RECONSTRUCTION 1865 1877
HOMESTEAD ACT
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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They wanted to create new cotton plantations using the land available on the frontier
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They wanted to move away from corrupt politicians and business owners who controlled the northern and southern cities
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The federal government was selling land in the Great Plains at cheap prices
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They heard gold had been discovered out west and went to work in the gold mines along the Great Plains
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Detailed explanation-1: -After 1865, thousands of settlers moved onto the Plains. Freed slaves went there to start a new life as freemen, or to escape economic problems after the Civil War. European immigrants flooded onto the Great Plains, seeking political or religious freedom, or simply to escape poverty in their own country.
Detailed explanation-2: -The Homestead Act encouraged western migration by providing settlers with 160 acres of land in exchange for a nominal filing fee.
Detailed explanation-3: -The Great Plains were sparsely populated until about 1600. Spanish colonists from Mexico had begun occupying the southern plains in the 16th century and had brought with them horses and cattle. The introduction of the horse subsequently gave rise to a flourishing Plains Indian culture.
Detailed explanation-4: -When the drought and dust storms showed no signs of letting up, many people abandoned their land. Others would have stayed but were forced out when they lost their land in bank foreclosures.