Westward Expansion — Answer Key
Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. On the plains, pioneers burned buffalo chips for fuel because wood was scarce.
The answer is "chips." Because the Great Plains had very few trees, pioneers collected dried buffalo dung (called chips) and burned it as fuel for cooking and warmth.
2. A sod house was built from strips of prairie grass and soil.
The answer is "sod." Sod houses (called soddies) were made by cutting thick strips of prairie grass and soil and stacking them into walls, since lumber was nearly impossible to find on the open plains.
3. Cowboys drove cattle along the Chisholm Trail to railroad towns in Kansas.
The answer is "Trail." The Chisholm Trail ran from Texas northward to railroad towns like Abilene, Kansas, where cowboys loaded cattle onto trains headed to eastern markets.
4. Barbed wire was invented to help farmers fence their land on the open plains.
The answer is "wire." Barbed wire allowed farmers to fence off their crops cheaply on the treeless plains, keeping out roaming cattle and ending the open-range era.
5. The steel plow allowed farmers to break through tough prairie soil.
The answer is "plow." The steel plow, improved by John Deere, could slice through the thick, root-tangled prairie soil that broke wooden and iron plows.
6. Dodge City and Abilene were famous cattle towns in the Old West.
The answer is "Abilene." Dodge City and Abilene became busy cattle towns because they sat along major railroad lines where cowboys could sell and ship their herds east.
7. Many frontier children learned to read at one-room schoolhouses.
The answer is "schoolhouses." In frontier communities, children of all ages studied together in a single one-room schoolhouse because towns were small and spread far apart.
8. Windmills were used on the plains to pump water from underground.
The answer is "water." Wind-powered pumps drew water from underground wells, giving settlers and their livestock a reliable supply on the dry, rain-scarce plains.
9. The Great Plains were once called the Great American Desert.
The answer is "Desert." Early explorers called the region the Great American Desert because its flat, treeless landscape and low rainfall made it seem unfit for farming.
Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1. Match each item to its correct answer.
Chisholm Trail
→ cattle drive route to Kansas
broke through tough prairie soil
barbed wire
→ fenced land on the open plains
prairie home built from grass and dirt
sod house
→ prairie home built from grass and dirt
cattle drive route to Kansas
steel plow
→ broke through tough prairie soil
fenced land on the open plains
Correct matches: Chisholm Trail → cattle drive route to Kansas; barbed wire → fenced land on the open plains; sod house → prairie home built from grass and dirt; steel plow → broke through tough prairie soil.