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Bureau of Indian Affairs - Boarding Schools
This was put into place in an attempt to enhance the quality of life, to promote economic opportunity, and carry out the responsibility of protecting the Natives. At this time this was a step in the right direction for the Indian people. -
Homestead act of 1862
The Homestead act was enacted during the civil war in 1862. This act stated that anyone who had not bore arms against the U.S. government was welcome to 160 acres of government surveyed land. The only hitch was that the settlers were expected to somehow improve the land. This would be the reason many moved West. Without the Homestead Act the West might have never been greatly populated. -
Pacific Railroad Act of 1862
This would authorize two railroad companies to construct the railroad that would connect the East and West. This would cut the trip from six months to six days and would change the way the world would travel forever. -
Morrill Land Grant Acts
This act gave each state 30,000 Acres of Federal land. This new land grant allowed the new Western states to establish colleges for their citizens. This allowed for new opportunities to thousands of farmers that were previously excluded from higher education. Many were unable to gain higher educations and this would be a big motive for many to attend college and gain higher education. -
Sand Creek Massacre
The Southern Cheyenne and Arapahoe Indians were massacred by Colonel John Chivington's Colorado volunteers in Sand Creek. This would show the Indian people that things would only get worse if they were not willing to give up their lands for the settlers. -
Medicine Lodge Treaty, Chief Satanta
Three treaties that were signed by the Federal government and southern plains Indian tribes, this treaty would relocate the Native Americans to reservations in Indian territory. They did this in an attempt to bring peace. This would soon change the way many Indians lived and would cause more to be pushed into the reservations. -
Crazy Horse and Red Cloud, Fort Laramie treaty in 1868
The treaty was put into place to end the conflicts between the whites and Sioux Indian people who agreed to settle within the Black Hills reservation in the Dakota Territory. This would continue the governments push for Indians to move into reservations. -
Great Sioux War
The Great Sioux War was a series of battles and negotiations between the Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and the United States. The war broke out due to the U.S. wanting to take Black Hills due to the gold that was found on the land. The Native people would soon surrender and like many others they would be pushed into reservations. -
Little Bighorn
It was the most decisive Native American victory, but became known as the worst U.S. Army defeat in the history of Plains and Indian War. This would show the U.S. that some Indians were not ready to lose their land and that they would be willing to fight back. -
Chief Joseph
Chief Joseph is important to history because he knew his small tribe was no match for U.S. army and would retreat in order to save his people. Chief Joseph would manage to save his people from a brutal death against the U.S. army. -
Exodusters
Name African Americans were given when they were migrating from states. This was the first African American migration. This would allow for African Americans to spread out and escape the discrimination in the South. -
Dawes Severalty Act
This act would attempt to turn Indian people into farmers and landowners. This would once again push Indians out of their homelands and farther away from their culture because it split the tribe members up, viewing them all as individuals. -
Massacre at Wounded Knee
On December 29, the U.S. Army’s 7th Cavalry surrounded a band of Ghost Dancers, near Wounded Knee Creek and began to siege the Native Americans weapons. As this was happening, a fight broke out between an Indian and a U.S. soldier and a shot was fired. To this day it is unclear who fired the first shot, but nonetheless a severe massacre would follow that gun shot, causing the loss of many lives. This would give the U.S. more reason to push the Natives into reservations.
