““The Wild West”The Wild West”

Mr. BachHudson High SchoolUnited States History

Surveying the WestSurveying the West

• Federal government surveys the Louisiana Purchase.

• Divides territory into 8x8 plots to be sold.

Sodbusters!Sodbusters!

• Farmers use the steel plow to till the prairie.

• Must fight harsh prairie winters to make a living.

Sooners (rather than Sooners (rather than later)later)

• Indian Territory (Oklahoma) opened to settlement by the Homestead Act.

• Oklahoma Land Rush

Cattle KingdomsCattle Kingdoms

• Soil unsuitable for farming instead is used for grazing.

• Texas Longhorns – breed developed that thrives on the open range.

End of the Open RangeEnd of the Open Range

• Barbed wire allows farmers and ranchers to mark off their respective lands

Mining TownsMining Towns

• Discovery of gold and silver deposits in the West lures fortune seekers.

Boom Town to Ghost Boom Town to Ghost TownTown

Making $ from the Making $ from the MinersMiners

• Services that arose to support the miners became very profitable and led to more permanent communities.– San Francisco

The Dime NovelsThe Dime Novels

The Real WestThe Real West

Wild Bill HickockCalamity Jane