The Miners & The NAtive Americans
Module One Lesson Two Assignment Two
The Importance of Money in the West
During both the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the Comstock Lode Discovery of 1859, many people flocked West. The reason for this was the widespread belief that one could strike it rich. That belief was instilled by multiple reports of miners in the West making a lot of money due to finding gold or silver.
Picture is of a miner finding gold.
Link http://www.oldwesthistorystore.com/_wizardimages/grizzledprospectorgold.jpg
Indian Wars Battles
The Battle of Little Bighorn was fought between Native Americans and the U.S. 7th Cavalry. The conflict occurred when Native Americans refused to move off of their land. The White folk weren't happy with this, and the 7th Cavalry was called to battle. They failed miserably against the Natives. It's also referred to as Custer's land stand.
The Sand Creek Massacre happened on November 29th, 1864. The result of the conflict was very few Whites dead and many Natives dead or mortally wounded.
The Battle of Wounded Knee was equally as sad. U.S. soldiers opened fire on many unarmed Native Americans, killing 150 of them.
Picture is of the Battle of Little Bighorn.
Link:http://shelledy.mesa.k12.co.us/staff/computerlab/images/W_CO_History8_Little_Big_Horn_Battle.jpg
The Dawes Act
The Dawes Act was enacted in 1887. It allowed and tried to force the act of assimilation upon the Native Americans. Many things followed this, including schools built to beat the, "Savage," out of the, "Injun," children. This act endorsed the process, even allowing the president to survey the Native Americans to come up with a plan for assimilation.
Picture is a political cartoon of how the Dawes Act both hurt and stole from the Native Americans.
Link: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/47/79/f9/4779f91db2fb05edd39fd2a9f6d36b8b.jpg
A Century of Dishonor
A Century of Dishonor by Helen Hunt Jackson was and is a book that underlines the plight of the Native Americans in the 19th Century. It also told of the travesties that plagued the average Native American of the time. Many people at the time saw it as an eye-opener.
Picture is of the book, "Century of Dishonor"
Link: http://www.whale.to/a/9780486426983_p0_v1_s260x420.jpg