USHI1.S10.O2.02 Standard 10 Objective 2 Learning Page
Land Use in the "Wild, Wild West"
Many changes appeared in the way land was used in the American West after the Civil War. Before the Civil War, most Americans skipped over the middle part of the United States to get to California and Oregon. However, many people began to discover the value of the Southwest and Great Plains. The Great Plains offered valuable farmland and the Southwest was well supplied with valuable minerals. Americans began to use the land very differently after these discoveries. As more Americans settled in the west and Great Plains, another change occurred dealt with the animals. For centuries the plains Indians had used the buffalo as their source of life. With the spreading of railroad and settlers, the Buffalo began to disappear and be replaced with cattle. Cattle came in high demand back east and would need to be transported from the West to the East. It created the culture of the Cowboy but at the same time destroyed the culture of American Indians.
Video: Changes in the West
Important Vocabulary from this Section
Powerpoint File: S10O2 - Settlement of Land Out West