The Shaping Of North America Essay

1559 Words7 Pages

I. The Shaping of North America
Recorded history began 6,000 years ago. It was 500 years ago that Europeans came to the Americas to begin colonizing
The theory of Pangaea exists suggesting that a supercontinent containing all the dry land then chunks began to drift away
Geologic forces of continental plates created the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains.
The Great Ice Age came down over North America & made the present day American Midwest.
II. Peopling the Americas
The Land Bridge theory.
As the Great Ice Age diminished, so did the glaciers over North America.
The theory holds that a Land Bridge emerged linking Asia & North America across what is currently known as the Bering Sea. People were said to have walked across the "bridge" before sea …show more content…

France: Giovanni de Verrazano also touched on the North American seaboard.
France: Jacques Cartier went into mouth of St. Lawrence River (Canada).
To oppose this, Spain set up forts (presidios) all over the California coast. Also, St. Augustine in Florida.
Don Juan de Onate followed Coronado's old path into present day New Mexico. He conquered the Indians ruthlessly, maiming them by cutting off one foot of survivors just so they'd remember.
Despite mission efforts, the Pueblo Indians revolted in Pope's Rebellion.
Robert de LaSalle sailed down the Mississippi River for France, claiming the whole region for their King Louis and naming the area "Louisiana" after his king. This started a slew of place-names for that area, from LaSalle, Illinois to "Louisville” and then on down to New Orleans (the American counter of Joan of Arc's famous victory at Orleans).
Black Legend: The Black Legend was the notion that Spaniards only brought bad things (murder, disease, slavery); though true, they also brought good things such as law systems, architecture, Christianity, language, civilization, so that the Black Legend is partly, but not entirely,