Westward Expansion The idea of westward expansion was a pivotal point in our nation’s history. People were looking for something new and exciting. They found it in the form of adventure, excitement, fame, and untold riches! Two key events played a role in the move to push colonists farther into new territory. Andrew Jackson’s removal of the Indians along the Trail of Tears was one. The other was the writing of the Manifest Destiny by John L. O’Sullivan. However, one event played a more significant role than the other. In 1822 Andrew Jackson first delivered a message to congress saying the Indians needed to be peacefully removed. This speech was the first of eight given by Jackson to congress on the subject. It detailed the need for the removal of Indians and that it needs to be peaceful. However, instead of peacefully leaving, the Indians fought to stay in their lands. President Jackson forced them out anyways and up to 6,000 Indians died making the journey from the southern states to Oklahoma. Due to the …show more content…
This was the Manifest Destiny. It was written during the time tensions began to increase between the United States and Mexico. The main idea of the Manifest Destiny was that expansion westward was going to happen regardless of anything else, so people should embrace it. Preachers’ helped fuel this idea by speaking of the people’s God given right to move west and share their democracy and Protestantism, so that all of the new world would not be ruled by a monarchy or anarchy. It caused more people to migrate west, also sparking the idea of the California Gold Rush. Not only did people move for the adventure of it, they also moved for the ideas of wealth, fame, and eternal glory that came with finding the precious metal. Thousands of men moved in search of these things, making it one of the most influential parts of the westward