Embedded Files
We are HFE. We are HERE. We are FAMILY. We are EXCEPTIONAL.
In this unit, students will understand the impact of movement and migration on the expanding United States. By understanding the role of conflict and change, students will learn how the United States began to spread its influence throughout the western world. They will also gain knowledge about the importance of technological innovations created during this time. Students will then finally use the theme of location to identify important physical and man-made features of the United States.
SS5H1 Describe how life changed in America at the turn of the century.
a. Describe the role of the cattle trails in the late 19th century; include the Black Cowboys of Texas, the Great Western Cattle Trail, and the Chisholm Trail.
I can define cattle trails and their role in the late 19th century. (Knowledge)
I can describe the role of the Black Cowboys of Texas in relation to the cattle trails in the late 19th century. (Knowledge)
I can describe the role of the Great Western Cattle Trail in relation to the cattle trails in the late 19th century. (Knowledge)
I can describe the role of the Chisholm Trail in relation to the cattle trails in the late 19th century. (Knowledge)
I can describe how life changed in America at the turn of the century as a result of the cattle trails. (Knowledge)
With the end of the Civil War, the cattle industry both grew and declined along with the development of cattle trails, barbed wire, and the development of railroads. Cattle ranches in Texas fed large numbers of people in the East and eventually in the West. This growth was due to the development of the railroads. As rail lines and railheads developed, cattle were shipped quickly over long distances where larger profits were possible in urban areas. The two specific cattle trails are known as The Chisholm Trail and the Great Western Cattle Trail. These trails were essential in the development of the West, and in its role in providing beef to feed those in the growing industrialized cities of the East.
The Great Western Trail existed both north and south of Dodge City, Kansas, and allowed ranchers to move large numbers of cattle to this railroad hub for conveyance further east. It was known as a famous path used by cowboys, that ran from Texas to Kansas, ending in Dodge City. The Chisholm Trail allowed cowboys to take cattle from the ranches of Texas to railroad hubs in Kansas. Interestingly, this trail was named for Jesse Chisholm, of Cherokee ancestry, who blazed the trail in his wagon in 1866. He traveled through modern-day Oklahoma to his trading post near Wichita. Later, ranchers followed his trail with cattle. This was a remote trail, which allowed the cowboys to move cattle quickly to railway hubs or heads in Kansas. Over time, the development of the railroad across Texas as well as the development of barb wire [also known as barbed wire] made cattle drives less necessary.
The impact the cattle trails made in the late 19th century:
The cattle trails were a response to the growth of populated urban centers in the east.
The cattle trails provided economic opportunities for freed slaves in Texas.
The cattle trails led to the use of barb wire by farmers in the Great Plains.
Cattle Trails
Cattle Trails
Cattle trails were known routes, or paths, used by cowboys to drive cattle great distances, often to get their herds of cattle to railway stations so that the cattle could be transported by train. The Great Western Cattle Trail saw over seven million cattle and horses pass through Texas and Oklahoma to railheads in Kansas and Nebraska – an important factor in developing the cattle industry as far north as Wyoming and Montana. It was longer in length and carried cattle for two more years than the Chisholm Trail. The Chisholm Trail was a cattle trail that ran from Texas, north through Oklahoma, and into Kansas. Texas cowboys used it to drive herds to Kansas towns where the cattle could then be loaded onto trains and shipped east to market.
During this time the Black Cowboys of Texas gained historical prominence in their assistance in developing the cattle industry in Texas. Some had previously been enslaved, and others were the descendants of former slaves. The Black Cowboys were freed slaves who made their way west to places like Texas, following the Civil War. Large numbers of these people worked as ranch hands driving cattle to railheads in Kansas and Oklahoma. Following the Civil War life was better on the open range, where they experienced less open discrimination than in the south and more urban environments. Some individual Black cowboys of Texas such as Nat Love, Bose Ikard, Isom Dart, and Bill Pickett.
b. Describe the impact on American life of the Wright brothers (flight), George Washington Carver (science), Alexander Graham Bell (communication), and Thomas Edison (electricity).
I can identify the Wright brothers and describe how the Wright brothers' work on flying impacted American life. (Reasoning)
I can identify George Washington Carver and describe how George Washington Carver's work in science impacted American life. (Reasoning)
I can identify Alexander Graham Bell and describe how Alexander Graham Bell's work in communication impacted American life. (Reasoning)
I can identify Thomas Edison and describe how Thomas Edison's work in electricity impacted American life. (Knowledge) (Reasoning)
The Wright Brothers (Orville and Wilbur) went into business as bicycle salesmen in Ohio in the late 19th century. These two brothers built the world’s first successful airplane and flew it at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Like many scientifically minded people of their era, they were fascinated by the possibility of machines that would allow humans to fly. In 1903, their glider survived a 12-second flight from the dunes at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Others were working simultaneously toward this achievement, and the Wright Brothers’ flight ignited a national passion for aviation. Within two decades, airplanes could fly distances previously thought to be impossible. In a few short decades, airplanes would develop to the point that they began to be used for military purposes as well.
The Wright Brothers glider flight at Kitty Hawk
George Washington Carver's Laboratory at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama (source)
George Washington Carver was one of the first African Americans to make great contributions in American Science. He developed the crop rotation method. He improved the quality of life for millions of people through his scientific contributions in agriculture. The many products he developed from peanuts, sweet potatoes, and soybeans helped relieve southern agriculture of one-crop dependency, increased agricultural productivity, aided diet and nutrition, and raised poor farmers’ hopes.
Alexander Graham Bell is famous for his invention of the telephone. He was also an audiologist, speech therapist and teacher of the deaf. The telephone, invented in 1876 was a device that was almost immediately popular, and became so affordable that over time nearly every American household contains at least one telephone. The telephone dramatically changed communication throughout the country. Students might be very interested to see how telephones have changed over the years, and could explore early telephone development with party lines, telephone operators, and other aspects of this transformational tool of communication.
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Inventor and Scientist. In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. In 1877, he formed the Bell Telephone Company. During the 1870’s, he invented the telephone. His telephone greatly improved communication by allowing people to talk to one another despite being separated by great distances.
Thomas Edison, the wizard of Menlo Park was an inventor who has been credited with creating over a 1000 inventions. One invention he is credited with is a long-lasting filament for the electric light bulb. He is also known for developing the phonograph or record player as well as developing motion pictures. His inventions very much relied on electricity and creating machines that used electricity to solve problems for and enhancing everyday life. He was not only an inventor but also was a successful businessman, marketer, and manufacturer.
Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in 1877, a device that for the first time recorded sounds and played them back. He was an inventor responsible for inventing the phonograph, the motion picture camera and later, the electric light bulb, as well as GE, the company he co-founded.
c. Explain how William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt expanded America’s role in the world; include the Spanish-American War and the building of the Panama Canal.
I can identify William McKinley and explain his role in the Spanish-American War and the building of the Panama Canal. (Knowledge)
I can identify Theodore Roosevelt and explain his role in the Spanish-American War and the building of the Panama Canal. (Knowledge)
I can explain how America's role in the world expanded as result of the Spanish-American War. (Reasoning)
I can explain how America’s role in the world expanded as a result of building of the Panama Canal. (Reasoning)
William McKinley is best known for being president when the United States acquired Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines. At the beginning of 1897, William McKinley entered office at a time when many U.S. citizens wanted the nation to expand. Later, he was assassinated in office in 1901.
McKinley reasons that he signed the declaration of war against Spain because the USS Maine which was in Cuba, which was under Spanish rule, and he felt the need to protect American citizens during political fighting when it mysteriously exploded.
One-time Assistant Secretary of the Navy, he believed strongly in expansion and was known as an imperialist. He also thought that a war with Spain would be good for the country. In 1901 he became Vice President of the US, and president a few months later after President William McKinley was shot. Theodore Roosevelt emerged as a hero of the Spanish American War. During the war, Roosevelt led a group of volunteer cavalrymen known as Rough Riders on a famous charge at the Battle of San Juan Hill (also known as San Juan Heights). His heroism stood him in good stead when he became the youngest president in 1901. His policy choices as President included issuing Roosevelt’s Corollary, which confirmed the longstanding tradition created by the Monroe Doctrine in 1805, of American intervention in hemispheric affairs. During Roosevelt’s tenure as President, construction finally began on the Panama Canal.
The Spanish War began in 1898. While the war quickly spread to other parts of the world, US naval commander Commodore George Dewey set sail and easily took control of the Philippines. US forces defeated Spain in Cuba in just a few months. America's "splendid little war" with Spain may have been "little" in one respect — as a military conflict — but its historical consequences have been anything but small. With its victory and subsequent annexation of the Philippines, Hawaii, Guam, and Puerto Rico, the United States stood poised to enter the 20th century as an imperial power. People who favored the expansion of the United States and the conquering of foreign territories were called imperialists.
On August 15th, 1914, the Panama Canal opened, connecting the world’s two largest oceans and signaling America’s emergence as a global superpower. This was a A man-made waterway that officially opened in 1914. It allowed ships to travel back and forth between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans without having to sail round South America. American ingenuity and innovation had succeeded where, fifteen years earlier, the French had failed disastrously.
d. Describe the reasons people emigrated to the United States, from where they emigrated, and where they settled.
I can define immigration and describe reasons that people immigrated to the United States at the Turn of the Century. (Knowledge)
I can define emigrate and describe from where individuals emigrated at the Turn of the Century. (Knowledge)
I can describe where individuals settled after immigrating to the United States at the Turn of the Century. (Knowledge)
Many immigrants came to the United States for the reasons listed. These positive reasons listed "pulled" people to immigrate to the United States.
Good land for farming
Good jobs
Chance at a better life
Immigration
Immigration
The Turn of the Century is known as the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. It was a time of great change in the US. People took advantage of new inventions and moved West to seek new opportunities as the US became an imperialistic power.
Between 1900 and 1915, more than 15 million immigrants arrived in the United States. That was about equal to the number of immigrants who had arrived in the previous 40 years combined.
Push and pull factors resulted in large numbers of immigrants arriving in immigration stations located on Ellis Island in New York City and Angel Island in San Francisco. Push factors that led people to immigrate included religious and political upheaval, persecution, and economic instability. In contrast, people who left Europe were lured to America with promises of free, rich land for farming, jobs, and for opportunities to have a better life. These positive changes are often referred to as pull factors. Upon arrival in the United States immigrants often encountered crowded cities, harsh living and working conditions, and discrimination.
Page updated
Report abuse