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After the Civil War had ended, several soldiers had returned home to find
their places of living destroyed. Most of these people returned to practically
nothing. The United States had to rebuild itself, and this rebuilding was called
Reconstruction. Today historians refer to this era of reconstruction as the part
of the Gilded Age. Many people had to pickup and start all over again, while
others continued their quests of expanding. Expanding by taking control over the
land or by expanding their beliefs, either way lives of these people reflected
the social tensions of the Gilded Age. Philip H. Sheridan, who was one of the
heroes of the Civil War, was a soldier who had started his career on the
frontier and would return there after the war to help the United States in
expanding its territory by having to combat many Native Americans in doing so.
Sheridan was an extremely important person who helped conquer the frontier.
Sheridan believed in the freeing of black slaves, and decided that he would help
protect the blacks now that they were free.
He expresses his opinion about what
is done to black people in Texas by commenting that the “black codes are a
policy of gross injustice toward the colored people on the part of the courts,
and a reign of lawlessness and disorder ensued.”(10) Sheridan’s defense of the
black cause much tension in his life, in Texas, that he was later reassigned to
command the Department of the Missouri. (11) In 1869 when Grant had became
President; he appointed Sheridan lieutenant governor and command of the Division
of Missouri. Sheridan’s past on tactics for attacking the Indians made him the
best man for the job in defending the western frontier. Much of Sheridan’s life
involved being enrolled in the army and defending the frontier. He is also known
for the quote “ The only good Indian is a dead Indian”, which he became
synonymous with. (13) Sheridan’s life practically evolved around the Indian
warfare and the tensions that surrounded it. His ethics and tactics of Indian
warfare were often questioned, leaving him to defend himself against his critics
quite often. Another lifestyle that had taken on the challenges of living a
successful life was that of being a doctor. Susan LaFleshe Picotte was one of
these doctors; but for Susan to be a successful doctor, she had to overcome many
more obstacles than other people did. As you see, becoming a doctor is one
difficult task at hand, but being a woman who was Indian was another. Susan was
a Siouan-speaking Omaha, who had migrated to Nebraska because of the Indian
Removal Act of 1830.
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