Great Plains

The Great Plains is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. This region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains and is mostly covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. It is the western part of the Interior Plains, which also include areas like the mixed grass prairie, the Tallgrass prairie, and parts of Northern Canada.

The Great Plains lie across both the Central United States and Western Canada. This vast area includes most or all of the U.S. states of Kansas, Nebraska, and North and South Dakota. It also covers eastern parts of Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming, as well as parts of New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. Sometimes it includes western parts of Iowa, Minnesota, and Missouri, along with southern parts of the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.

Usage

The term "Great Plains" is used in the United States to describe a part of the larger Interior Plains area in North America. People also use it when talking about the Plains Indians or the Plains states.

In Canada, this term is not often used. The government there groups the area into one unit with several plateaus and plains. Instead of "Great Plains," Canadians usually say "prairie" and refer to the area as the Canadian Prairies.

The North American Environmental Atlas, made by a group of environmental agencies from Mexico, the United States, and Canada, uses "Great Plains" to talk about an area with lots of prairies and grasslands. This ecoregion has five parts: Temperate Prairies, West-Central Semi-Arid Prairies, South-Central Semi-Arid Prairies, Texas Louisiana Coastal Plains, and Tamaulipas-Texas Semi-Arid Plain.

Extent

The Great Plains is a huge flat area in North America. It stretches about 500 miles (800 km) from east to west and 2,000 miles (3,200 km) from north to south, covering roughly 500,000 square miles (1,300,000 km²). Long ago, this land was home to large herds of American bison, but they were hunted to very few numbers in the late 1800s.

The Great Plains lies west of the 96th meridian west and east of the Rocky Mountains. The name "Great Plains" became common in the early 1900s thanks to a study by Nevin Fenneman. Before that, people often called the area the High Plains, especially in the Midwestern states. In Canada, people more often refer to this area simply as the prairie.

Geography

The Great Plains are a large, flat area in North America. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, stretching east from the Rocky Mountains. This region includes prairies, steppes, and grasslands.

The Great Plains cover parts of the United States and Canada. In the United States, they extend from the 97th meridian west to the base of the Rocky Mountains. The land slowly rises in altitude from the east to the west, where it meets the mountains. Even though the land is mostly flat, there are occasional hills, valleys, and other features. The climate is usually dry, which means there are fewer trees and more open spaces.

The Great Plains can be divided into different sections based on latitude. The northern section includes parts of Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, and parts of Canada. The intermediate section is found between certain latitudes and includes areas like the Badlands. The central section covers eastern Colorado and western Kansas, and the southern section is in western Texas, eastern New Mexico, and western Oklahoma. Each section has its own unique features, such as the smooth surfaces or occasional higher areas.

Climate

The Great Plains experience a wide range of weather. Winters can be very cold and harsh, while summers can be very hot and humid. The winds are often very strong, especially during winter.

The area west of the 100th meridian gets less than 20 inches (510 mm) of rain each year, making it dry and often like a steppe. This can lead to long dry spells and powerful winds that create big dust storms. In the east, the climate is more humid, especially in the south. Spring and summer bring many thunderstorms, and the southeastern part of the Great Plains is where most tornadoes in the world occur, an area known as Tornado Alley.

Ecology

The Great Plains are part of the North American Prairies, stretching from the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians.

The Great Plains are home to many animals. The American bison once roamed here in huge numbers. Other animals include pronghorn, prairie dogs, ground squirrels, and various carnivores like the swift fox and the black-footed ferret. Birds such as the lesser prairie-chicken and greater prairie-chicken also live here, along with many migrating species. Reptiles like the prairie rattlesnake and several types of snakes and turtles are common, especially in the southern parts. Amphibians such as the western tiger salamander and Great Plains toad are also found here. The region has many fish species in its rivers, and many insects including beetles and tiger beetles.

During the time of dinosaurs, the Great Plains were covered by a shallow sea. Later, as the sea receded, grasslands formed, which became home to many large ancient animals like mammoths, saber-toothed cats, and giant sloths. Many of these animals disappeared from North America around 13,000 years ago.

There are many public lands in the Great Plains, including national parks, wildlife refuges, and grasslands, managed by different government agencies to protect nature and history.

The Great Plains face serious ecological problems today, with much of the grassland turning into wooded areas. Over 60% of the grasslands in North America have been lost.

History to 1850

Original American contact

Main article: Plains Indians

See also: Paleo-Indians

The first people arrived on the Great Plains thousands of years ago. Around 800 CE, corn was introduced, which helped people build settlements along rivers. These settlements were part of a culture known for building mounds and had trade networks that reached west to the Rocky Mountains. Some of these early settlements were in places we now call Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Some tribes spoke Siouan languages and may have lived near the lower Mississippi River. They were farmers and might have been part of a civilization known for building mounds between the 9th and 12th centuries.

Over time, new tribes moved onto the Great Plains due to pressures from other tribes, European settlers, and changes in trade. Horses and firearms from Europe also changed life for many tribes.

Among the tribes that lived on the Great Plains were the Blackfoot, Crow, Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Comanche, and others. Some tribes lived in eastern parts of the Great Plains in villages with earth lodges, such as the Arikara, Mandan, Pawnee, and Wichita.

Arrival of horses

The first Europeans to visit the Great Plains were Spanish explorers in the 1540s. They were looking for places said to be rich in gold. Around this time, people in the southwest began to get horses from Spanish colonists. By the 1730s, some tribes, like the Comanche, had many horses and lived nomadic lives on horseback.

The real start of horse culture on the plains happened after a revolt in New Mexico in 1680, when many horses were captured. By the 1770s, many tribes were skilled at hunting buffalo from horses.

War and the need for horses sometimes led to conflicts between tribes. In the south, milder winters helped tribes raise more horses, but in the north, harsh winters made it harder to keep many horses.

Fur trade

The fur trade brought many settlers to the Great Plains. Trappers traveled across the land and met with local tribes. Companies like the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company were important in the trade.

The United States bought a large area called the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Explorers like Lewis and Clark traveled through the region, and more settlers began to move west. Sadly, diseases brought by settlers caused many deaths among the native tribes.

Cattle ranching and homesteads

The Great Plains became a place where cattle could roam freely. Ranchers cared for the cattle, gathering them in the spring and fall to brand new calves and get ready for sale. This ranching started in Texas and moved north.

Many people wanted to live on the land. Laws like the Homestead Acts let families claim pieces of land if they lived there and farmed it for five years. This brought many new people to places like Nebraska. Some were not experienced farmers, which caused challenges. Similar laws in Canada also encouraged people to settle there.

New technology

The Great Plains changed a lot because of new inventions and laws. The Homestead Act of 1862 let people claim land, and new tools made life easier. The Colt Six-Shooter helped protect settlers. Barbed wire let farmers fence their land. Windmills provided water, and the John Deere steel plow could cut through tough grass. Railroads brought goods and people to new farms.

Railroads also brought hunters who changed the land. They brought many people to live on the Great Plains. Minnesota, Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas grew quickly, with many new farms and people. Settlers came from Germany, Scandinavia, and Russia, looking for bigger farms. Life on the plains was busy with work and fun together, like barn raisings and church meetings. Women helped farms run and later focused more on home tasks as new machines made life easier.

Main article: Railroad land grants in the United States § Settlement of the Great Plains

See also: Cattle drives in the United States

The first White settlements in the Great Plains were forts and trading posts. Some early ones include:

• Fort Lisa (1809), North Dakota
• Red River Colony or Selkirk Settlement (1811), Manitoba
• Fort Lisa (1812), Nebraska
• Fort Atkinson (Nebraska) (1819), Nebraska
• Fontenelle's Post (1822), Nebraska
• Cabanne's Trading Post (1822), Nebraska
• Fort Kiowa (1822), South Dakota
• Fort Laramie (1834), Texas
• Fort Parker (1834), Texas
• Zinkenburg (1845), Texas
• Fort Kearney (1848), Nebraska
• Fort Martin Scott (1848), Texas
• Fort Croghan (1849), Texas
• Fort Gates (1849), Texas
• Fort Graham (1849), Texas
• Fort Worth (1849), Texas
• Fort Belknap (1851), Texas
• Fort Mason (1851), Texas
• Fort Chadbourne (1852), Texas
• Fort McKavett (1852), Texas
• Fort Phantom Hill (1852), Texas
• Camp Colorado (1855), Texas
• Fort McPherson (1863), Nebraska
• Fort Mitchell (1864), Nebraska
• Fort Concho (1867), Texas
• Fort Griffin (1867), Texas
• Fort Richardson (1867), Texas
• Fort Sidney (1867), Nebraska
• Fort Omaha (1868), Nebraska
• Fort Hartsuff (1874), Nebraska
• Fort Sill (1869), Oklahoma
• Fort Robinson (1874), Nebraska
• Camp Sheridan (1874), Nebraska
• Fort Niobrara (1880), Nebraska
• Fort Elliott (1875), Texas

20th century

Progressive Era

Further information: Progressive Era

The Progressive movement was a time of big changes that happened all over the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s. People wanted to fix many problems that came with new factories and big cities. They believed the government could help by making rules for businesses, helping workers, and creating programs to support people in need.

In the Great Plains, many of these ideas started. For example, letting people vote directly on laws began in South Dakota in 1898. Letting people choose candidates in primary elections started in Wisconsin in 1903. People in the Great Plains worked hard on issues like making sure railroads followed fair rules, helping workers, and letting women vote.

Dust Bowl and water resources

During the late 1920s and early 1930s, a big problem happened in parts of the Great Plains, including areas like the Oklahoma Panhandle, southeastern Colorado, southwestern Kansas, the Texas Panhandle, and northeastern New Mexico. This area was called the Dust Bowl. A long drought, poor farming practices, and money problems from the Great Depression made it hard for many farmers to keep their land.

Starting in the 1950s, new ways of farming with lots of water helped the Great Plains grow lots of crops. The southern part of the Great Plains has a big underground water source called the Ogallala Aquifer. Special farming methods use this water, but sometimes they take out more water than can be replaced.

Population decline

Main article: Depopulation of the Great Plains

Many small towns in the rural Great Plains have lost people since 1920. Some areas have very few people living there, with only a few homes spread out over many miles. This has made it hard for schools and other services to keep running. Some people think that parts of the drier Great Plains should go back to being natural prairie land.

Wind power

The Great Plains plays an important role in providing wind power in the United States. After working in oil, a man named T. Boone Pickens started building wind farms. He suggested that the U.S. should spend a lot of money to create more wind power in the Plains. He used Sweetwater, Texas, as an example of how wind power can help bring new jobs and growth to an area.