US History: Bonanza Farms and the 13th Amendment

Sodbuster and Bonanza Farm

• Sodbuster refers to farmers who broke the sod to cultivate land, pivotal in U.S. agriculture.
• Bonanza Farms were large-scale farms established by individuals who claimed vast tracts of land, focused on raising cattle and other livestock.

13th Amendment

• Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the U.S.
• Exceptions allowed for punishment post-conviction of a crime.

14th Amendment

• Granted citizenship to anyone born or naturalized in the U.S., including formerly enslaved individuals.
• Ensured all citizens received equal protection under the law and due process.

15th Amendment

• Prohibited denial of voting rights based on race, color, or prior servitude.
• Affirmed men’s right to vote regardless of race.

Homestead Act

• Offered 160 acres of federal land to anyone who committed to farming it.

Morrill Land-grant College Act

• Allocated federal lands to establish colleges aimed at enhancing agricultural and mechanical education.

Pacific Railway Act

• Encouraged development of the first transcontinental railway by providing government incentives to qualified individuals.

Freedmen's Bureau

• Established to assist displaced Southerners, including newly freed African Americans, by offering food, shelter, and land.

Special Field Order 15

• Redistribution of 400,000 acres of captured Confederate land to formerly enslaved individuals.

Sharecropping and Sharecroppers

• Sharecropping involved tenants farming land with the landlord receiving a portion of the crop as rent.
• Sharecroppers were tenant farmers who paid rent with part of their harvest.

Crop Lien System

• Allowed farmers to obtain necessities like food and seed on credit, to be repaid after harvest.

Military Reconstruction Act

• Divided the South into five military districts and imposed military rule until new governments were established.

Radical Reconstruction

• Aimed to abolish slavery, grant citizenship irrespective of race, and ensure voting rights for all men.

Hiram R. Revels

• First African American senator, serving in Mississippi in 1870.

Civil Rights Act of 1875

• Guaranteed African Americans equal access in public transportation and accommodations, and the right to serve on juries.

Jim Crow Laws

• Enforced racial segregation and discrimination, primarily in Southern states, post-Reconstruction until mid-20th century.

Ida B. Wells

• An African American journalist and activist known for her anti-lynching campaigns and work for women’s suffrage in the 1890s.

Plessy v. Ferguson

• Established the doctrine of "separate but equal," legitimizing segregation.

Buffalo and Native American Culture

• The bison was essential for Native American life, providing food, clothing, shelter, and played a significant role in their spiritual practices.

Dawes Act

• Allowed the federal government to divide Native American reservations into individual parcels to promote assimilation into American agricultural society.

Frederick Jackson Turner

• Proposed the Frontier Thesis, arguing that American frontier settlement shaped cultural values distinct from Europe.

USS Maine

• A battleship sent to Havana in 1898 to protect American interests; sank after an explosion, leading to heightened tensions before the Spanish-American War.

Booker T. Washington's Philosophy

• Success measured by obstacles overcome, not just position attained.
• Emphasized the importance of effective communication and purposeful speech.
• Difficulties included teaching practical skills and hygiene alongside academic subjects.
• Warned that violence against Black individuals could eventually lead to violence against whites.

Key Themes in Washington's Work

• Perseverance through obstacles.
• Importance of self-education for personal and community improvement.

This quiz explores key concepts in US history, focusing on Bonanza Farms and the significant changes brought by the 13th Amendment. Test your knowledge about historical figures, agricultural developments, and the abolition of slavery in the United States.