1860-1900 Economic Analysis

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The economic elements of 1860-1900 mainly involved the expansion of the railroad. The railroad greatly benefitted farmers. It opened up "more and more western lands for farming," this gave remote farmers the opportunity to sell their grain nationally (Keene, 451). It not only benefited farmers, but it also benefitted non-farmers such as engineers, firemen, and mechanics. The railroads opened lands across the West and provided employment for many who built the lines. These railroads also promoted urban growth. Cities that were only considered to be "significant centers of trade" became "major metropolises" (Keene, 452). The demand for certain items helped to diversify the economy and provide new opportunities for entrepreneurs. These economic …show more content…
Federal officials would negotiate treaties with the native tribes. They promised them permanent boundaries for their habitation and hunting grounds. Unfortunately, shortly after these treaties were signed, the Indians found whites had already started settling in their designated land. To add even more insult to injury, the government did nothing to fix the problem, they would just make the designated Native American land smaller (Keene, 458). This dishonoring of the treaty caused many problems and outbreaks of violence between the natives and the federal government. There were many rebellions and battles between the whites and the natives. Lots of innocent blood was spilled, especially that of women and children. However, despite all this betrayal, the government continued to make more treaties and the Native Americans continued to sign them. Many treaties were signed in the 1860s in order to “bring peace to the West and allow continued settlement by whites,” (Keene, 459). The federal government may have said they wanted “peace,” but when Native American land was found to be enriched with gold, they did nothing to stop white settlers from venturing onto Indian lands. Instead, they made the Native Americans, living on that land, move from their hunting grounds and go back to their reservations. The Native Americans did not appreciate having to leave their …show more content…
Helen Hunt Jackson “was one of the first” who protested against the cruel treatment of the Native Americans (Keene, 461). She was inspired by a lecture she heard in 1879 about the “plight of the Ponca tribe” in Connecticut (Keene, 461). A couple years later, in 1881, she published a book called A Century of Dishonor. This book told of the ill-considered and violent treatment of the Native Americans by the government of the United States. This book helped to open the door to more discussions about how the Native Americans should be treated, and it caused Congress to designate a commission with the sole purpose of studying Indian affairs and seeking a more humane policy. Sarah Winnemucca was the other woman who was standing up for the Native Americans. She was the granddaughter of a Northern Paiute chief and was educated by different white families in different states. She also translated for the army (Keene, 461). She tried to get the whites to take her seriously by calling herself an “Indian Princess,” which is an image that was somewhat created by the story of Pocahontas and ended up placing itself in American culture (Keene, 462). This strategy she employed gave her lots of respectful press coverage of her speeches and book she wrote titled, Life Among the Paiutes: Their Wrongs and Claims. The intellectual elements during this