The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American People (Brinkley), 7th Edition

Chapter 16: The Conquest of the Far West

Study Questions

Your Results:

1			What were the key challenges and disadvantages that the Plains Indians had in their conflicts with white settlers?
2			Describe the process by which the United States asserted control over New Mexico. What role did Mexican immigrants play in the region?
3			What led to the increasing Anglo-European hostility toward the Chinese in California? What were the social and public policy results of this hostility?
4			What were the reasons for the late nineteenth century boom on migration to the West from the eastern United States and Europe?
5			Describe the typical pattern of development and decline in the mining regions. What was life like for men and women in the mining camps and towns?
6			Describe the origins, purposes, and practices of the "long drive" and the "open range" cattle industry. What ended this brief but colorful boom? What was the long-run nature of the cattle business?
7			Describe the general pattern of Indian wars from the 1850s to the 1880s. Why were the Indians unable to build on their victory at the Battle of Little Bighorn?
8			What fundamental change in federal Indian policy was embodied in the Dawes Act? What were the results of this new policy?
9			How did the completion of the transcontinental railroad and other lines in the region affect the settlement of the war? How were the railroads financed?
10			What were the three main grievances of the late nineteenth century farmer? How were these complaints compounded by attitudinal factors?

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