How did people’s perceptions and use of the Great Plains change….ppt

How did people’s perceptions and use of the Great Plains change after the Civil War? Because of new technologies, people saw the Great Plains not as a “treeless wasteland” but as a vast area to be settled. How did people adapt to life in the challenging environment of the Great Plains? Inventions/adaptations Barbed wire Steel plows Dry farming Sod houses Beef cattle raising Wheat farming Windmills Railroads Describe the physical features/climate of the Great Plains? Flatlands that rise gradually from east to west Land eroded by wind and water Low rainfall Frequent dust storms How did advances in transportation link resources, products, and markets? Moving natural resources (e.g., copper and lead) to eastern factories Moving iron ore deposits to sites of steel mills (e.g., Pittsburgh) Transporting finished products to national markets What are some examples of manufacturing areas that were located near centers of population? Textile industry—New England Automobile industry—Detroit Steel industry—Pittsburgh Why did westward expansion occur? Opportunities for land ownership Technological advances, including the Transcontinental Railroad Possibility of wealth created by the discovery of gold and silver Adventure A new beginning for former slaves Why did immigration increase? Hope for better opportunities Religious freedom Escape from oppressive governments Adventure jobs Why did cities develop? Specialized industries including steel (Pittsburgh), meat packing (Chicago) Immigration from other countries Movement of Americans from rural to urban areas for job opportunities What inventions created great change and industrial growth in the United States? Lighting and mechanical uses of electricity (Thomas Edison) Telephone service (Alexander Graham Bell) What challenges faced Americans as a result of those social and technological changes? Settlement houses, such as Hull House founded by Jane Addams Political machines that gained power by attending to the nee