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Life in the WestThe motives, hardships, and legacies of the groups that moved west in the 1800s.

Mrs. MataNYOS Charter School

2The Mountain Men

• Rugged individuals, wore shirts and trousers made from animal hides and had long hair and beards, mostly men

• Were happy with the “freedom & adventure” this brave life provided

• In 1807, a Spanish trader named Manuel Lisa led 42 trappers up the Missouri River and in 1808 he took 350 trappers into the Rocky Mountains

Who were they?

3The Mountain Men

• For the next 30 years, these fur-trappers crisscrossed the West in search of valuable furs

• The men sought economic opportunities and explored the newly acquired Western lands

What was their motive?

4The Mountain Men

• Lived a hard life, usually died young due to daily hazards: disease, landscape, thieves, Indians, wolves, bears, etc.

• During the Spring & Fall, they set their fur traps in icy streams

What were their hardships?

5The Mountain Men

• They pioneered across mountains and deserts, these routes became known as the “Oregon and California Trails”

• Many of the men became scouts, guides, and traders that helped other settlers going west

• Left behind personal journals that tell us today of the conditions that they lived

What was their legacy?

6The Missionaries

• Marcus & Narcissa Whitman and Henry & Eliza Spalding were the best known Missionaries

• They traveled west form St. Louis along the Oregon Trail

• Narcissa Whitman described the Rocky Mountains as, “the most terrible mountains for steepness.”

• However, her safe arrival in Oregon was proof that women could endure the journey west.

Who were they?

7The Missionaries

• These Missionaries goal was to convert Indian tribes such as the Nez Perce and Cayuse to Christianity.

• Marcus Whitman said, “It does not concern me so much what is to become of any particular set of Indians. Our greatest work is…to aid the white settlement of this country and help to found its religious institutions.”

• In 1842, Marcus Whitman urged Americans he encountered on horseback in the west, to settle in Oregon. He guided many new settlers along the Oregon Trail.

What were their motives?

8The Missionaries

• “The poor Indians are amazed at the overwhelming number of Americans coming into the country,” observed Narcissa, “they seem not to know what to make of it.”

• Measles attacked in 1847, killing the Indians and not the White settlers. The Cayuse Indians feared that the Whitmans were purposely killing Indians, so they murdered the couple.

What were their hardships?

9The Missionaries

• The Missionaries hoped their legacy would be large numbers of Christian Indians.

• In fact, relatively few Indians became Christians, because many died of diseases.

• The only true legacy the Missionaries left was the opening of the west to settlement.

What was their legacy?

10Pioneer Women

• They were wives, mothers, and single women, mostly White women

• Some were African American women who escaped slavery and went West for freedom

• Between 1840-1869 about 350,000 people traveled West in covered wagons and met up at Independence, Missouri and organized themselves into “wagon trains” like modern day caravans

Who were they?

11Pioneer Women

• Shared the danger and work of settling the West

• Helped shape the future of the West and earned a new status for themselves & for women

• Between 1840-1869 about 350,000 people traveled West in covered wagons and met up at Independence, Missouri and organized themselves into “wagon trains” like modern day caravans

What were their motives?

12Pioneer Women

• This journey West lasted 4-6 months and covered about 2,000 miles

• When land became steep along mountain side, the women had to toss out their few treasures they brought and the Oregon Trail was littered with furniture, china, books and other items

• Women were expected to do the work they had done back home, but while traveling 15-20 miles a day

• They cooked, washed clothes, and took care of children

• The food consisted of bread, bacon, & coffee

What were their hardships?

13Pioneer Women

• The journey West changed pioneer women because the trail brought out strengths and abilities they did not know they possessed

• Wherever they settled, schools, churches, libraries, literary societies, and charitable groups soon blossomed.

• Annie Bidwell married John Bidwell and moved to his ranch in what is now the town of Chico, California. There she taught sewing to local Indian women and helped their children learn to read and write English.

What was their legacy?

14Pioneer Women

• Annie was also active in the cause to give women the right to vote.

• The Wyoming Territory led the way by granting women the right to vote in 1869.

• By 1900, a full 20 years before women across the nation would win the right to vote, women were voting in 4 western states.

• The freedom and sense of equality enjoyed by women in the West helped pave the way for more equal treatment of women throughout the U.S.

What was their legacy?

15The Mormons

• The Mormons were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

• Joseph Smith had founded this church in New York in 1830. He believed that he received the Book of Mormon from an angel and believed it was his task to create a community of believers who would serve God faithfully.

What were their motives?

16The Mormons

• The Mormon pioneers traveled to Utah in search of religious freedom.

• They built cities and towns that allowed them to practice their religion without persecution from others

What were their motives?

17The Mormons

• Wherever the Mormons settled, their neighbors persecuted them

• Many people were offended by the Mormons teachings, especially their acceptance of polygamy—the practice of having more than one wife

• Others resented the Mormons for their rapidly growing power and wealth

• In 1844, a violent mob in Illinois killed their founder, Joseph Smith

• After Smith’s death, Brigham Young took over as leader of the Mormons and moved his community West to Utah• Many died along the trails. As one Mormon recalled, “We soon

though it unusual to leave a campground without burying one or more persons.”

What were their hardships?

18The Mormons

• They finally settled in the western territory near the “Great Salt Lake” in Utah, at present day Salt Lake City

• By the time Brigham Young died in 1877, Utah had 125,000 Mormons living in 500 settlements

• Mormons were the first Americans to settle the Great Basin

• They pioneered farming methods that were particular for this dry part of the country

• Salt Lake City, Utah became an important stop for travelers going West in need of food and supplies

• Today, the Mormon Church has grown into a worldwide religion with more than 11 million members

What was their legacy?

19The Forty-Niners

• In 1848, a carpenter named James Marshall spotted something shining in the American River of California which turned out to be GOLD!

• By 1849, over 250,000 gold seekers from around the world had joined the California Gold Rush

• Most were young men• About 2/3 of these 49ers were Americans, the rest

were immigrants from Mexico, South America, Europe, Australia, and China

Who were they?

20The Forty-Niners

• Men who were seeking economic opportunities for new land, fortune, business and a new life in the West

• GOLD, GOLD, GOLD!

What was their motive?

21The Forty-Niners

• Getting to California for the Chinese & Australians required them to cross the Pacific Ocean

• Miners frequently fought over the boundaries of their mining camps. Often when disputes occurred, they took it upon themselves to punish others because there were no police to control this western land

• Digging for gold was hard, tedious work because they spent long days digging in mud, dirt, and stones while standing in knee-deep icy streams

What were their hardships?

22The Forty-Niners

• By 1852, the Gold Rush was over• Between 1848-1870 warfare and disease

reduced the Indian population from about 150,000 to just 30,000

• By 1850, California had enough people to become the 1st state in the far West.

• These 49ers helped transform the “Golden State” into a diverse land of opportunity

What was their legacy?

23The Chinese

• To poor, hungry Chinese, “Gam Saan” or “Gold Mountain” (California) sounded like paradise• “You will have great pay, large houses, goods, and clothing of the

finest…money is in great plenty.”• By 1852, more than 20,000 Chinese had

ventured across the Pacific Ocean to California.• 1 out of 10 settlers in California were Chinese• In 1852, the governor of California praised Chinese

immigrants as “one of the most worthy classes of our newly adopted citizens.”

Who were they?

24The Chinese

• The California Gold Rush attracted thousands of Chinese immigrants

• Most were seeking their fortune with the hopes of returning to China as a rich man

What were their motives?

25The Chinese

• As gold mining became more difficult, attitudes towards immigrants changed and the American miners called on the government to drive foreigners out of the goldmines.

• In 1852, the state legislature passed a law requiring foreign miners to pay a monthly fee for a license to mine.

• The Chinese paid the tax and stayed on the goldmines but the Americans tried to force them to leave by torturing them. White hacked off their long queues (braids) worn by Chinese men, burned their shacks, and publicly beat them.

What were their hardships?

26The Chinese

• Discouraged Chinese immigrants left the mines to open other small businesses like: restaurants, laundries, stores, and markets

• So many Chinese settled in San Francisco that local newspapers called their neighborhood, “Chinatown.”

• The Chinese not only helped to build the West, but they also brought with them the arts, tastes, scents, and sounds of one of the world’s oldest and richest culture.

What was their legacy?