In Robert Morgan’s, “There is no true history of the westward expansion”, his claims of westward expansion are more sensible than any other mans at that time. “It is natural and perhaps necessary for historians and story-tellers to view the dramatic shifts of history through the actions of a few famous figures, whether heroes or villains.” (Robert Morgan paragraph 4 line 2) By saying this, Morgan is saying that most stories that a reader will read, will be one sided. With westward expansion, nobody wants to tell the bad things that happened, but only the good things.
In agreement with Morgan, the Nez Perce Chief, the author of “Chief Joseph Speaks”, believes that westward expansion was one sided. The only story that was ever told, was how the white men were so great and nice to the Indians, when only a few actually were. The Nez Perce Chief tells the reader exactly how it truly was. “I see men of my own race treated as outlaws and driven from country to country, or shot down like animals.” ( The Nez Perce Chief paragraph 9 line 1) The white men came onto the Indians land, taking everything they own and claiming it as theres, and then treating them like they are animals, as the Chief said. No one ever told the truth of how the westward expansion really was.
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The white men went onto the Indians land, lied to them, stole land, and treated the Indians and tribes like animals. This is pretty much how the westward expansion happened. “A true story of westward expansion would be the account of actions, thoughts, emotions, words, and persons of the unnamed thousands, the people on the ground, who are the living flesh and blood of history.” (Morgan paragraph 6 line1) The true story of westward expansion was never truly told. Many bad things happened during this time, and maybe America will now understand
In 1742 the chief of Onondaga of the Iroquois Confederacy knew that his land that the people shared would become more valuable than it has ever been. (Doc B)The reason for this was because the “white people” also known as the Americans wanted the land of the chief. The feelings of the Chief result in complaining to the representatives of Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia,
In this essay, we’ll be exploring the reasons and emotions behind the Nez Perce attacks on settlers, the legalism of the settlers manifest destiny, and the Nez Perce’s rejection of the peaceful treaties. First off, the Nez Perce weren’t very peaceful to the settlers. Over 6,596 settlers were killed by Native Americans, which was around 31% of their population (wikipedia.com)! Many settlers were killed when tried to peacefully negotiate with angry tribes. Also, on the first Nez Perce reservation, 12-16 settlers were killed by 3 Nez Perce, who then fled (indian-ed.org).
Whites did not attempt to exceed the Mississippi river to the West Coast as they considered it as an Indian country. After 1850 American settlers started preparing to displace the Native Americans from tribal lands. Plains were very resistant and hostile to any whites trying to acquire their groups of land and searching grounds. The policy of the federal government was to mend social group boundaries and to sign agreements promising to respect Indian social group. What was missing from this policy was the lack of understanding and insight into Native cultures.
The Nez Perces had always had good relations with white men, and in 1863 they sign a treaty for their tribe to be moved to a reservation. As more white men move to their tribal land, the Nez Perces are forced to leave and move to the reservation. The Nez Perces decide that they do not want to leave their land, and they win a battle against the white men in the summer of 1877. The Nez Perces then make the decision to flee to Canada. After being surrounded by soldiers for several months, the tribe surrenders.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the United States federal government was trying promote westward expansion in the United States of America. They tried to do this in many ways and the methods that they used drastically changed and shaped the country. The United States federal government was trying very hard in the late 1800s and early 1900s to expand the country westward and their actions had many major impacts on the United States of America. Some of their actions include: relocating the indigenous Native Americans, passing the Homestead Act, and greatly promoting the construction of railroads. All of these efforts greatly altered the country and the lives of the Native Americans and the United States citizens.
In June, 1876, Alexander Findley, a white settler, found 5 of his horses were missing. “On June 22, 1876, Findley found a Nez Perce camp in the foothills and decided they had stolen the missing 5 horses. He went to get help. He returned with three men, including Wells McNall, a known Indian hater and trouble maker. There were no horses in the camp, but Findley still was certain they had stolen his horses, finding hoof prints he believed were those of his missing horses.”
Manifest Destiny is a unique, yet mysterious fundamental series of events in American history. No other country’s history contains such an eventful history as the United States. Amy Greenberg’s book, Manifest Destiny and American Territorial Expansion, provides documented evidence that settlers believed they were destined for expansion throughout the continent. In other words, many religious settlers believed that it was a call from God for the United States to expand west. On the other hand, people believed that Manifest Destiny vindicated the war against Mexico.
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.
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.
As the Shawnees were attempting to reunite in the Ohio Valley, they found themselves displaced and had to defend their territory from western expansion. The Shawnees placed all their trust in the British, which didn’t turn out positive for them, for when the British ceded all lands west of the Appalachian Mountains, which endangered the lives of the Natives. “For the
In Robert Morgan’s writing, “Lions of the West,” he tell a good point about the history of westward expansion. Morgan states that everyone notices the famous people that were apart of westward expansion but the people who are not noticed are the most important and that is what Morgan is trying to point out. He gave a great point and gives much evidence to why the natives and people who are not mentioned very often are some of the most important people of westward expansion. Mogan also tells how we only know so much about westward expansion because that is all that they really want to tell us, but really there is so much more.
During the “Gilded Age” period of American history, development of the Trans-Mississippi west was crucial to fulfilling the American dream of manifest destiny and creating an identity which was distinctly American. Since the west is often associated with rugged pioneers and frontiersmen, there is an overarching idea of hardy American individualism. However, although these settlers were brave and helped to make America into what it is today, they heavily relied on federal support. It would not have been possible for white Americans to settle the Trans-Mississippi west without the US government removing Native Americans from their lands and placing them on reservations, offering land grants and incentives for people to move out west, and the
What would it be like to have everything common and normal in life taken away within a moments notice? The film Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee explores this question through the historical events that took place during the Indian removal era. Furthermore, the film reveals the motives of the U.S. government through the many scenes in which they attempt to negotiate for land with the Sioux Indians. The Sioux refuse to sell their land, so the United States forces the Sioux to pay for the western expansion with life, land, and freedom.
Petalesharo’s writing reflected the treatment of Native Americans during the 1800s. Being a Native American himself, Petalesharo was able to give perspective on a point in history typically viewed from a white man’s opinion. The excerpt “Petalesharo” explains how the Native American was able “to prevent young women captured by other tribes from being sacrificed”, making Petalesharo well liked by the Americans (588). Petalesharo gave the “Speech of the Pawnee Chief” infront of Americans to convey the differences between Native Americans and Americans through emotion, logic, and credibility, which showed how the two groups will never be the same, but still can coexist in the world together.