Demographics Of The US West During The 19th Century

Jennifer Schultze
History 417 T/TH
February 17th 2017
Response #1

The U.S. West during the 19th century was a frontier built on hope, opportunities, and dreams. The idea of white masculinity on the frontier portrayed by cowboys in dime novels misrepresents the diverse population of the U.S. West. Popular culture has suppressed the rich history of diversity in the region. For many minorities, the frontier offered job opportunities, religious freedom, escape from segregation, the chance to own land, and the adventure of the great frontier. These are just a few of the factors that contributed to the change in demographics of the U.S. West during the 19th century. The opportunities listed above led many people West including, the Exodusters
In The Lucky Ones written by Mae Ngai the author narrates the story of two Chinese-Americans as they are living in San Francisco during the 19th century. In China, California was known as Jinshan “the mountain of gold”, the California gold rush was legendary across the world and it drew many immigrants to the West Coast for a chance to gain riches. However, like Joseph Tape by the time many of these immigrants reached California the gold rush was over. Mining still provided many jobs for Chinese immigrants however, it was now the transportation industry that was developing. The construction of the transcontinental railroad created job opportunities for immigrants as they were willing to work in higher risk jobs for less money. As more immigrants arrived to California either from the East coast or overseas, nativism became prominent amongst white
West during the 19th century was the migration of the Mormons from the East to Salt Lake City. When Joseph Smith was killed in Illinois his successor Brigham Young made the decision to move the church of the Latter-Day Saints further West. One of the main reasons for the move was criticism from non-believers regarding the practice of polygamy. In 1846, Utah was still a territory of Mexico and was densely populated by Native Americans. The Mormon migration from the East brought an influx of people to the Great Basin. With the increasing population from migrants the consumption of resources increased and eventually conflicts occurred between the Native Americans and the Mormons. As the population in the U.S. West increased the population of Native tribes decreased. “It is also American in its portrayal of a world without Indians, an oasis of potted plants and beehives in the midst of an American desert” (Ulrich 35). Regarding the quilt created by the Fourteenth Ward Female Relief Society. Even though the Mormons were escaping religious persecution in the East they ended up changing the demographic of the Native population in the same way all other settlers