American Society and The American West
American Society and the American West. What is the American West? There is some discussion among historians as to what the American West is. Is it geographic—anything West of the Mississippi River? Is it a state of mind—Americans moving West and forging a new life out of the land?
b. 1890 Federal Census. There was a declaration that the “frontier” no longer existed.
i. In response to this census, Frederick Jackson Turner wrote his very famous “Frontier Thesis.” In this thesis, he says that moving west led to the creation of uniquely American traditions and culture, cementing the importance of the West to United States history, and also making the distinction between American culture and the rest of the world, and in particular Europe. Take a look at this short video on Turner’s “Frontier Thesis”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GeGvhfX4cw
1. His thesis is seen by historians as a place to begin, but Turner leaves a lot out. He talks about the impact of the West on Americans, but what about the impact of Americans on the land? Farming on the Great Plains—a dry, drought-prone climate—could leach nutrients from the soil and make dust bowls more likely. Mining also affected the land as Americans dug or blasted their way to much needed minerals.
2. Also, the land Americans move onto in the latter half of the 19th century—the Great Plains region—was not devoid of peoples. Native American reservation lands and Great Plains tribes were very much there, and Americans moving onto these lands led to conflicts, wars, and bloodshed, which very much impacted Native Americans negatively and tragically.
II. Why did Americans want to move west?
a. Land. Source of livelihood.
i. 1862 Homestead Act—160 acres of land for $1.25 an acre. Cheap land available for those who could afford it.
1. The Great Plains was problematic. The land was flat and windy with a dry climate. There were very few trees.
ii. Mining. The Second Industrial Revolution led to the need for natural resources and minerals, like coal and iron ore. Some moved out West to work for mining companies.
III. Movement West and Native Americans
a. Settlers moved onto western lands, but those lands were not unoccupied. Native American tribes owned the lands, either as historical tribal lands or reservations. Sioux Chief Red Cloud in 1870 said this: “The white children have surrounded me and have left me nothing but an island.”
b. As settlers from the United States moved onto lands owned by Native American tribes, these tribes fought against them. The settlers had the federal government on their side in a number of ways, eventually leading to fewer tribal lands and more reservations. Click here for a map to see the shrinkage of Native American lands by the 19th century: http://www.openculture.com/2018/05/interactive-map-shows-the-seizure-of-over-1-5-billion-acres-of-native-american-land-between-1776-and-1887.html
c. The United States government viewed reservation lands as the “middle ground” to assimilation. The idea was to remove Native American tribes from tribal lands, thus opening those lands to American capitalism, and moving the tribes to reservations until those tribes were “assimilated” into American society. Assimilation is a word with layers of meaning. First, the word’s basic definition in the sense of 19th century reservation policy is to absorb Native Americans into American culture.
The implication is that American culture is stronger and superior, and that Native American culture should be lost in this transition. There are very much racist undertones to the word, and to its application when it came to reservation policy.
i. Native Americans forced onto reservations were not left alone by the United States government, bringing very much into question the sovereignty (or the ability to be self-governing) of those tribes.
For example, crimes committed on reservation lands could be investigated by U.S. government officials. Also, there were active efforts by the U.S. government to “Americanize” Native American tribes, forcing the concept of assimilation.
1. Cherokee Tobacco Case, 1870
a. U.S. Congress passed a law that levied a tax on tobacco. Cherokee tobacco producers refuse to pay the tax, citing the treaty they had with the U.S. government as evidence of exemption.
The Supreme Court rules against the Cherokee Nation, saying: “a treaty may supersede a prior act of Congress, and an act of Congress may supersede a prior treaty,” basically rendering treaties changeable at the discretion of Congress
2. Native American Boarding Schools
a. Carlisle Indian Industrial School
i. In Pennsylvania. Wanted to assimilate Native American children by forcibly taking them from their families and placing them into these schools. The slogan of the Carlisle school was this: “To civilize the Indian, get him into civilization.
To keep him civilized, let him stay.” (Please see the additional readings listed under the lesson “American West” for more information on Native American boarding schools)
3. Dawes Severalty Act
a. The president can divide tribal lands. Essentially gives the U.S. government the ability to take away the communal tribe ownership of lands and force a concept of individual land ownership.
ii. Native American resistance to assimilation and reservation policy in the latter part of the 19th century.
1. Unfortunately, the near extinction of the buffalo negatively affected Plains tribes
a. Buffalo nearly went extinct for a number of reasons
i. Weather
ii. Increased competition over buffalo hides
iii. Railroads—the railroad companies did not want the buffalo on their tracks, and so they hired people to kill them.
2. Battle of Little Big Horn, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM4eQBpfGIg
3. Battle of Wounded Knee
a. Sioux began to listen to Paiute man, Wovoka, a self-proclaimed holy man whose message began in Nevada and spread across the Plains. Wovoka’s message encouraged something called the “Ghost Dance,” a reitualistic, mystical gathering that was supposed to bring visions, and according to Wovoka, these visions should include a return of buffalo herds and the white man disappearing from the Plains.
Agents on Sioux reservations were nervous, and said this might lead to, in their minds, “rebellion.” So, 350 men from the U.S. 7th cavalry go to Wounded Knee, South Dakota. Fighting broke out, and soldiers turned machine guns onto the Native Americans, killing 200 people. See also “Ghost Dance,” one of the required videos for the American West lesson.
