Westward Expansion Movement

Jedediah Smith One of the many important people alive during the Westward Expansion was a man named Jedediah Smith. He was from a large family, two parents and 12 siblings. As a child, he lived in New York, that is, until he turned 12, when he moved to Erie County. Eventually, his family decided to pack up, once again, and head to Ohio. Though his time spent there was never documented, it is believed that Smith got a fairly good education and got a job as a clerk.

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.

Was the westward expansion of the United States just an inevitable or unjust and easy to stop? Manifest destiny was not a god given right, it wasn’t helpful to the other countries, we weren’t enlightening anyone. All of that is just a cover of our power hungry government. I am not against the expansion of America, I think it’s great if we buy countries, or they join us.

In the years following the Revolutionary War the United States would begin to expand, although not popular among all citizens, it helped shape the country into what we know today. The first acquisition of territory would be as a result of the Treaty of Paris with Great Britain ending the Revolutionary War. This treaty marked the boundaries between the British colonies still located in North America and ceded the thirteen American colonies to a newly recognized country known as the United States of America. This would not be the only acquisition of territory that the United States would complete between the years of 1789 and 1815 but it would be the initial acquisition of territory that would develop this newly formed nation.

The late 19th century was a time of exploration, innovation, and continued westward expansion. The West, however, was not as glorified as people today like to think it was. Westward expansion had many benefits, the main being lots of new land for both the Americans and immigrants, but many ideas of the West have been altered throughout the years. The West was romanticized in many ways, people moved to the West in the pursuit of happiness, but today many hardships of westward expansion have been ignored. Cowboys and homesteads are two major concepts that have been romanticized today about the West.

During the pre-civil war time period— also known as the antebellum years— America experienced a widespread transformation for the sake of its economy. With the booming belief of the Manifest Destiny, America’s constant desire for westward expansion caused disputes between the North and the South regarding the establishment of free states and slave states, which led to certain compromises such as the Missouri Compromise. After the Market Revolution, the North and South used its new gained land to create different means of economic gains; the North became industrialized through manufacturing, while the South became an agricultural industry dependent on cotton. However, as America’s boundaries expanded, tensions between the North and South grew, often leading to compromises in bloodshed. The drastic differences between the two groups eventually transformed America into a divided nation of sectionalism economically, politically, and socially.

Westward Expansion Flash Draft Have you ever wondered about what would 've happened if the westward expansion never occurred? We wouldn 't have many things you know today and America would be a lot smaller. The westward expansion happened during the 1800s and helped shape the modern America. The westward expansion started with the Louisiana Purchase and was made even stronger by the Gold Rush. Many people came to strike it rich or just to start a new life out west.

America’s expansion seemed to cause major instability as it transitioned into independence. It caused wars with Britain and Mexico, but formed a strong relationship with France. However, this is the only case in which some stability is caused by expansion. Debatably one of the most destabilising outcomes of westward expansion was the slavery argument.

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.

Westward migration in the 1800s was a very arduous and long journey, and those that traveled in hopes to reach the west were faced with countless difficulties and hardships. Some of these pioneers made great discoveries and had enormous success in discovering relatively safe routes to the new land, but others faced great tragedies, the struggle to survive depriving a man from even the simplest sense of morality. One of these great tragedies was the one faced by the Donner Party, a group that perhaps foolishly embarked on a trail that was rumored to be a shortcut, and this grievous mistake led to the demise of several travelers. The Donner Party, a group of nine covered wagons left Springfield, Illinois on a 2,500 mile journey to California

Life for the Native Americans was much harder during and after the western expansion. For example, the US took land from the Indians leading the formation of reservations, White men almost hunted the Buffalo , an important food source for the Indians, to extinction, and forced the Indians to get rid of their culture. Because of the western expansion, the area of land the Indians could occupy decreased significantly. The government would make treaties with the Indians allowing them to keep a certain area of land, but this would soon be broken ; When the Pacific Railroad Act was passed it stated that wherever a track was laid the company would own any land 200 ft surrounding the track including Indian land ; the Government would make sure that

Native Americans flourished in North America, but over time white settlers came and started invading their territory. Native Americans were constantly being thrown and pushed off their land. Sorrowfully this continued as the Americans looked for new opportunities and land in the West. When the whites came to the west, it changed the Native American’s lives forever. The Native Americans had to adapt to the whites, which was difficult for them.

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.

Robert Morgan, Author of “There is No True History of the Westward Expansion” gives his points of what his beliefs on what Westward Expansion were. Morgan talks about what his view of Westward Expansion was, by using many other peoples perspectives. Morgan presents two main points in his literature: First being that history is not made up of just a few heroes and villains, and second that average citizens were responsible for Westward Expansion. I agree with one of Morgan's views, however, I do not agree with his other view. The first point that Morgan presents is that history is not made up of just a few heros and villains.

There were both positive and negative components of westward expansion from 1800 to 1875. By the late of 1800s, the land of the United States was mostly purchased. In seventy five years, the United States continuously expanded westward, which was encouraged by the idea of Manifest Destiny. New land in the United States led to more economic, social, and political opportunities. Gaining more land also led to disputes between the states and wars with other countries.