5.2 Guided Reading

What was the main idea expressed in the section "Settling on the Great Plains"?

• The Great Plains were unsuitable for farming.

• Settlers on the Great Plains transformed the land despite great hardships.

• The Homestead Act was the only reason people moved to the Great Plains.

• The Great Plains region was primarily used for hunting rather than farming.

What does the term "exoduster" refer to in the context of the Great Plains?

• A type of farming equipment used in the Great Plains.

• A person who left the Great Plains due to the Dust Bowl.

• An African American who migrated from the South to Kansas.

• A law that allowed for the settlement of the Great Plains.

What was the purpose of the Homestead Act as it relates to the Great Plains?

• It provided free land to settlers in the Great Plains.

• It established the first schools in the Great Plains.

• It was a law that protected the rights of Native Americans in the Great Plains.

• It was an act that regulated the use of natural resources in the Great Plains.

How did the railroads contribute to the settlement of the Great Plains?

• They discouraged settlement by making travel difficult.

• They provided transportation for hunting expeditions.

• They made huge land grants to the railroads, which facilitated settlement.

• They only transported goods, not people, to the Great Plains.

What was the time span required to convert 400 million acres of forests and prairies into flourishing farms?

• Over 250 years, from the first settlement at Jamestown until 1870.

• Only 30 years, from 1870 to 1900.

• From 1850 to 1871, during the operation of the railroads.

• A century, from 1800 to 1900.

What was the main purpose of the Homestead Act of 1862?

• To provide free land to railroad companies

• To offer 160 acres of free land to any citizen or intended citizen who was head of the household

• To encourage European immigration to the United States

• To establish reservations for Native American tribes

Which group of people did most of the labor for the construction of the Union Pacific's section of the transcontinental railroad?

• Civil War veterans, Irish and Chinese immigrants, African Americans, and Mexican Americans

• European settlers and Scandinavian immigrants

• Land speculators and government agents

• Soldiers and officers from the Civil War

By what year had the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads completed the transcontinental railroad?

• By the spring of 1869

• By the end of 1880

• By the spring of 1868

• By the end of 1862

What nickname was given to Oklahoma due to the actions of land-hungry settlers during the land rush?

• The Homestead State

• The Sooner State

• The Land Rush State

• The Settler's Paradise

What percentage of settlers in Nebraska and Minnesota were immigrants by 1880?

• More than 70 percent

• About 50 percent

• Less than 30 percent

• Nearly 90 percent