I believe the best answer here is Capitalism.
The Government helped to build the Transcontinental Railroad by passing legislation to finance it. The Pacific Railway Act authorized the construction of the railroad across the country.
The government gave land grants to the railroad companies so they could build the tracks and also sell them to finance the construction. Public lands were divided into one-mile-square sections. Between 1850 and 1870 7% of the land in the US was given to 80 railroads companies.
Answer:
The African Americans in the post-civil war era responded to the hostile environment of the south by confiscating land on abandoned plantations.
Explanation:
After the Civil War was over, certain amendments were made to the Constitution which then allowed the freed slaves from the southern states to acquire the abandoned plantation lands of the former owners. This right that was given by the Constitution was used by many slaves to confiscate lands of the former owners.
