May 17, · Westward Expansion Essay. Westward Expansion The westward expansion of the United States can be argued for progress, greed and racism. It can be argued for progress because in order for the United States to grow and prosper as a country, they needed more land, the only way to get more land to expand and explore Western Expansion Essay When the colonies first came to America all of the states were east of the Mississippi River but they grew to the Pacific Ocean, they called this migration western expansion. Manifest Destiny was the widespread belief that Americans were destined by God to expand across North America. The Louisiana Purchase was the process of the United States buying the territory of Essay Westward Expansion. Words3 Pages. Westward Expansion. During the ’s, American citizens packed up and headed West to the new unknown land of the United States of America. Western expansion was a great part of the growth of the. United States because it gave Americans new land to settle, expanded its economy, and made the
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Browse the database of more than essays donated by our community western expansion essay The Westward Expansion has often been regarded as the central theme of American history, down to the end of the19th century and as the main factor in the shaping of American history. As Frederick Jackson Turner says, the greatest force or influence in shaping American democracy and society had been that there was so much free land in America, and this profoundly affected American society.
After the revolution, the winning of independence opened up the Western country and was hence followed by a steady flow of settlers to the Mississippi valley. Bywestern expansion essay, 10 new western states had been added to the Federal union. The frontier line ran through Iowa, Missouri, and Arkansas on the western side of the river.
All parts of the valley except Wisconsin and Minnesota were well populated. Thus a whole new section had been colonized with lasting effects on the American institutions, ideals and ways of living. deadline 6 hours Writers : ESL Refund : Yes. deadline 3 hours Writers : ESL, ENL Refund : Yes. Western expansion essay methods: VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Discover.
The far west was the land of high mountains, deserts, western expansion essay, strange rock formations, brilliant colors and immense distance. Fur trade with Europe had now become a lucrative business and the fur traders became the pathfinders for the settlers. Migration was now possible by the discovery of paths over which ox-driven carts could be driven through seeking mountains and across the western desert.
People wanted to move away from the overcrowded cities and this led to the migration into the uninhabited lands. Increased transportation like roads, railroads and canals and their construction created a demand for cheap labor making it easier for people to get jobs now, in contrast with the cities where there was unemployment.
The pioneer movement for 70 years after the revolution roughly represented the form of 3 parallel streams, flowing westwards from New England, Virginia, and South Carolina. The first pioneer groups tended to move directly westward. Thus the new Englanders migrated into western New York and along the shores of the great lakes, Virginians into Kentucky and then into Missouri and the South Carolinians and Georgians into the Gulf territories.
Throughout the settlement of the Mississippi valley, western expansion essay, most pioneers did not travel long distances and as a territory had been occupied, families would move into the adjacent one. There were boom periods of great activity, during which a million acres of land were sold, alternated with depression periods during which there was little further expansion of the frontier and many disappointed pioneers even backtracked from the west to the east, western expansion essay.
When the treaty of Paris was signed inthe Americans had thought that they had enough land between the Atlantic coast and the Mississippi River, western expansion essay.
Yet inby the Louisiana Purchase, western expansion essay, the area of the United States doubled and not long after, it was augmented by the half-purchase-half-conquest of Florida. By the end ofas many as 6 states were created, east of Mississippi-IndianaMississippiAlabamaMaineand Missouri By the s, the frontier line had been carried to Iowa, Missouri and Arkansas-about one-third of the way across the continent.
By the s, the expansionist policy, typified by the Manifest Destiny doctrine, became very strong with many sections willing to go to war to acquire more land. Slavery became a bone of contention between the Northern and southern states with the control of the senate in question, western expansion essay. The South wanted the expansion to increase slave states, the North to keep the balance with free states and the West wanting expansion to increase their land. The antagonism between the North and the South sees the western expansion essay of sectionalism leading to the civil war later.
The spirit of equality becomes a banner with which the expansionist policy was proclaimed. Before the s, most sections of the west passed through the same phases of development in regular order. The first white men to usually enter a new area were the hunters and fur trappers, who had extraordinary skills to open up a new path through the wilderness, finding food for themselves and dealing with the Indians.
These men explored the country and brought news of its resources back to the east. In many regions, the second phase was cattle ranching while some also passed through the mining phase.
Parts of Missouri and Wisconsin, for example were settled by lead miners. Behind the cattle ranchers or miners came the first farmers, who were often squatters with no legal title to land. They were frequently restless and were western expansion essay of the restrictions of civilized society, and were not interested in making permanent houses. Many of them, had a habit of moving every few years and would follow the frontier land as it carried further into the west.
Once a new area had been opened up and shown to be fertile, it would soon attract men of sober and ambitious type, who had much more capital and more farming techniques and wanted homes where they could settle for the rest of their lives. They brought with them the habits of civilizations.
They developed trade, established churches, schools and newspapers and set up institutions of government. The Federal government then assumed responsibility for guiding each area through the territorial stage until it was ready for statehood. But there were many parts of the west, where the white settlers provided for their own government, by the democratic methods long before the legal establishment of territorial institutions.
Thus the society became more diversified once small towns sprang up to meet the economic, political, and cultural needs of the population. In those cases that did not afterward become urban and industrial, this represented the final stage. Geographic factors also caused some variation in this usual pattern. Some mountain regions never passed beyond the squatter stage, while fertile countries, such as the black belt of Alabama and Mississippi, were sometimes settled, western expansion essay, at the start, by men of more ambitious type.
Geography also determined western expansion essay order in which different regions were occupied. The early pioneers mostly preferred to make their homes in a forest country or close to it, for they needed timber for shelter and warmth and also for fencing. The forest regions were therefore settled in advance of the open prairies. By the s, western expansion essay frontier line had been carried into Iowa, Missouri, western expansion essay, and Arkansas.
Immediately west of the Mississippi valley was western expansion essay Great Plains, western expansion essay, which after miles sloped into the Rockies. The plains had a lot of wildlife with nomadic and highly warlike Indian tribes. Beyond the Great Plains, the way westwards was through the South pass between two immense mountain systems.
The Spanish territories of Texas, western expansion essay, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and California, including parts of Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming were passed onto the newly established Mexican government in But the Spanish had only made settlements in New Mexico and parts of Texas and California, so the rest of the areas were ripe for expansion.
To the north of California, the area of Oregon was to be occupied jointly by the Americans and the British western expansion essay to the Anglo-American convention of From till and afterthe Federal government sent a number of exploring parties to the far western expansion essay. And so the American government during the s and the s believed that the west might appropriately be left to the Indians and were willing to promise that they could keep it in perpetuity.
A more important role in expansion to the west was played by the fur trappers, western expansion essay. They were the first white people to cover most of the western territories and find routes suitable for pioneer settlers. Between andthe trappers penetrated into the mountains with intensive exploration and exploitation of the mountain country and discovering routes that helped establish the fur trade as well as open up the west for expansion.
Overland trade with Mexico also helped in the knowledge of the far west. The trade western expansion essay from Missouri to Santa Fe and later up to California resulted in the Americans establishing contacts with New Mexico and California which prepared the way for annexation. It can be assumed that the northern parts of Mexico would have eventually come under the control of the United States as the Mexicans did not colonize them, there was no effective sovereignty and American settlers would have resulted in American annexation, western expansion essay.
Mexico achieved independence in with the installation of a constitutional government but from tothe country was dominated by the army and chronic military revolutions. The earliest of the northern parts of Mexico to come under the control of Americans was Texas.
InStephen Austin secured authorization from the Mexican government to colonize the area. The Mexican government was hoping for the quick settlement and Americanisation of the area.
Byaround 30, Americans were settled in Texas with local self-government. At the same time, the Mexican government barred any western expansion essay Americans from settling in Texas. The dictatorial government meant negotiation was impossible and in Marcha convention of Texans issued a formal declaration of independence, drafted a constitution, and chose Sam Houston as commander-in-chief of their army.
The Texans were hoping for annexation by the Americans but the question of slavery meant the Lone Star Republic remained a republic. Ina motion to make Texas a part of the United States failed but it became the main platform western expansion essay the next presidential elections. Ina joint resolution was passed by Congress and Texas finally became a part of the United States.
Polk now had to get Western expansion essay consent to the annexation of Mexico and fix the boundary line, western expansion essay, which the Texans said was the Rio Grande while the Mexicans insisted on Nueces. Mexico had also defaulted on the repayment of the debt of 2 million dollars. This made Polk order the American army under General Zachary Taylor to occupy the disputed boundary region. Western expansion essay troops were also ordered to hold the same region and when a clash between the two armies occurred inCongress declared war.
The Northeast, under the leadership of Emerson, Thoreau, and James Russell opposed the war, as they feared slavery. The planters of the South wanted Texas but knew that New Mexico and California were unsuited for slavery and so wanted limited expansion while the people of the West wanted war for expansion. Texas was soon conquered and with California being taken inthe American annexation of the Far West was complete. A treaty was signed western expansion essay whereby Mexico ceded Texas with the Rio Grande boundary, New Mexico, California, and the rest of the western territories.
The United States would pay Mexico 15 million dollars and assumed its debt of 3. The treaty was ratified by the Senate.
The settlement of California was accelerated by the Californian Gold Rush, when gold was discovered in Inwestern expansion essay, elections were held in California and California asked Congress for admission to the confederation. California became a state in The settlement of Oregon was preceded western expansion essay lot of propaganda, which was nationalistic in nature led by Kelley and later Wyeth. Religious missions, from Methodist to Presbyterians and Congregationalists and Catholic, all tried to settle this area and they were the first permanent American settlements in Oregon and western expansion essay the centers of agriculture and cattle-raising.
The great migration began in and was stimulated by the depression of with people with some capital hoping to make a fresh start. Bythere were 6, Americans in Oregon, and the United States government tried to make the 49th parallel as the boundary without success.
The fur trade had since declined in this area so the British agreed to the 49th parallel as the boundary in a treaty in and thus, American sovereignty was established over the area covered by Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The Mormon Church under the able leadership of Brigham Young settled the area south of Oregon and by had settled the area of Utah. The new acquisitions meant that problems like transportation had to be tackled, western expansion essay.
The building of a transcontinental railroad with the financial assistance of the government was debated upon. Also the question of slavery in the newly acquired territories was a more troubling issue and this decided the fate of the United States for the next few years.
Successive generations also gave this sense of mission life in various ways from the struggle of religious liberty in Plymouth and Boston at the time of the early colonies right until the 14 points of Wilson when the 13 colonies had matured into a major world power.
In the mids, a new form of expansionism, novel in name, appeal, and theory made its appearance in the United States.
Western Expansion
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Western Expansion Essay Words | 17 Pages. The Westward Expansion Introduction The Westward Expansion has often been regarded as the central theme of American history, down to the end of the19th century and as the main factor in the shaping of American history Western Expansion Essay When the colonies first came to America all of the states were east of the Mississippi River but they grew to the Pacific Ocean, they called this migration western expansion. Manifest Destiny was the widespread belief that Americans were destined by God to expand across North America. The Louisiana Purchase was the process of the United States buying the territory of May 24, · Introduction. The Westward Expansion has often been regarded as the central theme of American history, down to the end of the19th century and as the main factor in the shaping of American history. As Frederick Jackson Turner says, the greatest force or influence in shaping American democracy and society had been that there was so much free land in America, and this Estimated Reading Time: 7 mins
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