More Westward Movement

Once most of the land was taken up, the U.S. Government decided to open up Oklahoma...



Yes, Oklahoma, the land where all the Indians were forced to move to.

So, April 22, 1889 would be the day that Oklahoma land could be claimed.

50,000 people showed up, but a few jumped the gun and rushed the land before the proper time.

They took the land too soon, they were called Sooners, yes...like the college mascot.

We know that people were moving West, but who were they?

One group was white Americans, shocker!

A second were African Americans.

After the Civil War, a lot of blacks went west to get land and make a life for themselves. They also left the South because of the Klan.



Eventually, many would settle in Kansas, Missouri, Indiana, and Illinois. They were known as Exodusters.

The last were immigrants.

Europeans came and the Chinese. The Chinese were a source of cheap labor.They pretty much built the railroad....and were treated like crap, you know, the usual.