White settlers

• The 1862 Homestead Act let people claim 160 acres of land in the West, as long as they farmed it for five years.
• Manifest Destiny was the belief that it was white Americans' God-given right to expand West and take over the whole of America. This was published in newspaper by a man called John O'Sullivan.
• Mountain men created trails that passed through the Plains in order to hunt in the rocky mountains in the early 1800s.
• Gold discovered in California in 1849 meant that groups of people traveled there. These groups were called 49ers.
• Mormons believed it was their God-given right to settle in the West, specifically in Salt Lake City
• Mormons:

  • were driven out of Kirtland due to economic failure of Mormon banks.
  • in Missouri, they faced persecution from non-mormons.
  • Nauvoo was where Joseph Smith (founding father) was murdered due to his law of polygamy.
  • they were led to Great Salt Lake by mormon prophet Brigham Young - and were successful due to his organisation and irrigation schmes to adapt
• The Donner Party:

  • 80 people led by George Donner followed trailblazer, Hastings, west.
  • the group took 'Hastings cutoff' (a shortcut that would save 400 miles).
  • they faced problems taking the cutoff: extreme weather conditions, Indians attacking them, starving and so turning to cannibalism. Only 46 survived.
• The Great Plains had extreme climates, dry soil and little resources, so when Homesteaders moved there, they faced many problems:

  • made sod houses out of mud
  • created windpumps for water
  • made variable crops, suitable for dry climates (red turkey wheat)
  • barbed wire created by Glidden