In the 1830's the Plains Indians were sent to the Great American Deserts in the west because the white men did not think they deserved the land. Afterwards, they were able to live peacefully, and to follow their traditions and customs, but when the white men found out the land they were on were still good for agricultural, or even for railroad land they took it back. Thus, the white man movement westward quickly begun. This prospect to expand westward caused the government to become thoroughly involved in the lives of the Plains Indians. These intrusions by the white men had caused spoilage of the Plains Indians buffalo hunting styles, damaged their social and cultural lives, and hurt their overall lives. The lives of the Plains Indians in the second half of the nineteenth century were greatly affected by the technological development and government actions. The development of the transcontinental railroad was the most devastating technological development that affected the Plains Indians. Although the railroad was powerful and helpful to the white man, it was not for the Plains Indians. The transcontinental railroad was the reason why the westward movement of the white man happened so quickly. With the white man moving westward they found valuable land for agricultural, which to be the Plains Indians land, and they found a lot of gold mines. During the time of the building of the transcontinental railroad a lot of white man killed the buffalo. They found that as a sport, and even to use it to harm the Plains Indians. At that time the buffalo was a main source of food, fur, and a hunting lifestyle for the Plains Indians and by the white man killing it off it effectively hurt them. The white man killed the buffalo in large amount of numbers that they almost made them go instinct, and they hurt the Plains Indians huge. Although the Plains Indians did kill the buffalo for their food and furs, their hunting did not have a large impact on the buffalo population. Also, the transcontinental railroad went through the land that the Plains Indians lived on. They were forced to move into smaller areas that were designated by the government. A lot of wars happened over this issue, and over the issue of gold being on their land.
There are many ways in which we can view the history of the American West. One view is the popular story of Cowboys and Indians. It is a grand story filled with adventure, excitement and gold. Another perspective is one of the Native Plains Indians and the rich histories that spanned thousands of years before white discovery and settlement. Elliot West’s book, Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers and the Rush to Colorado, offers a view into both of these worlds. West shows how the histories of both nations intertwine, relate and clash all while dealing with complex geological and environmental challenges. West argues that an understanding of the settling of the Great Plains must come from a deeper understanding, a more thorough knowledge of what came before the white settlers; “I came to believe that the dramatic, amusing, appalling, wondrous, despicable and heroic years of the mid-nineteenth century have to be seen to some degree in the context of the 120 centuries before them” .
On the east coast people were also being taken advantage of by the government. As a result of the building of the Transcontinental Railroad, the government began giving out land grants ‒through the Homestead Act of 1862‒ for Americans to live on and farm; the only problem was that another culture was already living on the land: the Sioux Nation. After the S...
The Effect of the Spanish, French and British on Indian Culture in North America The life styles of the Indians of the Americas changed greatly over time, almost completely influenced by Western culture. Each of the different Western civilizations affected the Indian tribes very differently. This is partly due to the reasons why they came to the "New World." The British came primarily for land due to their fast population growth and partially for a new economic venture. The French came for furs and luxuries that only Indians and the untamed land could provide. They created trading posts and shipped these commodities back to the mainland.
The first way Native Americans were impacted by western expansion was in their land. In 1850-70, Indians lost most their land due to gold rush and settlement (Doc. 1). This made the US remove the Native Americans to make the land available to settlers. Troops were used to remove Native Americans from their land so settlers could move western (Doc. 2). This resulted in the Battle of Little Horn where a lot of th Native Americans were killed and lost their land (Notes Doc. Pg 12). The Lakota people had a large amount of land in 1868 (Doc.
There was one obstacle to the settlers to expand into the lower South. The obstacle was the Indian tribes such as the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chicasaw, and Seminole nations (Indian Removal 1). According to the white settlers, the nations were in the way of the white’s progress. The whites wanted this land because they needed it to grow cotton, which was making a huge profit (Indian Removal 1). With money on the settler’s minds, the settlers asked the government to gain the Indian Territory. Andrew Jackson agreed with the settlers and pushed for the Indians removal (Indian Removal 1). For instance, in 1814, Andrew Jackson made military forces defeat parts of the Creek nation (Indian Removal 1). The Creek nation lost twenty-two million acres in Georgia and Alabama (Indian Removal 1). When the United States found out that the Seminoles were holding fugitive slaves, the United States decided to take more land as the Seminoles punishment (Indian Removal
During the second half of the nineteenth century, the lives of the Plains Indians were affected by both technological advancements and government actions. The American government made treaties with the Plains Indians, promising it would be fair, yet attempted to isolate American Indians and replace their culture with white heritage. In the later half of the nineteenth century, the Plains Indians were forced into a disparate lifestyle by both technology and government actions that disregarded the lives of the Indians.
According to Santana, Chief of the Kiowa, “These soldiers cut down my timber; they kill my buffalo; and when I see that, my heart feels like bursting; I feel sorry” (Santana, 1867). This quote shows the Chief of the Kiowa’s perspective of the actions the American soldiers were taking. In Europe, timber was in high demand since Europe 's supply was running low. This resulted in Americans cutting down many of their trees to trade with Europe. Native Americans expressed great gratitude for their land and when it was being destroyed it affected them deeply. In “Promise of the High Plains,” a flyer created in the 1800s it states, “The finest timber West of the Great Wabash Valley” (The Railroaders) when trying to convince the people why to move west. This flyer shows that Americans were advertising the timber on the western land to convince more people to move. Buffalo was also a very important resource for the Native Americans culture and way of life. Buffalo was used as food, clothing, and housing. Not only were Buffalo used for survival, but they were also part of their religious rituals. With buffalo numbers decreasing fast, Native Americans tribes faced starvation and desperation. There were many different actions the Americans did to destroy the land of the Native Americans. The murder of Buffalo and cutting down of timber was just a few of the impacts the settlers
Westward Expansion after the Civil War affected the Native American’s tremendously. There were many reasons that the Native Americans expanded towards the west. The Native American’s moved west because they were promised some land. Majority of the people was afraid of dying from tuberculosis. For others the Westward Expansion was a great way to have a fresh start of life. The cost of living was extremely cheap in the West compared to what they were paying in the east, some of the Native American’s moved to the west was to advance in everyday life.
Many Native groups, because they were nomadic, didn't see land as belonging to one person. The idea that someone could come in, claim a piece of land and ban them from it, caused many problems.
The Indians in the 1900’s were thought of vanishing. Not being able to adapted to urbanization and would die out from lack of keeping up with the new world. How the Indians used endurance and survival skills to last through all that has happened. The sources from “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” and “Touring The Indian Country” have proved that the Indians isolate to work out problems. Upper America times in the North and South were in a more likely to having a higher savagery. White people looked at them as Ancestors because they were in the Americas before any of the colonies explored the land.
In the 1800's, white traders were killing all the buffalo. The Indians were starving to death so they had a war and the Indians were starving during the war. The indians killed alot of the white traders
Natives were forcefully removed from their land in the 1800’s by America. In the 1820’s and 30’s Georgia issued a campaign to remove the Cherokees from their land. The Cherokee Indians were one of the largest tribes in America at the time. Originally the Cherokee’s were settled near the great lakes, but overtime they moved to the eastern portion of North America. After being threatened by American expansion, Cherokee leaders re-organized their government and adopted a constitution written by a convention, led by Chief John Ross (Cherokee Removal). In 1828 gold was discovered in their land. This made the Cherokee’s land even more desirable. During the spring and winter of 1838- 1839, 20,000 Cherokees were removed and began their journey to Oklahoma. Even if natives wished to assimilate into America, by law they were neither citizens nor could they hold property in the state they were in. Principal Chief, John Ross and Major Ridge were leaders of the Cherokee Nation. The Eastern band of Cherokee Indians lost many due to smallpox. It was a year later that a Treaty was signed for cession of Cherokee land in Texas. A small number of Cherokee Indians assimilated into Florida, in o...
“Back in the 1830s, President Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Act led to a forced westward march of the Southeastern-based Cherokees by the U.S. Army that has become known as the Trail of Tears.” The Indian Removal Act actually forced all Indian tribes to move. Really, it was the Indian’s that decided to move because the gold rush forced settlers through their hunting land. Indian’s were no longer able to get food other than what they grew and harvested because people scared all the animals away. So the Indian’s made a treaty with the government. The government promised to keep people from coming on the new Indian land. Some Indian tribes moved to peaceful grounds. That is why Indian’s agreed to travel hundreds of miles to new land. And their travels took years to walk.
The first point he made was how the Westward expansion affected the Plains Indians. The Plains Indian tribes consisted mostly of the Kiowa, Kiowa Apaches, Comanche, Sioux, and Cheyenne. As the white settlers made their way across the country taking land, the Indians pushed back by raiding settlements and killing the occasional settler. More and more white settlers were pouring into the West in search of gold and silver. As the settlers came into the territories, large herds of buffalo were killed, much of the time just for the sport of it. This had an adverse affect on the Indians since they relied on buffalo not only for food, but also for hides and blankets as well as to make teepees. Another factor was the pony herds; the U.S. Army frequently seized herds and a herd of upwards of one thousand was killed just so the Indians would not be able to use them. The soldiers that were on patrol in the West kept pushing the Indians, driving them away from their hunting and fishing grounds.
For decades, the United States practiced policies of removal to gain valuable land for itself. The policies of removal, assimilation, and concentration caused the deaths of thousands of Natives. The song Indian Reservation by Paul Revere and the Midnight Raiders is a reminder of the Trail of Tears, which killed a ¼ of the Indians that marched. The government removed the Indians from Georgia to benefit the plantation owners in the south, at the expense of the Native people in the area. Even the Supreme Court of the United States agreed that removal of the Indians from that land would be illegal, but President Jackson went ahead and did it anyways. The Indians marched over a thousand miles until they were west of the Mississippi River. It also gives a general overview of how the whites put the Indians on reservations and tried to assimilate them. “The beads we made by hand are nowadays made in Japan,” shows how the whites took over the Indian’s culture and commercialized it. Another situation in which the government practiced assimilation and concentration was with Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce. Joseph’s tribes were cooperative and sold their land to the whites as long as they got to live in their valley, but eventually the whites wanted all their land. The Indians fled and tried to make it to Canada, but 30 miles from the border they were caught and rounded up. They were sent to live on reservations, and most died of white diseases or starvation. By the year 1890, all Indians were on reservations. The Blackhawk war, which happened over land disputes in Wisconsin and Illinois, also led to the death and relocation of numerous Indians. This disrespect towards the Indians was typical of the time period.