In the late 19th century, after the Reconstruction Era ended, many citizens of the United States began exploring the frontier of the country and moved westward in large numbers. This was primarily due to the need for resources for a growing industry and the seemingly promising prospects for economic prosperity in the West. Additionally, many freemen (former slaves) from the Civil War were seeking land, prosperity, and fewer social restrictions from the disaffected southerners still present in the South. Although more accurately called Western Relocation due to the area previously settled by Native Americans and Hispanics; it was the first major migration of Americans from the East Coast to the West. This westward movement in the late 19th century was relived through the life of Marbel Barbee Lee in his book titled Cripple Creek Days. The book is set in the author's life as a little girl in a Western settler family. His father, Jonce, a former Confederate soldier and prospector, moved to western Utah after the South lost the war. Jonce later married a woman, Kitty, and started a family in Silver Reef, Utah. After a tragic family loss of the youngest daughter of two children, the couple decided to move to Cripple Creek, a mining camp south of Colorado Springs, Colorado; while sending Kitty and Marbel to stay with their family in Kansas while he settles in Cripple Creek. Thus, throughout the book there are many glimpses into the life of a westerner as the family comes together and lives in Cripple Creek, the reader then sees many aspects in which the development of Cripple Creek reflects the settlement of the west at the end of the 19th century. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayOne of the aspects of the book that reflected the westward movement in the late 19th century was the most obvious: the town of Cripple Creek itself. A small settlement originally lacking any type of major buildings and dwellings. Most of the settlers lived in tents, as did the Lee family for a time early in their time at Cripple Creek. Additionally, the town was established as a mining town just south of Colorado Springs in hopes of becoming a major ore supplier, as many small towns in this region did during westward settlement. So, as the book is read far back, you can see how the book will begin to take place in a common western mining town that, over time, becomes a large town without a single tent. Another aspect of the book that reflects the settlement of the West at this time was the mentality of Jonce the father. At many points in the book, you get the sense that the family is constantly excited and motivated to move and be on the frontier despite the difficult times they have endured. This was especially evident through Jonces' work ethic. Although, as Kitty reveals later in the book, he had connections in Mississippi to have a profitable business, he preferred to be on the frontier searching for valuable minerals while waiting to one day strike it rich on the Hill. This reflects the mentality of many Western settlers. Many of them hoped to become rich through the Gold Rush or through the Homestead Act by producing crops. But as many found, it was very rare to become rich, although it did happen, many settlers found their circumstances worsening as they moved west. Thus, we can see that the.