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What Is The Theme Of Westward Expansion By Robert Morgan

1711 Words7 Pages

This nonfiction piece written by Robert Morgan, and explains westward expansion and other important historic events. This book also shares accurate accounts of multiple presidents and other important historical figures in ten very detailed chapters. These people include, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, John Chapman, David Crockett, Sam Houston, James K. Polk, Winfield Scott, Kit Carson, Nicholas Trist, and John Quincy Adams. The first chapter is all about the life of Thomas Jefferson. You learn a lot about him and what his interests are. Some of these interests included, farming, chemistry, history, weather, soils, geology, and so much more. He was very well educated, quiet, and curious man that always wanted to gain more knowledge. Jefferson …show more content…

Something I thought was interesting was how much Jefferson studied Native Americans and their culture. Something else I noticed while reading about Jefferson was that he was kind of a hypocrite. “Jefferson became the second-largest slaveholder in Virginia, even while having written that “the abolition of domestic slavery is the great object of desire in those colonies where it was unhappily introduced in their infant state” (Morgan 24). Jefferson apparently knew slavery was wrong, and instead of fixing it, he simply turned his head and focused on other things, such as westward expansion. I’m not sure if that makes him a hypocrite or a coward. In fact, Jefferson was so obsessed with westward expansion that he hired many explorers to go out and do it for him. Some of these explorers included John Ledyard and Andre Michaux. Both of these men hired by Jefferson let him down. Ledyard was arrested and then died, and Michaux joined the Citizen Genet scheme. Jefferson however ended up getting his wish when the Louisiana Purchase was made. One way to describe Jefferson was how he had “a firm belief in what might be called democratic imperialism”. He would finally get to find out about everything there was in the west. He sent out Lewis and Clark in 1803, and they were successful. Overall Jefferson was a great leader, although he ignored the slavery issue which progressively got worse in the future. …show more content…

Some information about his early life s given, and then you learn his experience during the battle of Horseshoe Bend. While fighting, Houston was shot in the leg with an arrow, then continues to fight, and led an attack on a hideout. He was then was hit by two bullets in his shoulder. After being carried off the battlefield, he was operated on, and somehow survived. After the battle, Jackson gave credit to Houston and many others. Jackson and Houston became good friends. Sam Houston throughout his career developed a seros alcohol problem that would cause further problems in his future. Around 1817, Jackson askd Houston, since he was so close with his adoptive father Ooleteka and other Cherokee chiefs, if they could remove their people from western Arkansas Territory. Houston was successful with persuading them, and he also traveled to Washington to plead for better conditions for the moving Indians. Houston later became governor of Tennessee because of Jackson’s influence. Houston had marriage troubles with Eliza Allen, and then rumors of his alcoholism went around. Around 1829, Houston moved to Arkansa territory,married a Cherokee woman, and became involved in Cherokee politics.He ran for a seat in the Cherokee Tribal Council and when he lost the election for it, he confronted Ooleteka. When his adopted father told him his drunkenness was part of the problem, Houston struck him. This time period of Houston’s life was his all time

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The document, Thomas Jefferson’s secret message to Congress about the Lewis and Clark expedition in 1803, tells us about Jefferson’s views of westward expansion and Native Americans. Jefferson really liked the idea of westward expansion; in addition, he saw the remarkable opportunities associated with it. Jefferson believed that the Native Americans could be coaxed into willingly giving up their land. The Americans were more deserving of Indian territories in the eyes of Jefferson, so he wanted to change their minds and get the Natives to hand over their land. Jefferson wanted to utilize two tactics to achieve this goal.

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Jackson presidency was marked as a new era in Indian-Anglo American relations by imitating a policy of Indian removal. Before the removal, he made about 70 treaties with Native American tribes both in the South and the Northwest. His First Annual Message to Congress and some others begins in December of 1829, which contained remarks on the present and future state of American Indians in the United States. He argued that it was for the Indians own well, that they should be resettled on the vacant lands west of the Mississippi River. During the time in Congress, debates on a bill didn’t begin until late February 1830.

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He even aimed and tried to establish a more perfect union by sending his men to fight off the Barbary pirates who were harassing the U.S commerce. ”He also sent a naval squadron to fight the Barbary pirates, who were harassing American commerce in the Mediterranean” (Frank Freidel). Purchasing the Louisiana Territory, displayed Jefferson expanding America into a better union. “At more than 820,000 square miles, the acquisition (which included lands extending between the Mississippi River and Rocky Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico to present-day Canada) effectively doubled the size of the United States” (History.com - Thomas Jefferson). The only thing Jefferson lacked was being fair to all, or establishing justice.

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My musings about Thomas Jefferson is, I have no issue against him for being a slave proprietor. His dad Dwindle Jefferson, was a slave proprietor when he was three years of age in 1746 that he could recall. Jefferson was nine years of age when he had formal investigations with serve showing him nine months out the year. Jefferson father passed on in 1757, when he was fourteen years of age, his educator took him under their wings for direction. I trust Jefferson had slaves of his own since he was mature enough to realize what truly matters to slaves and what it remains for in their life time.

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After the move, 1830, a year later he married a Cherokee woman, her name was Tiana Rodgers. Houston spoke upon the Cherokee Nation and other Native Americans in Washing D.C. in Indian affairs. He had gone to Washington D.C. to uncover all kinds of fraud that the government agents had committed against the

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Jefferson did some action and has some beliefs that are quite questionable by todays standards. This includes his beliefs about slavery and his multiple times changing stances. Thomas Jefferson one of Americas great founding fathers fought for his peoples freedom. Despite Thomas Jefferson being one of Americas found fathers was he fighting for

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He, yet again, faced invasions from the Mexican government wanting Texas back; however, the Mexicans were unsuccessful. Houston once again worked for the annexation of Texas, but his term ended before it happened; however, he was elected to serve the U.S. Senate (shalhp

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Therefore, he decided to live as part of a native tribe the Cherokee were Oo-loo-te-ka accepted him as an adoptive son he admired the Cherokee and paid them respects for their admirable form of living. Sam Houston grew a great bond with the Cherokee and this will be of vast importance when he is given the order to relocate the

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Samuel “Sam” Houston was born in Virginia 1793 and died in 1863. He became a lawyer, congressman, and senator in Tennessee. Sam joined the growing conflict between the U.S. and the Mexican government and became commander of the local army when he moved to Texas in 1832. On April 21, 1836, at the San Jacinto Sam and his men defeated Mexican General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna in just 18 minutes. He was voted for president in 1836 and in 1841.

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This was because most of his family had been lost in the War of 1812, where Natives were allies with Brittan. The Washington government in the 1790’s, policy in the United States was mainly used to give Indians their rights, this was violated by Jackson soon after he was elected president. Andrew Jackson, who was in favor of Western expansion, forced Indians to move from their homeland. From the beginning of the United States’ government, Indian tribes were given rights to be treated as nations, and their rights had to be respected by the Constitution. For example, Henry Knox, Secretary of War in 1789, wrote to President George Washington that, “The Indians being the prior occupants, possess the right of the soil.

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In the text, The Way to Rainy Mountain by Momaday, Undaunted Courage by Stephen E. Ambrose, and Chief Joseph Speaks by the Nez Perce Chief they all claim and support westward expansion and its influences on the people around them. n the text, There Is No True History of the Westward Expansion, Robert Morgan was saying that history is hard to predict, not to mention we have to study it and find out the mistakes of other people and learn from them. In 1831, James H. Hackett a play that was about westward expansion. History and what people's actions were can impact and influence what the future citizens will do. Robert Morgan’s claims that that Thomas Jefferson was responsible for westward expansion were reasonable.

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548 Words | 3 Pages

"Jefferson won most of the important political battles he engaged in, and he did not live long enough to face the actuality of widespread slave rebellions." Jefferson, as well as many other great leaders, like Martin Luther King Jr., Muhammad Ali, and Edward Snowden, fought peacefully for Americans to have rights. They put their lives in danger, so Americans, can have equal rights. "The right of a revolution was seen as a necessary defense of freedom. " I thank these people, these hero's, for risking their lives, to ensure that I, and millions of other people, have a better

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In April 1836 Sam Houston and his army conquered Mexican General Santa Anna at San Jacinto to fortify Texan independence. He became president in 1836 through a vote also in 1841, then became as a senator after Texas joined the U.S. and became a state in 1845.Sam Houston eventually got a town named after him and even a county. Sam Houston was a great commander,but a better Hero to Texas and all america. David (Davy) Crockett was born in 1786 to a family of pioneers who lived on Nolichucky River in a east part of Tennessee. His family constantly followed a western settlement.

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912 Words | 4 Pages

History is a complicated and controversial subject. Robert Morgan makes that point clear throughout his article titled “There Is No True History of the Westward Expansion.” Many people associate history with a few well known names or faces, but they don’t realize that there are hundreds of thousands, even millions of other less prominent characters. This point is evident when discussing the topic of westward expansion. Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis, and William Clark are three big names that come to mind when thinking about the westward expansion of the United States.

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703 Words | 3 Pages

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.

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