The Railway
How much did building the railway cost?
$2 billion
What were 4 of the challenges the people on the Great Plains faced?
1. locusts 2. no building materials for houses 3. tornadoes 4. high heat in the summer and therefore fires
What is the connection between Daniel Boone and Abraham Lincoln?
Lincoln's grandfather used the same trail into Kentucky Daniel Boone created years before
How long was the journey (time) by wagon from East to Oregon?
5 months
Which word means the same thing as huge disaster destroying the lives of many
plague
What were the reasons the Chinese laborers were brought to the US to work on the Railroad?
1. because they were cheaper to get than moving people across the continent
2. they were poor so they came willingly to work
3. the belief was the Chinese had experience building the Great Wall
How many tornadoes touch down in the Great Plains each year and how fast do they travel?
400 tornadoes / year 200 MPH
Describe Jed Smith with 4 adjectives
religious, brave, smart, strong, rich
Why did the frontiersmen travel to the West?
to get a better life
Before the railway how long was a journey from the east coast to the west coast of the US? How did the railway change this?
Before - 5-6 months After - 6 days
Where did the 2 railway companies connect the railway?
in Utah
Why do so many tornadoes develop in Tornado Alley?
because the great plains is flat, with no mountains or trees so tornadoes have nothing to break their development.
Give 4 facts about Lincoln's early life.
1. grew up with his dad
2. His mom died
3. he worked hard
4. he used the Mississippi river to sell goods downriver
5. grew up in Indiana in the woods.
What was the first piece of bad luck that happened to the Donners?
their wagon axle broke
Which word means the same thing as give permission, to allow, to permit
greenlight
1. Union Pacific - Omaha Nebraska
2. Central Pacific - Sacramento California
What was the main reason that the settlers moved back East?
the locusts devastated the entire region eating all the food.
How long would it take 1 family to clear 15 acres of land for planting in Indiana?
3 year
What happened to George Donner at the end?
He was found with his head split open and his brain removed.
How is gold formed?
magma is cooled and pressurized. This forms quartz. Inside the quartz, there is gold which is released after erosion.
What was the speed of building the railway going through the Sierra Nevada and then AFTER the Sierra Nevada? (per day)
Track laying goes from 10 inches to 6 miles / day
What are the three different Acts discussed in this class.
Explain each one
1. Indian Removal Act - Jackson's forced relocation of Native Americans onto reservations
2. Pacific Railway Act - Lincoln's transcontinental railrway
3. Homestead Act - free land give away in Oklahoma
Why did Daniel Boone defy the King both times?
for freedom from the English and then again for freedom to travel westward
Explain about the land give away.
1. Woman and ex-slaves benefited
2. filing an application for land.
3. 160 acres of land / total 10% of the US given away
4. stipulation was that people had to stay on the land for 5 years
Who are the three presidents we learnt about in this class and what did they do?
1. Jefferson - made the Louisiana Purchase
2. Jackson -Indian Removal Act
3. Lincoln - created the Transcontinental Railway, implemented the Homestead act