Westward Expansion Essay

Prompt: Using information you gathered from a variety of texts, write a letter from the chosen group’s point of view, stating their opinion of Westward Expansion by answering the question, “Was Westward Expansion worth it?” Quote evidence from the text to support your claim.

Westward expansion during the 19th century had several far reaching effects on many people. During the period of Manifest Destiny Indians were forced onto reservations, deprived many of their resources,and most of their land, and of course, their culture. At the start of the twentieth century, there were approximately 250,000 Native Americans in the USA – just 0.3 per cent of the total population. The United States’ Indian removal policies, laws, and acts changed many Indians’ lives for the worse. During the 19th century, the removal of Indian tribes had many negative environmental, social, and cultural effects on Native Americans.

During the westward expansion there were some big problems between the U.S. and the Native Americans. The American wanted their land to farm on, and there was alot of gold in the California area. The main conflicts were the environment, the U.S. government, and how they felt about each other.

The 1800s the United states was eager for new land. With population booming westward expansion seemed to be the only option. The term manifest destiny start from john l O'sullivan in the mid 1800s. O'sullivan said that the United states was destined to expand from coast to coast. At the time the land belongs to others and the U.S tried to be civilized with treaties and other but when this didn't worked turned to violence and war to get what they wanted. However the U.S started making its way westward long before manifest destiny was a thing.

The opportunities created by the new intercontinental railroad system were immense and nationwide, not just limited to the west coast. It encouraged the growth of American businesses, but even more so too did it promote evolution of the nation's public discourse and intellectual life. Americans could now, with the new rails, travel across the length of the continent and gaze upon their country in its entirety from the windows of their train cars. Conversations now begun in the east ended in the west of the country. Books written in San Francisco now found their way into homes on New York shelves just one week after their publication. The railroad systems connected all points of the country faster than ever for the first time. And the rails carried more than goods; they provided a conduit for ideas, a pathway for discourse. With the completion of its great railroad, America gave birth to a transcontinental culture . And the route further engendered another profound change in the American mind. Distances shrank, but identification to land and fellow American grew in inverse

After the Civil War, the West was painted as a place of opportunity and improved lives. Millions of people began a western migration which dramatically changed the economic, political, and social dynamics of the area. The prospect of finding gold or silver, and making it rich, brought many people to California, Nevada, and Colorado. Other mining towns saw an influx of settlers in Alaska, Idaho, and the Dakotas.

There are many types of ways that the westward expansion has opened The United States up to challenges, and new opportunities.

It can be interpreted that Jefferson's views for westward expansion were that expansion was inevitable. That not only was it the economically smart thing for the country to do, but also the necessary, as the number of people grew in the country and the need for more land and resources grew with it. He offers two main solutions in regard to the growing tension between the Americans and Natives; one, being to effectively convince the natives to switch from a hunter lifestyle to a farmer and manufacturer one, where there would be less need for forests to hunt and more for the available space for fields and agriculture; an two, to encourage and better develop commerce and trade within the Native American communities so that they'd see the benefits

Westward Expansion was a touchy topic at the start of the 1800s. The north and south lived quite different lifestyles at this time. The north pushed for a more industrial approach to life, while the south found farming to be their choice. The real tension was rooted in the question of whether or not slavery was to exist in these new areas of The United States. With new land to settle and different ideas coming from all directions, relations between the north and south were soon to shift.

In Robert Morgan’s article “There is No True History of the Westward Expansion,” he talks about how there are famous people, yet some of those people are unknown while all the famous figures, such as Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson, are known because of the victories they have made. He also talks about how westward expansion is the greatest folk movement of modern times. However, many have lost their lives upon this movement. The westward expansion has made more trouble in the country than people realize.

The American Westward Expansion has been the main factor in shaping American history. During the 19th century period of American expansion, many Americans felt that the United States should expand their territories from the Appalachian Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. The Manifest Destiny, which is a term for the attitude prevalent during westward expansion in the early 1800’s and the thought that the United States should control all of North America, spread out the country, and many Americans believed that God himself blessed the growth of the America. Even though the American Westward Expansion is the basis of American history, how did the westward expansion change and impact American nation?

The era of expansion was a period in American history where westward expansion was at the center of political and social focus. Due to the Louisiana Purchase, by President Thomas Jefferson, America doubled in size. To map out this new land explorers were sent and the question of slavery arose. Should slavery be allowed in the new territories? To answer this the Missouri Compromise was proposed. This stated that Anything above 36,30 would be free and anything below could be slave states. It also determined that Missouri would be a slave state and that Maine would be a free state so that the balance of slave to free states would be even in Congress. As the population moved westward an ideology arose. Titled Manifest Destiny, many believed that

This text is a sampling of times, places, and people of the Westward Expansion. A teacher teaching the Westward Expansion will find historical images and stories behind the historical times and the sheet music that correlates to the topics. This cross-curricular resource allows for the stories to be read and the pictures to study, and ultimately the music to be incorporated into the classroom learning. Ultimately this book can be utilized to bring adventure, danger, dreams, and the realities of American life during the Westward Expansion to come alive for students. This will make history fun for all students, allowing students to build more of a connection to the past. This is another great resource but because I don’t teach Western Expansion

The westward expansion can be marked by a tremendous expansion of industry and agriculture as well as the spread of settlements across the continent. The population of the United states was said that it doubled during this period. Most of the growth was concentrated in the plain states across the continent as well as the Northeast and Midwest. The Northeast became the front runner in the industrial aspect of the land while the south remained mostly agricultural.

During the westward expansion the Indians were the only Texans who had any real knowledge of the land west of the present day Interstate Highway 35. Soon settlers began to push homesteads farther west into this uncharted region. The new explorers faced several dangers such as weather, water shortages, and uncertain relations with Indians. New explorations and developments in transportation and establishments brought more movement to the west. Residents began arriving in the west hoping to get rich land and political representation. The men and women who went out to establish the last frontier lived lives that would decisively shape the American character. The settlement of the frontier was driven by profit and political purpose. U.S. citizens pursued the work and adventure of subduing their country’s last frontier. Settling the frontier brought out the best and worst in people of all varieties that wanted to make their mark in the west.