Why do you think some migrants decided to settle on and farm the Great Plains rather than travel to Oregon/California where farmland was better?

Please see below

Explanation:

Even though the the Great Plains had poor soil texture, bad weather conditions and were not favourable, many immigrants still took the risk going to the Great Plains rather than travel to Oregon California with better conditions for living . This is because of the introduction of The Homestead Act of 1862 by the government which seemed attractive so people banked on it as they felt it would give them opportunity to own land and improve thier financial status on a long run while providing opportunity for many to start Thier lives afresh as freemen.

Also, the discovery of precious metals like gold in the 1870s at South Dakota together with the expansion of railroads saw a more influx of immigrants as the years went by in a bid for immigrants to improve thier economic status.

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