They also tended to side with businesses against unions.
What was the Oklahoma Land Rush?
One unique episode in westward expansion became known as the Oklahoma Land Rush. In 1889, a large swath of the Oklahoma territory was seized by the government from tribes that had previously allied themselves with the Confederacy during the Civil War. With all this new unassigned land up for grabs, the government essentially said whoever got there first, starting at noon on April 22, 1889, could claim the land. As many as 50,000 people took part in this unprecedented land-grab.
What was the impact of the American Indians on the West?
Although advanced under the mantle of protection, the nation's American Indian population in the West bore the cost of these military and political undertakings, which accelerated the dispossession of American Indians and threatened the security of their lands, property, culture, and core existence.
What were the western volunteers filling in behind the Regular Army soldiers?
The western volunteers filling in behind the Regular Army soldiers were of a distinctly different mettle. As one officer noted, they were men "made of stern stuff. . . inured to mountain life. . . pioneers and miners; men self-reliant and enduring" but also prone to have "advocated the extermination of the Indians.".
What was the Confederacy's plan for the Southwest?
Using Texas as a base, the Confederate plan focused on dislodging Union forces from the Southwest and continuing north to the resource-rich mines of Colorado, and possibly on to the California gold fields.
Why were the soldiers in the Army spirited east?
Originally meant to protect the interests of a minority of settlers and miners , these soldiers were ill-positioned for guaranteeing the well being of nearly 97% of the U.S. population that resided east of the Missouri River . These regular soldiers were spirited east as quickly as possible. With more than 10,000 soldiers serving in the western posts, this eastward movement triggered concerns over security for those left behind. President Abraham Lincoln soon authorized raising of volunteers within the states and territories "to aid in enforcing the laws and protecting public property," to replace many of the departing Regular Army soldiers and established additional forts to protect new interests. California, for example, quickly raised an infantry regiment and five cavalry companies "for the protection of the Overland Mail Route between California and the Eastern States, by way of Salt Lake City."
What were the consequences of the expansionist Civil War?
In the expansionist Civil War-era, Federal American Indian policies often resulted in violated treaties, violence, and the end of access to traditional lands, trade and migratory routes, water, food sources, and cultural practices.
What was the role of the Territorial Patronage?
Territorial patronage was a vital tool for Lincoln. The ability to appoint men of his choice to key territorial roles -such as governors, secretaries, federal district judgeships, land office commissioners, and territorial marshals - served not only to recognize those who had lent support to him but also to institutionalize support for the issues he valued. With seven western territories ripe for patronage appointments in 1861, Lincoln predominantly named Republican supporters - known pejoratively as "The Tribe of Abraham" -to the territories' thirty-five prime positions and dozens of others. These included gubernatorial nominees William Gilpin of Colorado Territory and William Jayne of Dakota Territory, who both supported federal financing of the transcontinental railroad.
What was the Westward Movement?
Until the eve of the Civil War, the Westward Movement was Manifest Destiny incarnate; as such, it was consistently popularized as an East-to-West phenomenon. As unabashedly romanticized in Leutze's 1861 mural study, established routes -including the Oregon, California and Santa Fe Trails -siphoned settlers and miners westward . In response to calls for their protection from the American Indians, the federal government responded by establishing frontier and coastal forts garrisoned by Regular Army soldiers. By 1861, almost 75% of the Army's soldiers served at dozens of posts west of the Mississippi River, ranging from Pickett's post in Washington Territory to Fort Point in California's San Francisco Bay to forts scattered throughout the Southwest. The civil war brought dramatic change to these outposts. Shortly before the bombardment of Fort Sumter, U.S. Army responsibility for national protection and security set in motion an unprecedented eastward movement of soldiers and equipment.
