The Westward Spirit Argoprep Week 4 1

Which quote from the text supports the inference that the Homestead Act was successful in its goal to encourage people to move to the west?

• The Homestead Act allowed any head of household, or individual over the age of twenty-one-including unmarried women-to receive a parcel of 160 acres for only a nominal filing fee.

• All that recipients were required to do in exchange was to "improve the land" within a period of five years of taking possession.

• The standards for improvement were minimal: Owners could clear a few acres, build small houses or barns, or maintain livestock.

• Under this act, the government transferred over 270 million acres of public domain land to private citizens.

Which word is a synonym for "pivotal" as it is used in the sentence below:

"The Pacific Railway Act was pivotal in helping settlers move west more quickly, as well as move their farm products, and later cattle and mining deposits, back east."

• Minor

• Expensive

• Early

• Important

Which statement best describes what the government meant by the phrase "improve the land" when it made this a condition for receiving property in the west?

• To make some effort to settle on the land with a home or farm

• To raise livestock such as cattle

• To build a permanent home

• To develop a community of several settlers that would support one another.

What is not an example of how the United States government protected settlers who migrated west?

• Building the railroads

• Building forts

• Offering settlers protection from native tribes

• Helping settlers during times when water or food were scarce

The main way the United States government encouraged people and businesses to move to the western territories was by...

• Building forts to protect them from warring indigenous people

• Providing land to women as well as men

• Giving away land for free or very low costs

• Intervening during a war with Mexico to make sure settlers and railroad owners were safe

What area did the first transcontinental railroad cover?

• From the east coast to the west coast

• From New York to California

• From New York to Nebraska

• From Nebraska to California