The first transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869. The railroad shipped goods from west to east and east to west. Now farmers and ranchers were able to transfer their crops and cattle to the east. How would life have been different in the west if the first transcontinental railroad wasn’t completed?
Railroads helped make the life of ranchers easier. No longer did ranchers have to risk their cattle on long cattle drives in order to sell them. Cattle drives could be dangerous or risky because of the long journey they have to take. Railroads allowed ranchers to ship their cattle to east much faster. The Great Plains was called the Cattle Kingdom because of the large number of cattle there.
The Homestead Act of 1862 provided a lot of farmland for people in the Great Plains. A person would earn 160 acres for free if they lived on it and farm it for five years. If you do not farm it for five years you lose it to someone else. Since there was so much wheat grown in the Great Plains it was called the Great American Breadbasket. Do you think you could live on the land for five years to get it free or would you leave early and lose the land? Explain why?
If you lived in the west during this time would you rather be a farmer or a rancher? Why?
Life would be different in the west if the transcontinental railroad wasn't finished because cowboys would have needed to go on many cattle drives. Long cattle drives were dangerous and risky. It would have also been different because people in the west would not have been able to get the goods they needed to live.
ReplyDeleteI would have stayed on the land for five years because I like to work with the animals such as cows, horses, and chickens. There would be a lot of time to breed the animals . The animals can run around on 160 acres for free.
If I lived in the west I would be a rancher because I like to work with the animals . I also wouldn't have to worry about crops getting destroyed. Ranchers also do not need to have as much equipment to work as farmers do. Ranching is the life for me.
I would be a framer because I think that I would be great at farming .
ReplyDeleteHow would life have been different in the west if the first transcontinental railroad wasn’t completed? It would be hard for farmers to ship there goods. Like if the farmer was in Iowa and his goods would have to go to Boston. It would take moths to get there on horse but on train it would take three days.
ReplyDeleteI would rather be a rancher because i love to work with animals. To be a rancher it would be a lot easier you would not be as hard to work with the tools and farmers have to worry about the crops getting destroyed and rancher just had to bread animals.
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