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American westward expansion in the late 1800s
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Westward expansion was in many ways by the federal government in the 1800s. This extension of the United States had a big influence on the country. Westward expansion brought railroads, new cities, gold mines, new farmland, more resources, and much more. Expansion of the country came with a lot of positives and also some negatives. From 1805 to 1900 the population of the natives went from 15,000 according to document 1 the non- Native Americans went from zero to 95,000.
As the 1800s began, the belief of Manifest Destiny rose throughout the United States. Previously, because of Thomas Jefferson, the United States gained land from the Louisiana Purchase. This doubled the size of the United States, allowing America to grow westward. This westward land provided food for America, whereas the North provided manufactured goods and the South provided cash crops, such as cotton. The West and North soon became very interconnected through similar economies and views.
During the 1800s, the actions taken by federal government led to westward expansion . According to the history of westward expansion the federal government's idea was to own from pacific ocean to Atlantic ocean (the area that created US right now). For them to own land from one ocean, they had to get the westward land which they did and move people to westward. Federal government did accomplished their idea in many ways.
Why did the colonists expand westward? Well, at the time the colonists were very close together on the East coast and many people wanted to explore their living westward away from most of the civilization, to make their own. I am thankful for westward expansion because I live in west. The westward expansion was a great help to everyday life. This had great exploration westward for the brave people that decided to endure this excruciating journey.
One reason why Americans moved westward was to gain opportunities for themselves. The two most promising land claims were Oregon Country and the Louisiana Territory. The idea of starting a new life on the recently claimed land of Oregon Country lands all began when Lewis traveled to the land and discovered that “this passage across the continent as affording immense advantages to the fur trade,” (Doc 9). As a result of Lewis’s expedition some settlers headed to the new land to start trading on this land. Afterward, more Americans flooded this land upon learning that it was, “nice and (it had) streams full of fish,” and that “the valleys are rich and the mountains high
The Westward Expansion consisted of almost 7 million Americans migrating west, hoping to get land and be wealthy. It is often called Manifest Destiny, because many people believed settlers was intended to expand the west. Because so many people thought this way it was also thought the U.S was physically separated from Europe. This migration of people included people from Spain, France, Mexico, and other countries. The Western Expansion had a part in the foreign policies in the expansion towards the pacific and the way the U.S treated their relationship with other
Early in the 1800s, United States began to expand from the original 13 colonies to a bigger Country. At that time many settlers came to America because it was the land of freedom and the land of opportunities. There were several reasons for migrating to the west in the 1800s. First, the New England colonials were getting over crowded with less area for farming. Second was the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 in which president Thomas Jefferson bought the land from the French.
The belief of manifest destiny spread and took hold of the country incredibly fast. The common definition of Manifest Destiny is the “god given right to expand westward”. People wanted to expand west for new opportunities. This mass movement of people from east to west started in 1812 and ended in 1867. Although the US hadn’t been granted the land west of them specifically or bought it, because of their military power and belief in expanding patriotism and influence, they were justified in expanding west.
This expansion would not only demonstrate the ability that the United States had to control North America but also lead to a defining event in United States history, the Civil War. The westward expansion between the years 1789 and 1815 was some of the most influential expansion in American History because of what can be considered an identity crisis the United States was going through as such a young country. The expansion into these areas shed light onto the issues being faced by the people and states of the United States as they continued grow and define themselves. The impact would define a country set the United States on the path to become the world power it is
After Texas became their own Republic and later became part of the United States, Mexico still had not officially recognized Texas as not being part of Mexico; this is what started the Mexican-American war and helped the United States reach their goal of stretching across the whole continent. War is never pretty, but in this case, the outcome was a successful Westward Expansion. Manifest Destiny was very important, and nothing was going to stop the U.S. from accomplishing it. Manifest Destiny was used by the Americans to give reasoning to their expansion to the West. Manifest Destiny refers to the God-given right for the Americans to take as much territory as possible to the west, across the whole continent to be exact.
Page 1: The United States was growing and needed more landIn 1803, the United States purchased a large area of French land through the Louisiana Purchase. There had been rapid growth in the United States. Through the Northwest Territory, people had been expanding westward to plant crops and raise livestock beyond the Appalachian Mountains. People needed more land to expand as these lands became more popular, so the west was the obvious choice.
Americans that had issues with the economy, and over population believe that urban areas would become less crowed and better suited for living. With expansion to the West America could extend the railroad systems, which would make trading easier from the East coast to the west coast, and also open up overseas trading. Expanding west wasn’t easy. It brought conflict with the Mexican government, and the Native Americans. Wars and battles were fought for ownership of land.
The Westward Expansion all started when America made the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. There were many benefits from the purchase for the US that the French didn’t realize before they sold it. The purchase gave the US access to the Mississippi river which allowed for expansion of river trade to the North and South from the center of the US. The port city of New Orleans was bought by the US and its prosperity benefited the US greatly. The US sent Lewis and Clark west to investigate the land they purchased.
For some, it was destiny to move west. Although there were many conflicts and disagreements between ourselves and others, it was destiny to move west because of overpopulation, new inventions of transportation methods, and new opportunities. In the 19th Century, overpopulation was one of the major reasons for Westward Expansion. Immigrants were flooding into America for new opportunities and new ways of life and there was just not enough land to suffice the needs for all of the people. These immigrants were arriving in America in the port cities on the East Coast.
How did the United States expand over the years and why? The expansion of the United States was a vital part of America’s history and greatly affects how we live today. America's early days only started in 13 states and then progressively grew to 50 states in total. The time throughout the 1800’s and what happened throughout that time greatly impacted how America expanded land, resources, opportunity, trade, and money. Two of many main causes that evoked American expansion was the amount of opportunity that America could take, the idea of Manifest destiny, and the amount of power that the US had on other countries.
