AQA GCSE History (8145) — Period Studies
Why would anyone leave a safe home to travel six months across dangerous, uncharted plains? Migration is rarely caused by just one thing; it requires a combination of negative Push Factors forcing people out, and positive Pull Factors drawing them in.
In the East, the 1837 Financial Crash (Panic of 1837) acted as a major push factor. Banks collapsed, wages fell by 40%, and unemployment reached 25% in some areas, creating intense economic desperation. Meanwhile, the 1841 Preemption Act acted as a pull factor, allowing "squatters" to buy 160 acres of western land for just 1.25 US dollars per acre before public sale.
Different groups moved for different reasons. Between 1846 and 1847, Brigham Young led the Mormon Migration to escape severe religious persecution in Illinois (push), seeking isolation and religious freedom in the Great Salt Lake Valley (pull). Shortly after, the 1848 Gold Discovery at Sutter's Mill sparked the 1849 Gold Rush, pulling approximately 100,000 "Forty-Niners" to California in a single year.
Later, the end of the Civil War in 1865 created new waves of migrants. In 1879, the Exoduster Movement saw 40,000 to 50,000 African Americans migrate to Kansas. Led by Benjamin Singleton, they were pushed by Southern discrimination, the Ku Klux Klan, and exploitative sharecropping, and pulled by the promise of free land and safety. Underpinning all of this was Manifest Destiny—the widespread belief that white Americans had a God-given right to expand across the continent.
Giving away free land sounds like a modern scam, but in 1862, the US government did exactly that. To encourage rapid settlement, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act (1862). It granted 160 acres of free land to any head of household, including single women and ex-slaves.
To claim the land, homesteaders paid a 10 US dollars filing fee and had to live on and improve the land for 5 years. If successful, they paid a final 30 US dollars fee to gain the legal title, a process known as Proving Up. By 1876, over 6 million acres were claimed, accelerating statehood for places like Nebraska (1867).
However, 160 acres was often not enough to survive on the arid Plains. The government introduced the Timber Culture Act (1873), offering an extra 160 acres if settlers planted trees on 40 acres (later 10 acres) for fuel and timber. The Desert Land Act (1877) offered a further 640 acres (later 320) of dry land for 1.25 US dollars per acre, provided it was irrigated within three years.
While these acts democratised land ownership, they had severe limitations. Around 60% of homesteaders failed to "prove up" due to the harsh environment and lack of initial capital (successful farming required 800 US dollars to 1,000 US dollars for equipment). Furthermore, wealthy cattle ranchers and Land Speculators exploited loopholes to grab the best land, whilst the acts directly drove the displacement of Indigenous peoples.
You can survive a grueling six-month wagon journey, or you can buy a train ticket and arrive in under ten days. The Pacific Railroad Act (1862) funded the first Transcontinental Railroad, built by the Union Pacific and Central Pacific companies. They finally met at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869.
To fund this colossal project, the government provided massive subsidies (16,000 US dollars to 48,000 US dollars per mile of track) and granted the railroad companies 45 million acres of federal land. The companies then sold this land to settlers to fund construction and build a customer base.
When evaluating the causes of settlement, railroads were arguably more important than government homestead laws. By 1880, railroads had successfully settled 200 million acres of land, compared to just 6 million acres by the Homestead Act in 1876. They ended homesteader isolation by transporting vital manufactured goods and shipping grain east. They also created booming Railroad Towns and drove the cattle industry, with Joseph McCoy establishing Abilene, Kansas, in 1867 to ship Texas cattle to Chicago.
However, this economic success came at a devastating cost to Indigenous peoples. The tracks cut straight through sovereign treaty lands. Furthermore, trains brought hunters who exterminated the buffalo for sport and hides, deliberately destroying the primary food source and nomadic way of life of the Plains tribes.
Early explorers called the Great Plains the "Great American Desert"—so how did settlers turn it into the world's breadbasket? Homesteaders (also known as "sodbusters") faced extreme geographical challenges that could only be solved by new technology and agricultural methods.
Water was incredibly scarce, with rainfall under 15 inches annually and groundwater trapped 30ft to 300ft below the surface. Daniel Halladay solved this by inventing the self-governing windmill (1854). These windmills, later upgraded with all-metal blades in the 1880s, could pump deep groundwater without breaking in the high prairie winds.
The treeless Plains offered no wood for building or fencing. Without fences, wandering cattle trampled crops. Joseph Glidden solved this with his invention of barbed wire (1874), providing a cheap, effective barrier. For housing, settlers built Sod Houses from turf blocks. While excellent for insulation and fireproofing, they had distinct negative features: they did NOT keep out heavy rain and were NOT pest-free, frequently harbouring snakes and bedbugs.
Ploughing the land was equally difficult. The Plains sod was held together by thick, tangled grass roots that snapped traditional iron ploughs. John Deere's steel plough (1837) cut cleanly through the earth without dirt sticking to the blade, later evolving into the ride-on Sulky Plow (1875). Settlers also adopted Dry Farming techniques, ploughing deeply after rain to create a "dust mulch" that trapped moisture underground.
Finally, extreme temperatures (-40°C to 38°C) and pests like the 1874 Grasshopper Plague ruined traditional maize crops. The solution came in 1873–1874 when Russian and Ukrainian Mennonite immigrants introduced Turkey Red wheat, a hardy, drought- and frost-resistant winter variety that thrived in the harsh Plains environment. Women bore a "triple burden" during this era: managing the dirt soddy, performing heavy agricultural labour, and acting as isolated doctors and midwives.
Students often confuse the dates of technological inventions. AQA requires exact matching for the 'c.1862–1876' timeline (e.g., Windmill is 1854, Barbed Wire is 1874, Sulky Plow is 1875).
In 8-mark 'Importance' questions on the Transcontinental Railroad, always weigh the economic benefits for white settlers against the devastating impact on Indigenous peoples.
When explaining migration, always pair a push factor with a pull factor (e.g., the 1837 Panic pushed Easterners, whilst the 1841 Preemption Act pulled them) to show a complete chain of reasoning.
AQA examiners look for you to use the term 'Indigenous peoples' or specific tribal names (e.g., Sioux, Cheyenne) rather than outdated terms like 'Indians'.
Push Factors
Negative conditions in the East or South that forced people to leave, such as economic depression, overcrowding, or religious persecution.
Pull Factors
Positive attractions in the West drawing people in, such as cheap/free land, gold discoveries, or isolation for religious freedom.
Manifest Destiny
The 19th-century belief that it was the God-given right and duty of white Americans to expand across the North American continent.
Proving Up
The process of a homesteader gaining full legal title to their 160-acre plot after 5 years of successful residence and cultivation.
Land Speculators
Individuals or companies who bought large tracts of cheap land to sell later for a profit, often exploiting loopholes or using fraudulent homestead claims.
Railroad Towns
Settlements that grew rapidly around railroad stations, acting as vital hubs for trade, services, and the cattle industry.
Homesteaders
Small-scale farmers who settled the Great Plains; they were often nicknamed 'sodbusters'.
Dry Farming
An agricultural technique where the soil is ploughed deeply immediately after rain to create a thin layer of dust, trapping moisture underground.
Turkey Red wheat
A specific variety of hard red winter wheat introduced by Mennonites that flourished in the extreme dry and frosty conditions of the Great Plains.
Put your knowledge into practice — try past paper questions for History
Push Factors
Negative conditions in the East or South that forced people to leave, such as economic depression, overcrowding, or religious persecution.
Pull Factors
Positive attractions in the West drawing people in, such as cheap/free land, gold discoveries, or isolation for religious freedom.
Manifest Destiny
The 19th-century belief that it was the God-given right and duty of white Americans to expand across the North American continent.
Proving Up
The process of a homesteader gaining full legal title to their 160-acre plot after 5 years of successful residence and cultivation.
Land Speculators
Individuals or companies who bought large tracts of cheap land to sell later for a profit, often exploiting loopholes or using fraudulent homestead claims.
Railroad Towns
Settlements that grew rapidly around railroad stations, acting as vital hubs for trade, services, and the cattle industry.
Homesteaders
Small-scale farmers who settled the Great Plains; they were often nicknamed 'sodbusters'.
Dry Farming
An agricultural technique where the soil is ploughed deeply immediately after rain to create a thin layer of dust, trapping moisture underground.
Turkey Red wheat
A specific variety of hard red winter wheat introduced by Mennonites that flourished in the extreme dry and frosty conditions of the Great Plains.
