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| 5451940571 | End of the Frontier | Occurred in 1890 when the government closed the frontier, which was the unknown land land in the West of the United States. This ended the era of the frontier, a place where a large part of American culture was sculpted and a place where people went to find new opportunities | 0 | |
| 5451940572 | Transcontinental railroad | A railroad that connected the east United States to the West United States. It was chartered by the government, and built by two companies. One company, the Central Pacific, consisting of mostly Chinese immigrants, started in Sacramento and built toward Omaha, while the Union Pacific, consisting of mainly Irish immigrants, started in Omaha and worked toward Sacramento. The railroad was complete when the two companies met at Promotory Point, Utah, in 1869 (Golden Spike) | 1 | |
| 5451940573 | Morill Land Grant Act | A land grant act passed in 1862 that granted each state with 30,000 acres of public land for each senator and representative. This land would be sold, and the money would be used to establish schools that primarily taught people agricultural methods. It is important because it changed higher education, changing it from classical studies to applied studies; things students would use later on in life. Proposed by Vermont senator Justin Smith Morill | 2 | |
| 5451940574 | Homestead Act 1862 | Granted 160 acres of western land to families who agreed to cultivate it for five years. Because the land, weather, and isolation were often a problem, it lead to the invention of new techniques, such as dry farming. Over 500,000 people claimed land under this act | 3 | |
| 5451940575 | Buffalo Bill Cody | An American bison hunter, scout, and showman who was born in Iowa in 1846. He is important because his performing show, Buffalo Bill's Wild West, colorfully portrayed cowboys and the Indian Wars | 4 | |
| 5451940576 | Sitting Bull | The Sioux Indian chief who predicted victory at the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876, where the Sioux defeated George Custer and the Seventh Cavalry. After spending several years in Canada, he was forced to surrender to U.S. forces, as his tribe was on the brink of starvation. He was shot while being arrested in 1890 because it was feared that he would influence the Ghost Dance movement | 5 | |
| 5451940577 | Little Big Horn | The 1876 Battle where the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians defeated General George C. Custer' federal troops. The battle was a result of the increased conflict between the Sioux and U.S. authorities after gold was found in the hills of South Dakota in 1874. Showed the Indians defiance to living on reservations and having their homeland intruded by Americans | 6 | |
| 5451940578 | The Dawes Severalty Act | An act passed by congress in 1887 with the goal of assimilating natives into American culture. It broke up existing Indian land and divided it into allotments meant for individuals and families. It granted native families 160 acres of land, as long as they remained on the land for at least 25 years. It also established boarding schools, such as Carlisle, wear natives would learn American culture. The natives resented the act, and responded with the Ghost Dance movement | 7 | |
| 5451940579 | Ghost Dance Movement | A religious movement that gained popularity in 1889 when a Pioute man named Wavoka had a vision that the world would end, and that the white man would perish while Indians would inherit the land. To be saved, Indians would have to purge themselves of white culture, and return to Indian values. The Ghost Dance was seen as a threat by the United States, who ended it by massacring 300 unarmed natives at Wounded Knee in 1890. Sitting Bull and the Sioux adopted it | 8 | |
| 5451940580 | Wounded Knee | The massacre of 300 defenseless natives by the United States Army in 1890. It occurred in South Dakota, and was a response to the Ghost Dance movement. This massacre ended the Indian Wars, and the frontier was closed shortly after | 9 | |
| 5451940581 | Newlands Reclamation Act | A 1902 federal law that funded irrigation of arid land in 20 states. It was drawn up by Congressman Francis Newlands of Nevada. It is important because it led to the damming of many U.S. rivers, and led to the United States Reclamation Service | 10 | |
| 5451940582 | Standard time zones | 4 time zones were Introduced in 1883 because of the transcontinental railroad. They were necessary to create a uniform train schedule for arrivals and departures. They are still used today | 11 | |
| 5451940583 | Mail order magazines and rural free delivery | Programs the arouse in the wake of the Homestead Act of 1862. Because most of the settlers of the western lands lived in isolation, catalogs and magazines were mailed to them, so they could have access to products despite not having neighbors. Rural free delivery delivered products to the isolated homesteaders, allowing for easier access to goods despite not having neighbors | 12 | |
| 5451940584 | Long drive | The cattle route from Texas to Kansas, which included the Chisholm Trail, established in 1864. Cowboys made this trip, and often did very hard work for little money. This method of transport was severely limited with the 1889 invention of barbed wire, which limited open grazing | 13 | |
| 5451940585 | Open range ranching | Popular during the 1860's, 70's, and 80's. Cowboys would round up cattle on the open range, and herd them to be transported and sold. This method of herding declined once harsh and varying weather wiped out large herds, and with the invention of barbed wire | 14 | |
| 5451940586 | Barbed wire | Invented in 1889 by Joseph Glidden. It was used by western settlers who did not want cattle freely grazing on their land. It's invention severely limited open grazing, and helped lead to the decline of the cattle industry | 15 |
