Migration and Innovation

In the early 1840s, the United States, Canada, and Great Britain each claimed territories in Oregon. Waves of American settlers began moving west for the open space and a chance to start anew. Between 1843 and 1847, more than 11,000 Americans traveled to Oregon in wagon trains. The Homestead Act of 1862 drove more western migration by granting homesteaders 160 acres of land in exchange for cultivating it. The western territories were fertile, and farmers who settled reaped tremendous rewards from planting crops, though they struggled with the loneliness of their isolation from others. Discussion questions offer students an opportunity to explore the varied experiences of westward migration and settlement. A follow-up activity allows students take on the role of either a Cayuse native or a member of a white missionary family to participate in a modified restorative justice activity.

In the early 1840s, the United States, Canada, and Great Britain each claimed territories in Oregon. Waves of American settlers began moving west for the open space and a chance to start anew. Between 1843 and 1847, more than 11,000 Americans traveled to Oregon in wagon trains. The Homestead Act of 1862 drove more western migration by granting homesteaders 160 acres of land in exchange for cultivating it. The western territories were fertile, and farmers who settled reaped tremendous rewards from planting crops, though they struggled with the loneliness of their isolation from others. Discussion questions offer students an opportunity to explore the varied experiences of westward migration and settlement. A follow-up activity allows students take on the role of either a Cayuse native or a member of a white missionary family to participate in a modified restorative justice activity.

In 1848, pioneer John Sutter uncovered America’s first “motherlode” of gold in California, a discovery that transformed the landscape, the locals, and the lives of those who went West to seek their fortunes. In this activity, students will learn about the environmental and social changes brought about by the Gold Rush, and the experiences of white, African-American, Chinese, and Cherokee gold-seekers. As a follow-up activity, students will read primary and secondary source documents about the poor conditions and discrimination Chinese miners faced, and write a letter home from a miner’s perspective.

In 1848, pioneer John Sutter uncovered America’s first “motherlode” of gold in California, a discovery that transformed the landscape, the locals, and the lives of those who went West to seek their fortunes. In this activity, students will learn about the environmental and social changes brought about by the Gold Rush, and the experiences of white, African-American, Chinese, and Cherokee gold-seekers. As a follow-up activity, students will read primary and secondary source documents about the poor conditions and discrimination Chinese miners faced, and write a letter home from a miner’s perspective.

After the Civil War ended in 1865, reuniting the North and South, Americans were determined to unify the United States from East to West by rail. With government investment, two corporations, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, engaged in a race to build the most track the fastest, one going East and one going West,and join the two lines together. Thousands of immigrants from Ireland, China, Mexico, Germany and England, as well as Civil War veterans and formerly enslaved African-Americans, worked under harsh conditions to lay tracks, transforming a once-quiet landscape into a hub of industry. The Transcontinental Railroad contributed to massive growth in the cattle industry but also instigated new land conflicts with Native tribes and contributed to the extinction of the buffalo.  After watching the videos in this gallery, students will create a museum exhibit to celebrate the anniversary of the American Transcontinental Railroad, which turned 150 in 2019. In their exhibitions, students will demonstrate the transformative impacts of this technological achievement.

After the Civil War ended in 1865, reuniting the North and South, Americans were determined to unify the United States from East to West by rail. With government investment, two corporations, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, engaged in a race to build the most track the fastest, one going East and one going West,and join the two lines together. Thousands of immigrants from Ireland, China, Mexico, Germany and England, as well as Civil War veterans and formerly enslaved African-Americans, worked under harsh conditions to lay tracks, transforming a once-quiet landscape into a hub of industry. The Transcontinental Railroad contributed to massive growth in the cattle industry but also instigated new land conflicts with Native tribes and contributed to the extinction of the buffalo.  After watching the videos in this gallery, students will create a museum exhibit to celebrate the anniversary of the American Transcontinental Railroad, which turned 150 in 2019. In their exhibitions, students will demonstrate the transformative impacts of this technological achievement.

The Transcontinental Railroad was largely built by Chinese and Irish immigrants, against whom whites discriminated and vilified even as they worked. This clip includes descriptions of whites’ actions, alongside vivid descriptions of the methods used to create railroad track.

Push-pull factors prompted white farmers to migrate west. The move had significant impacts on Natives who rightfully occupied the western land and on the quality of the land itself. This segment focuses on the Sager family, whose wagon journey included overturned wagons, lost limbs, and illness.

During the Gold Rush, people seeking gold mined in unpleasant and dangerous conditions. Towns cropped up at the edges of mining areas, and men often drank and gambled when they weren’t mining. Few women in the field were paid for their work.