What is left of it today/ how is it used in pop culture? (Think branding, Hollywood, sports teams, clothing, etc.)

Transcription

1 What are some myths of the American West? What is left of it today/ how is it used in pop culture? (Think branding, Hollywood, sports teams, clothing, etc.) How have these symbols of the past become both stereotypes and ideals to Americans of today?

2 California Gold Rush: 1848, Gold Discovered by James Marshall at Sutter s Mill (Colma, CA) -300,000 Miners came to California in 1849

3 Mining towns were scattered all across the West Populated overwhelmingly by men Violence, drinking, gambling, and prostitution rampant

4 Individual miners were rarely successful. Those who invested in industrial mining were the ones who struck it rich. Required: Railroads, smelters, hydraulic pumps, extensive labor force Miners became the first achieve greater legislative protection 1/30 miners disabled; 1/80 killed Gained 8 hour work days, injury compensation Environment Rock and dirt and clogged the rivers, causing massive flooding Forrests destroyed to support underground mining Sulfer polluted the air

5 Texas was home to more than 5 million longhorn cattle Cattle Markets were built up in Kansas Cattle Drives from Texas to Kansas 1880 s, Oversupply of beef dropped the prices and cowboy wages

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7 Cowboys went to cattle towns just after receiving wages Prices were extremely high Towns became known for drinking, gambling, violence, and theft Dance Hall (Hurdy Girls)-) usually became prostitutes and were subject to disease, abuse, and drug addiction

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10 Granted settlers 160 acres of land if they improved it for 5 years Or purchase the land for $1.25/acre after living on it for 6 months 1/10 Settlers took advantage of the Act Railroads made the most money, selling land ceded to them by the government

11 Lines were built with the expectation that settlement would come after The Railroad industry was the biggest employer in the nation (outside of agriculture) Hired land companies to settle the huge tracks of land allotted to them 2 Million Europeans convinced by promoters to settle in the great plains between 1870 and 1900

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13 Farming families worked from dawn till dusk Men: Seasonal work on the crops, planting and harvest Women: Domestic chores, and child rearing Children: Milking cows, hauling water, school Communities worked together on big projects, and women helped each other when sick or during child birth Still, most farmers could not make a profit and by 1900, 1/3 were tenant farmers

14 New technology was designed to combat the harsh conditions of the West John Deer-Singing plow McCormick s Reaper The Harvester Planters could produce 10 times more crops with these new technologies

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17 Costly new equipment favored larger farming enterprises In California, large scale agribusiness took over By 1900, 2/3 of CA arable land tied up in thousand acre plus super farms Huge tenant and migrant workforce

18 Natural plants were plowed over and replaced with crops not suited for the conditions Livestock destroyed vegetation leading to soil erosion and dust storms Major water shortages as lakes, rivers, and aquafers were depleted Key predatory and large mammal species were hunted nearly to extinction

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20 Manifest Destiny- The idea that Americans are the chosen people who should settle America from sea to sea, and be a moral shining example to the world of the glory of republican agrarian society Americans were captivated by the majesty of nature Scientists, anthropologists, historians, and artists flooded the West to capture new information and inspiration

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25 Dime novels Depicted the West in the most general and fantastic terms, wild savage Indians, & brave cowboys Sold in batches of 50,000 Buffalo Bill s Wild West Show ( ) Famed buffalo hunter Bill Cody thought up the show, to bring the West to people in the East

26 Frederick Jackson Turner- Frontier Thesis, 1893 Continuous western movement allowed Americans to continually develop new standards for democracy As each generation moved west and conquered new more primitive environments they built upon the American character This fostered American qualities, like hardiness, restless spirits, inventiveness, and individualism The closing of the frontier would therefor end the formative years of American History The 1890 census information revealed that free land had been depleted, and America s western frontier had finally closed