AMH 3444 The American West What is the American West o Ranches o Cowboys o Cattle o Bar Liquor o Dessert Where is the American West o It is different for everyone Early settlers would think it would be anything west of the original 13 colonies The Indians would think anything west of them The Spanish would think anything outside Mexico and the Russian would think anything outside of Canada o So the west could be anything it just depends on where you came from When is the American West o Depending on the groups the time period in which it is set in changes with each group o It could be later in some groups and earlier in others Frederick Jackson Turner o 1893 The US holds an exhibition in Chicago to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Columbus Exhibition and the Chicago s world series win it was to show how far we have come from the past o Turner earned a PhD for John Hopkins and was born in the west o He gave a speech called the Significance of the Frontier in American History o The Frontier sets America apart from Europe was Americans became self reliant more individualistic Class lines failed to developed in West because of this and the pioneers fought for rights of the common man The frontier melded immigrants into Americans West was a safety valve o The people on the frontier are the first people to rely on the government for help and they are the first to fight back big companies from raising prices on them o When the population was too much for the cities people were forced out west because it was open and had room for everyone AMH 3444 o Criticisms of Turner Failed to mention the impact of others on the West West founded by groups with sense of community Immigrants retained their identity Safety Valve not necessary o These were all critics of Turners speech that contradicted what Turner said and showed what people really thought about the west o Turner said after the 1890 s that the Frontier line would be close Americans start to expand out and try to find new lines and lands that can control o What then is the American West Safety Valve A Fluid Place always changing Borderlands Self reliance Different political ideology Common Man vs Industry Popular Culture and the Imagination