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Farming In The Late 1800s

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Venturing out to the Western Frontier in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s presented a vast opportunity for many, and a new way of life for millions: farming. Farming provided people with a way to begin a new life, that involved tough labor and long hours, but with the chance to put your destiny into your own hands and make it rich, drawing many people out West for the adventure. Pushing out the Native Americans, the United States Government tried to fill the land out west as fast as they possibly could, with Whites, who had hopes of making it rich through farming. Projects such as the Homestead Act of 1862, encouraged people to make the journey out West, offering 160 acres of free land to a family for a $25 registration fee, and a promise to live there for five years and make improvements to the land. …show more content…

Beginning as a new idea to make transportation faster and increase profit, railroads such as the Transcontinental Railroad, popped up across the United States, but they turned into a corrupt business, charging farming insane rates for transporting their crops. The late nineteenth century was a turn for the worst for almost all small-scale farmers, who struggled to make a profitable living for themselves and provide for their families. The farmers’ plight caused a lot of desperation for change, and through the creation of the Populist Party, the drive for silver coinage, the need to change the railroad system, and the need for banks that provide loans with smaller interest rate, the farmers fought to make their dreams a

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