Source: Letter from a Swedish immigrant homesteading in Nebraska to his family, 1884.
"We have harvested thirty acres of wheat and twenty of corn this season... But we are completely at the mercy of the railroad line. The local station agent dictates the price of our grain, and the cost of shipping agricultural machinery from Chicago is so high that we have had to take out a second mortgage on our land. Farming here is no longer a matter of feeding one’s family from the soil; it has become a speculative venture dependent on Eastern capitalists and distant markets."
The situation described in the excerpt most directly reflects which of the following developments in the late nineteenth century?
- AThe federal government's refusal to assist or subsidize the construction of western transportation networks.
- The increasing dependency of western farmers on national rail networks and global commodity markets.Answer
- CThe successful passage of federal legislation by Progressive reformers to nationalize the country's railroads.
- DThe redistribution of tribal land under the Dawes Severalty Act to protect small family farms from corporate railroads.
Answer
The increasing dependency of western farmers on national rail networks and global commodity markets.
The correct answer is correct because the late nineteenth century witnessed the rapid integration of the western frontier into the broader United States economy. The expansion of railroads allowed homesteaders to cultivate vast lands but also made them dependent on commercial rail lines to ship their cash crops to Chicago or international markets. This specialization in single cash crops, combined with high freight rates and machinery costs, tied the farmers' financial survival directly to corporate decisions and distant market prices.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
The commercialization and market integration of western agriculture during the Gilded Age.
Estimated Time:1m 30s