The railroads helped farmers on the Great Plains in the late 1800s by creating larger markets and making shipping easier.
The groups who settled on the Great Plains were the Mennonites, or immigrants, unmarried women, farming families, descendants of earlier pioneers, and the Exodusters. The Great Plains are in the middle of the United States. People did not think the land was good for farming. It was very dry and flat. There was much economic opportunity on the Plains because of cheaper land. This less expensive land drew many settlers to the West.
