Westward Expansion

21 August 2022
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28 test answers

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question
What is Manifest Destiny?
answer
The belief that it was God's will for the United States to stretch from Atlantic coast to Pacific coast, by any means necessary
question
Why was the Transcontinental Railroad important to westward expansion?
answer
The Transcontinental Railroad made it faster to travel east and west and to move goods and food from coast to coast.
question
Why did thousands of people rush to California in 1849?
answer
To mine for gold.
question
How long did it take for cowboys to move cattle from the plains of Texas to markets near the railroad?
answer
Two to three months of 18 hour days.
question
What are two key details of the Homestead Act of 1862?
answer
People got up to 160 acres of land. They had to stay on the land for 5 years. They had to make improvements to the land. Anyone could apply.
question
What were four causes of Westward Expansion?
answer
1 - Transcontinental Railroad 2 - Silver and Gold Mining 3 - Cattle Ranching 4 - Homestead Act or farming
question
Why did the railroads hire hunters to kill the buffalo?
answer
Because the buffalo would wander onto the tracks and cause delays and accidents.
question
Why is Promontory, Utah an important place in Westward Expansion?
answer
It was the place where Transcontinental Railroad was completed and the Golden Spike was placed in 1869.
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Who were the people who physically built the railroad tracks?
answer
Chinese, Irish and German immigrants who were paid low wages and suffered dangerous conditions.
question
What happened when gold was discovered on Native American reservations?
answer
The Native Americans were forced to move to new reservations.
question
Name two things that people still wear that came out of Westward Expansion?
answer
Denim jeans and cowboy hats.
question
True or False - All cowboys in Westward Expansion were immigrants from Ireland.
answer
False. 30-40% of cowboys were black/freedmen. 20% were Mexican. The rest were a mix of white immigrants and citizens.
question
How did the Transcontinental Railroad help create the Cattle Kingdom?
answer
The Transcontinental Railroad made it faster and cheaper to transport beef to cities and towns.
question
What were two factors in the collapse of the Cattle Kingdom?
answer
1 - Two years of severe drought killed the grass the cattle needed to eat. 2 - People could not afford beef because of national economic problems.
question
What were cow towns?
answer
Towns in Kansas that popped up for cattle ranchers on their way to market. These were places like Dodge City, Kansas.
question
The forced march of thousands of Cherokee Indians from Georgia to Oklahoma was called what?
answer
The TRAIL OF TEARS. Between 2000 and 4000 Cherokee died as they marched to their reservation in Oklahoma.
question
Which Native American chief said, "I will fight no more forever." What was his tribe?
answer
Chief Joseph said, "I will fight no more forever." He was the leader of the NEZ PERCE who were kicked off their reservation when gold was found.
question
Who invented the Sodbuster and what did it do?
answer
John Deere invented it in 1877. It was a metal plow that was stronger and lighter than plows made of wood or stone. It helped homesteaders dig into the hard soil.
question
African-Americans who left the South and went west to become farmers were called what?
answer
EXODUSTERS. They believed they were making an "exodus" or "exit" from the South and sharecropping/slavery.
question
The Populist Party was a political party that tried to do what for farmers?
answer
Tried to get better prices for crops. Tried to get lower costs for railroad shipping.
question
Northern Republicans were afraid that slavery would spread west and opposed the entrance of which state into the Union? (hint: It's a big state)
answer
Texas was an independent republic for 10 years before becoming a state in 1845. It was known as the Lone Star Republic.
question
Before the Transcontinental Railroad, which river was used to move goods around the United States?
answer
The Mississippi River. The US gained full control of the Mississippi after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
question
Which group of people moved from NY to Utah to escape religious persecution?
answer
The Mormons. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was founded in upstate NY but the group was not accepted and moved west.
question
Why did Thomas Jefferson hesitate to purchase the Louisiana Territory from France?
answer
The Constitution does not allow for land purchases. Jefferson used the power of the president to MAKE TREATIES.
question
How did the Dawes Act (1887) try to change the lives of Native Americans?
answer
The Dawes Act was about ASSIMILATION. The government wanted them to be farmers, to accept Christianity and to change the way they dressed.
question
How did Kansas earn the nickname "Bleeding Kansas" in the 1850's?
answer
Abolitionists and pro-slavery people fought over admitting Kansas as a FREE state or SLAVE state. It was admitted as a free state just before the Civil War began.
question
Why was Buffalo Bill Cody important to the image of the Wild West?
answer
His Wild West Shows created the image of the heroic, independent cowboy living in the West. People believed the show was true because he was actually a hunter and cowboy himself.
question
Why was it so difficult to complete the Transcontinental Railroad?
answer
1- The Rocky Mountains 2 - It took thousands of workers to lay the track 3 - It was very expensive 4 - Getting supplies to remote locations 5 - Attacks from Native American tribes