The Close of the Frontier Homesteaders. Homestead Act (1862) Act passed by Congress which made...
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Transcript of The Close of the Frontier Homesteaders. Homestead Act (1862) Act passed by Congress which made...
The Close of the The Close of the FrontierFrontier
HomesteadersHomesteaders
Homestead Act (1862)Homestead Act (1862)
• Act passed by Congress which made public land available to citizens for a minimal cost ($1.25 an acre)
• 160 Acres in return you had to agree to work the land for 5 years
• 400,000 families took advantage of the deal
Oklahoma Land GrantsOklahoma Land Grants
• Oklahoma had been reserved as “Indian Territory”
• Government opened this territory to settlers on April 22, 1889
• 2 million acres were claimed in one day
• “Sooners” - some people cheated and claimed land early
ExodustersExodusters
• African- Americans who left the South for a new life on the frontier
• Led by Pap Singleton
• wanted to escape segregation in the South
The Life of Homesteader-The Life of Homesteader-• Housing
– Very little wood available for construction
– Sod Houses• Used “bricks” of grass
and dirt • Provided insulation
from heat and cold• Very leaky
– Dug Outs• Dug homes into the
sides of hill• Covered the front with
sod bricks
Inventions which helped Inventions which helped FarmersFarmers
– Barbed Wire (1874)• J. Glidden • Protected farmland from
being trampled by Cattle
Joseph Joseph GliddenGliddenJoseph Joseph GliddenGlidden
Inventions which helped Inventions which helped FarmersFarmers
– Steel Plow• John Deere• Helped farmers break up
the hard soil on the plains
An 1859 picture of John Deere's Plow Factory in Moline, Illinois.
John Deere's Factory in Moline, in the 1880's.
Inventions which helped Inventions which helped FarmersFarmers
– The Reaper•McCormick•Threshed
wheat
* While this first machine required only 2 people for operation (a person to ride the horse and a man to rake the cut grain from the platform), it cut as much grain in one day as 4-5 men with cradles or 12-16 men with reaping hooks
Extreme Weather and Extreme Weather and Natural DisastersNatural Disasters– Blizzards in
the Winter– Firestorms– Droughts– “Tornado
Alley”– Locust
Plagues
Emotional and Economic Emotional and Economic PressuresPressures
– Neighbors were not close by– Flat lands – Cabin Fever in the winter– Farming took up all time in the summer
months– Crops and animals could be lost at any time
due to weather– Railroads charged large fees to transport
goods to and from eastern markets– Many farmers borrowed money from banks ---
could not pay debts if they had a bad harvest
Frontier Settlements: 1870-Frontier Settlements: 1870-18901890
Frontier Settlements: 1870-Frontier Settlements: 1870-18901890