Westward Expansion Study Guide

What was the main purpose of the Homestead Act?

• to bring an end to cattle drives

• to encourage settlement of the Great Plains

• to defeat the Native Americans

• to provide a market for steel plows

Which of the following was NOT one of the challenges typically faced by homesteaders?

• high cost of land

• harsh weather

• large amounts of grasshoppers

• thick sod

Why were cattle drives profitable for Texas ranchers?

• cattle grew fatter as they traveled the trails

• people paid to watch the cattle drives

• cattle could be sold for more money in the East

• railroads paid ranchers to use their services

Which of the following best describes a reason why cattle drives came to an end?

• thousands of cattle ranchers moved west in search of gold

• consumers became more interested in gold than cattle

• farmers on the Great Plains began raising cattle

• they were no longer necessary once railroads reached Texas

Why would a homesteader on the Great Plains have cheered the invention of barbed wire?

• Homesteaders needed something to mark the boundaries between farms.

• Wooden fence rotted too quickly.

• The methods of dry farming required barbed wire to work.

• Homesteaders needed something to keep cattle from destroying their crops.

Why did thousands of settlers head west during the 1800s?

• life in the east was boring

• the government was giving away free land

• they wanted to be the first to read the Pacific Ocean

• factories were booming in the west

The greatest change in communication during the early 1800s was the use of the

• telephone

• computer

• telegraph

• internet

Many people went west to look for gold, silver, and copper. Which of the following would have been true at this time?

• Most of the miners worked by themselves or in small group with few striking it rich.

• Most of the miners struck it rich.

• Most of the miners were paid a salary.

• none of the above

How did the telegraph impact life in America?

• it allowed a speedy way to send messages over long distances

• it lead to the development of the railroad

• it allowed for the development of the transcontinental railroad

• it was a mail delivery system that took 10 days

What does the term 49er mean?

• term used to describe men who were 49 years old

• term used to describe men who traveled west to look for gold around 1849

• term used to describe all the people who lived in America around 1949

• none of the above