American History 102: 1865 to the Present
Stanley K. Schultz, Professor of History
William P. Tishler, Producer
Shane Hamilton, Web Editor
Lecture 03
[Graphics Version]
Which "Old West" and Whose?
The "Old West" was largely a post Civil War phenomenon from roughly 1865-1890. It included the large-scale settlement of 430 million acres of land. More land was settled during the "old west" than in the first 250 years of American history. In essence, the land area occupied by Americans doubled. During this time three "empires" rose and fell: Mining, especially gold and silver; Farming; and Cattle. Ten new states enter the United States, and by 1912 the lower 48 are complete. It was also during this time that White Americans defeat Native Americans in the so called Indian Wars.
1. Space
"Great American Desert"
Before the Civil War, the area west of the Mississippi River was largely referred
to as the "Great American Desert." It was so labeled by Stephen H.
Long, who surveyed a portion of the Louisiana Purchase in 1819. On his maps
and journals he referred to the area roughly located between the 98th parallel
and the Rocky Mountains as the "Great American Desert," - a region
"wholly unfit for cultivation and uninhabitable for those dependent on
agriculture." These maps and journals were used widely in American schools
and universities. As a result, his description of the region, believed by the
majority of Americans, caused little migration onto the Plains until after the
Civil War.
The myth of the Garden
The myth of the Garden was used by boosters to encourage settlement in the west.
Charles Dana Wilber is credited as the central builder of this myth. In The
Great Valley, and Prairies of the Northeast and Northwest, Wilber described
the Trans-Mississippi West as a Garden, using "scientific" evidence
that "rain follows the plow." This countered both Long's "Desert"
myth and the central problem of settling the Plains - aridity.
The credibility of the Garden myth was strengthened by the unusually high levels of rainfall recorded throughout the 1870s and early 1880s, which further encouraged settlement. But by the mid 1880s, the Plains entered a period of low rainfall and massive out-migration began. Families began to leave with signs on their wagons, "In God we trusted, in Kansas we busted."
2. Time
The "Old West" was largely a post-Civil War phenomenon from roughly 1865-1890. It included the large-scale settlement of more than 430 million acres of land. More land was settled during this period of time than in the first 250 years of American history. In essence, the land area occupied by the United States doubled. Three "empires" rose and fell between 1865 -1890: Mining, especially gold and silver; Farming; and Cattle. Ten new states entered the United States, and by 1912 the "lower 48" was complete. It was also during this time that White Americans defeated Native Americans in the so called Indian Wars.
3. Images
The central images of the "old west", from our popular culture, depict rugged
individualism and self-reliance, i.e. yeoman farmers, cattle barons, gun slingers and
cowboys.
Frederick Jackson Turner
"The Significance of the Frontier
in American History," (1893)
Turner's thesis generated tremendous popular and academic interest about the frontier. His
work permeated both the academic and popular consciousness.
In sum, Turner argues that civilization is a process in which society becomes ever more complex. As complexity increases, opportunities become more limited, and civilization inevitably subordinates individuals to society.
Cowboys
Approximately 35,000 men worked as cowboys between 1864 to 1884. Of the 35,000 men approximately 25% were black, 12% Mexican and 63% White. Cowboys working on cattle drives during this 20 year period of time moved more than 5,000,000 head of cattle from breeding grounds in Texas to railheads in Kansas. The railroads then shipped cattle to markets in the East and Europe. The cowboy was the everyday laborer on the drives. The cowboy worked in close cooperation with others during the drive and under the supervision of the trail boss. He was hired by the owner and was under contract for the drive north. Most cowboys joined labor unions to protect their interest. The Knights of Labor was the largest such union. Cattle owners also joined together to form their own organizations called cattleman's associations. In fact, the last great cattle drive almost didn't happen due to a labor strike by the cowboys. The fact of life in the West was not independence and self-reliance, but rather cooperation and interdependence.
Native American Indians
The 1867 Peace Commission
The 1867 Peace Commission was an attempt to bring peace to western lands by creation of
reservations for the tribes. Three major areas of reservations were in present day South
Dakota, Oklahoma, and Arizona.
Leaders of various tribes agreed to reservations in an attempt to preserve their way of life and to ensure peace. However, despite treaties and peace policy, white settlers encroached on Indian lands in violation of the treaties. From 1870-1890 reservation lands came under extreme pressure from white settlers, leading to increased conflict. One of the first major battles was the "Red River War" which led to the final defeat of the Comanche.
Indian Policy
Battle of Little Big Horn
Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse moved off the reservation in protest over agents' corruption
and white encroachment on reservation lands as a result of silver and gold discoveries in
the Black Hills. The Seventh Cavalry was sent after them with Custer in command. The
Battle of Little Big Horn, "Custer's Last Stand," ensued in 1876. Custer and all
his men fell prey to the superior strategies of the Native American forces. The white
public was outraged over the defeat.
Wounded Knee
There are two differing ways to view the battle of Wounded Knee; it can be interpreted as a final triumph over the "Indian Problem" or as the slaughter of innocents out of revenge. Nevertheless, Wounded Knee was the last military confrontation between the U.S. and the Indian tribes.
On its face the Dawes Act was well-intentioned but impossible to enforce. From the 1880s until the 1930s Indians sold or lost nearly two-thirds of their total land holdings (approx. 86 million acres). Those that remained in their hands were not good for agricultural development. The Dawes Act nearly destroyed the reservations.
The "American West" was in reality not very long-lived. As the 19th century wore on, the increased pace of industrialization in America radically changed the nation's economics, politics, and society. While Americans had once headed west looking for gold in streams and mines, politicians and leaders of industry began to look for gold in factories and corrupt business and political practices. The story of these new "gold mines" is an incredibly fascinating aspect of American history; so important, in fact, that we'll take it up in the next lecture: The Gilded Age and the Politics of Corruption.
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