8.11.2

Identify the push- pull factors in the movement of former slaves to the cities in North and to the West and their differing experiences in those regions. (e.g., the experiences of Buffalo Soldiers.)
             Push and pull factors in the movement of former slaves to the north and the west, capitalization in northern states and new opportunities in west, advances in political civil and social rights of northern African Americans. Capitol economy caused the end of slavery and the expansion of market relations among white farmers in the South. It also caused manufacturing boom, the completion of railroad network and the opening of the Trans Mississippi West to mining, lumbering, ranching and commercial farming in the North and West.
             In the north, the demand of slaves declined, but the North depended on the African Americans to work because of their industrial development. African American feared their safety in the former slave region and migrated to the North in 1877. The majority of the population in the North had already supported the idea of equal civil and political rights about African Americans. That is why racial discrimination was not a common in the North. The African Americans who had traveled to the North stayed to become an unskilled worker. Because they did not earn a high wage for working the job that they had, they were not able to have a comfortable lifestyle.
             The Buffalo Soldiers consisted mostly of African Americans. the Buffalo Soldiers explored and mapped vast areas of the southwest and strung hundreds of miles of telegraph lines. These Buffalo soldiers were also responsible for escorting settlers, cattle herds, and railroad crews in the Westward Movement. When the Buffalo Soldiers were not in patrol, they were engaged in endless drills, parades, and inspections. They built and repaired frontier outposts around which future towns and cities sprang to life. Without the protection provided by Soldiers, the railroads would never had been complete. They received the worst jobs the army had to offer. Because of the fact that most of them were African American, they faced fierce prejudice. The Buffalo Soldiers received many medals for their heroism. The African Americans moved to the North and the West for freedom, safety and for the well being.


More Information:

   1.    http://www.historychannel.com/

   2.    http://http://americanhistory.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http%3A%2F%2Fmemory.loc.gov%2Fammem%2Fndlpedu%2Ffeatures%2Ftimeline%2Fcivilwar%2Frecontwo%2Frecontwo.html