History of the Western United States

Prior to the Civil War, Natives had problems with white settlers in the east and were relegated to lands west of the Mississippi, many of them being transplanted to the Oklahoma Territory. The U.S. government promised to look out for the Indians, but as history proclaims, this never really happened. Disagreement between the Indians and the Army caused a number of battles to be fought.

The Dawes Act of 1887 wanted to Americanize the Indians. Reservations were divided up, Indians were asked to give up tribal loyalties in order to gain citizenship and between 1887 and 1934 the Indians lost most, if not all, of their reservation land.

Following the Indian emergence in the west, the finding of gold and silver brought settlers swarming in from the east to strike it rich. Along with the gold seekers came farmers and ranchers. Herds of cattle dotted the landscape, and grew larger with the coming of the railroad that could take their meat to the large markets of the east.

The American cowboy was born by virtue of the many livestock ranches in the west, and there is cowboy flavor in many regions of the west still present today. It is not uncommon to see cowboys roaming the streets of Cheyenne, Wyoming and Butte, Montana even today.

The climate of the west was also a big draw for easterners growing tired of the long, cold, snowy winters. The west offered mild winter weather along with almost 365 days of sunshine.

The west is still a favorite spot to live and bring many new residents from the east and mid-west every year.