Indians and the Frontier

Conflicts with the Indians started to subside after "Custer's Last Stand." There were bloody battles in 1877 between the U.S. Army and the Nez Perce, an Indian tribe led by Chief Joseph in Oregon and Idaho. This tribe did better against the U.S. Army than other tribes had, but ultimately this tribe was relocated to Oklahoma just as many others had been. Oklahoma has by far the largest Indian population (by percentage) of any State.

Today there are 38 national historic sites in the northwest (Oregon, Washington, Montana and Idaho) in honor of the Nez Perce,^[7] which are frequently visited by tourists.

In 1881, a book was published that attempted to do for the Native Americans what "Uncle Tom's Cabin" did for African Americans. Called "A Century of Dishonor," it complained about and exposed unjust treatment of Indians by the United States. Its author was Helen Hunt Jackson.

In 1887, partly in reaction to this book, Congress enacted the Dawes Act to help Indians. This law granted landholdings (allotments, usually 160 acres or 65 hectares) to individual Native Americans, which replaced communal tribal holdings. In other words, this law attempted to convert the tribal structure of Indian life into the individualized private property system used by Europeans and most Americans. It sought to absorb tribe members into the general public.

This law was a complete failure. Within decades most of the tribal land had been transferred into ownership by non-Indians, and the Indians were worse off than they were before. This was an example of government trying to make something better, but actually making it worse.

In 1890, the U.S. Census Bureau declared that the frontier was settled and officially closed. The era of frontier America, which first began with the settlement at Jamestown, Virginia, and then spread westward for nearly 300 years, was finally over. Frederick Jackson Turner wrote in 1893 that frontier experience had promoted individualism and democracy. Do you agree?

By the end of 1890, 44 States had been admitted to the United States. The only States that were not yet admitted into the United States were Utah, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska and Hawaii. They joined later.

Tariffs and an Income Tax

Recall that the tariffs were a cause of the Civil War: the North wanted higher protective tariffs, while the South opposed them. The Civil War resolved the dispute over slavery, but it did not resolve the dispute over tariffs. After the War, the North still supported higher tariffs and the South still opposed them. The West, particularly farmers, also opposed higher tariffs.

In 1890, the McKinley Tariff established the highest tariffs ever, but in a compromise it did make sugar "duty free" (no tariff on sugar). Other than sugar, prices increased on goods and products due to the higher tariffs. These higher tariffs reflected the continued dominance by the Republican Party, which controlled the White House in 1890 (Benjamin Harrison, the grandson of William Henry Harrison, was president). Partly due to public outrage over the higher tariffs, the Democratic Party won many seats in Congress in the 1890 elections after the McKinley Tariff was enacted.

In 1894, the Wilson-Gorman Tariff and Income Tax Act passed, which added an income tax to even more tariffs. In the case of Pollack v. Farmers Loan and Trust Company, the Supreme Court declared the Income Tax Act unconstitutional because it did not apportion the tax by population as required by the Constitution.^[8][9] The Supreme Court decision required a constitutional amendment (the 16th Amendment) to be passed before allowing a direct taxation based purely on income without regard for population.