The American West (c1835-c1895): Impact of Gold Rush in Plains Indians

Gold prospecting greatly affected the Plains Indians way of life.

The following list describes some of the consequences of gold prospecting for the Plains Indians:

• Gold miners murdered Plains Indians or forced them to leave if they believed their as gold to be found on their land
• New towns that developed due to gold prospecting brought an alien culture to the Plains Indians land, for example, there were churches, schools and shops
• The gold prospectors brought diseases from all around the world with them - this killed many Plains Indian’s, as they were new diseases that they did not have immunity to
• The influx of miners either killed buffalo for meat and sport, or drove them away by taking up lots of space
• It led to direct conflict between Plains Indians and the US government as gold prospectors trespassed Indian land, e.g. Red Cloud’s War (see notes)