The ethnocentrism of Americans led them to believe that they had a right to expand and to impose their values and beliefs on the peoples and societies they encountered. As Americans looked to the west to expand their opportunities, they discovered that a prerequisite for the development of the west was the issue of water. In the arid west, whoever has rights to the precious streams, rivers, and basins of the west, is who was in control. In addition another issue important in the development of the west was, corporate interests specifically the railroad corporations. In May of 1862 the Homestead Act was passed and signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln. It was a U.S. law that enabled adult Americans to acquire ownership of land in the
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At the time of the Articles of Confederation, the major controversy related to land was measurement and pricing. Early methods for allocating unsettled land outside the original 13 colonies were arbitrary and chaotic. Boundaries were established by stepping off plots from geographical landmarks. As a result, overlapping claims and border disputes were common. John W. Powell saw that water management—mostly for irrigation—would be a pivotal issue throughout the arid Southwest, one that state governments would be wrestling with forever. So he proposed state boundaries based on watershed, as seen on his map. After having studied the land of the arid west,Powell was convinced that only a small fraction of the American west would be suitable for agriculture. Instead he proposed irrigation systems fed by a multitude of small dams and state borders based on watershed areas. Powell foresaw that irrigation issues would be a pressing issue in the west, therefore he proposed that drainage districts, as shown on his map, should be the fundamental unit of government in the west. Unfortunately, the rail companies had a different idea, lobbying for large-scale settlement and massive agricultural development. Powell recognized that the Federal and State governments had roles to play in the management of western lands. However, most of the responsibilities were reserved to local governments. These local governments would establish courts for the adjudication of questions of resource use. They would establish and enforce protection measures for common and private property.policy. The Federal government would be limited to a supportive administrative role. On the other hand the homestead system gave more power to the national government, thus easing the expansion of the railroad system. The Land Ordinance of 1785 finally implemented a standardized system of Federal land surveys that eased boundary
At the time of the Articles of Confederation, the major controversy related to land was measurement and pricing. Early methods for allocating unsettled land outside the original 13 colonies were arbitrary and chaotic. Boundaries were established by stepping off plots from geographical landmarks. As a result, overlapping claims and border disputes were common. John W. Powell saw that water management—mostly for irrigation—would be a pivotal issue throughout the arid Southwest, one that state governments would be wrestling with forever. So he proposed state boundaries based on watershed, as seen on his map. After having studied the land of the arid west,Powell was convinced that only a small fraction of the American west would be suitable for agriculture. Instead he proposed irrigation systems fed by a multitude of small dams and state borders based on watershed areas. Powell foresaw that irrigation issues would be a pressing issue in the west, therefore he proposed that drainage districts, as shown on his map, should be the fundamental unit of government in the west. Unfortunately, the rail companies had a different idea, lobbying for large-scale settlement and massive agricultural development. Powell recognized that the Federal and State governments had roles to play in the management of western lands. However, most of the responsibilities were reserved to local governments. These local governments would establish courts for the adjudication of questions of resource use. They would establish and enforce protection measures for common and private property.policy. The Federal government would be limited to a supportive administrative role. On the other hand the homestead system gave more power to the national government, thus easing the expansion of the railroad system. The Land Ordinance of 1785 finally implemented a standardized system of Federal land surveys that eased boundary