Essay On Western Settlement

There are many factors that promoted the settlement of the American Western frontier from 1865 to 1900 including; free land for western settlers, having a railroad to connect the east with the west, and the economy, which brought a lot of immigrants over in search of work. Free land was offered to western settlers through an act that passed called The Homestead Act. The settlement of the Western frontier brought people from different racial backgrounds in hopes of free land and to work on the railroad. The railroad would span from the west to the east, linking the two, sparking economic growth. There were people of all types of diverse backgrounds brought to the west in hopes of a better life including Chinese and Africa Americans. The West facilitated the growth of the economy and the development of the entire nation because of the railroad, the people brought to the West, and the promotion of economic growth. Many Americans were brought west due to the fact that free land was being offered to western settlers. There was a legislation that was put into effect on January 1st …show more content…
In addition to free land and the railroad, economic growth would expand western civilization. The railroad would help in bringing about the economy spurt, but there were also other things that would factor in as well. Ranching would bring a boost to the economy. Supplies for beef would plummet and this caused prices to increase. Cattle drives were launched and even though many were lost, the ones that made it brought in a significant amount of money. Mining was another source of the rising economy of the West. Mining was not a significant source of income for the individual, but it did work out for corporations. Mining also had an impact on the economy, through its massive resource extraction. There were several economic factors that led to the expansion of the Western