ipl-logo

The Impact Of Westward Expansion On Native Americans

847 Words4 Pages

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. Also, the extinction of buffalo affected them negatively and the domination of the whites disrupted their surroundings. The Westward Expansion impacted the Native Americans land and culture. Before the Americans started coming to the West and settling, the Native Americans had a peaceful life. Twenty-eight tribes lived in the Great …show more content…

The treaty the US government signed with the Indians in 1851 granted the Indians to have an extensive territory, which means the Indians can get more land, but eventually that did not last(doc 3,4). One of the most important and well-known wars was the Sand Creek Massacre. On November 29, 1864, John Chivington led 700 troops in an unprovoked attack on the Arapaho and Cheyenne villagers. There they killed over 200 women, children, and older men. US Indian Commissioner admitted that :We have substantially taken possession of the country and deprived the Indians of their accustomed means of support.” -PBS (WHY). This greatly affected the Indians since they lost so many lives that day. The adaptation to the whites, the extinction of buffalo, and the domination of whites are just some of the reasons how the Native Americans land and culture was affected by the Westward Expansion. Although the Native Americans lost much of their homeland and their way of life, they still proved that even threw the worst conditions possible they stick together and fight through

Show More
Related

  • How Did Manifest Destiny Affect Westward Expansion

    1485 Words  | 6 Pages

    The buffalo population came close to depletion and the Natives were anything but pleased. Great numbers of buffalo were killed for their hides being sold for profit. Moreover, trees and plants were cleared away for space and construction, killing the living things. Humboldt State University's Department of US History says," Deforestation and soil erosion was widespread due to needs for wood as fuel, clearing lands for agriculture and housing rivers," (users.humboldt.edu) Before the Westward Expansion, grass grew and trees reached the skies, but as people moved in, so did houses and other structures. The new residents of the area took over the vast, plentiful land that the Natives worked so hard to grow and tend.

    Read More

  • What Is The Memoir Of Catharine Brown A Christian Indian Of The Cherokee Nation

    1591 Words  | 7 Pages

    As the white Europeans began to discover America the continent, the Native Americans perceived America as the only home they had ever known. As the white Europeans began to migrate in bigger quantities they began to harass the Native tribes. Throughout the course of the relationship a new nation as built using enslaved labor and the white Europeans, now referring to themselves as “Americans”, began pushing the Natives farther west to allow the United States to expand. Using many methods the Native Americans responded to the threat of removal made by the United States by adapting to the religious, educational, political, and cultural practices of the peoples of the United States. Even though there are a multitude of tribes that made movements

    Read More

  • How Did European Colonization Affect Native Americans

    796 Words  | 4 Pages

    In 1540 to 1700, the Scientific Revolution occured, events and tools created during this time period would change life forever. First, the astrolabe and the compass were both technological advances created to help navigate and explore the world. Also, at this time Asian spices were huge, but Italy and Egypt controlled the trade routes to Asia. Then, explorers started to sail the world, finding new routes and lands. Lastly, Christopher Columbus tried to sail to Asia in late 1492, but messed up on his way there and discovered the New World.

    Read More

  • Invisible Population Loss

    1561 Words  | 7 Pages

    Prior to the discovery of the New World by Europeans, Native Americans populated what is presently North and South America in massive numbers; however, due to massive population loss, mainly caused by diseases introduced by Europeans and Africans, the Native Americans were unfortunately forced to live as inferiors to the Europeans. A major issue that faced native populations of the New World was the fact that the Europeans introduced foreign animals that carried diseases the natives had never seen before. Specifically in Mexico and Peru, the natives had alpacas and llamas in small and isolated groups, so diseases were not able to originate in them [McNeil 178]. On the other hand, the animals that the Europeans brought over, such as cattle,

    Read More

  • Was The Westward Expansion Justified

    391 Words  | 2 Pages

    From 1865 onward, Native American culture was greatly changed by the westward expansion of the united states. Government action effectively destroyed native culture. The US was not justified in its ruthless westward expansion because of the harm dealt to the native people and the change in the American economy. One reason that westward expansion was not justified was the damage done to the native people. When the US really started to settle the west in 1865, we would offer chiefs compensation to move their tribes farther west or on to reservations.

    Read More

  • Was Reconstruction A Positive Or Negative Impact On African Americans?

    4950 Words  | 20 Pages

    There are different perspectives on the history of Reconstruction; some people believe that rebuilding the South during the period of 1865 to 1877 was a very important stage in the United States history because it was the start of American Society as a home of freedom. However, others view Reconstruction as a negative impact on African Americans. Ronald E. Butchart sees Reconstruction as the main reason for educational discrimination against African Americans. Reconstruction in the South helped African Americans in good ways, such as giving them the freedom they deserved. Like anything else, Reconstruction in the South had purposes, achievements, and failures.

    Read More

  • Obstacles To Manifest Destiny

    481 Words  | 2 Pages

    The ones that were mainly affected by the westward migration were the native Indians. But the relentless immigration of Americans to the West soon came to face one of its biggest obstacles; Indian tribes who refused to give up their territory. Even though we were able to take many territories from the Indians in Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi there were several tribes that resisted. As the Indians saw themselves without protection they turned to the British for backup. This bond between the British and the Indians played a part in causing the War of 1812.

    Read More

  • Native Americans Western Expansion

    441 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • How Did Manifest Destiny Affect Native Americans

    110 Words  | 1 Pages

    How did the Manifest Destiny affect the lives and culture of native americans during the 1800’s? Manifest Destiny was devastating for the cultures of the majority of Native Americans tribes and even ended tribes completely. Manifest destiny was the idea that the United State would continue to expand in North America and that it “was God’s will”, that they would gain more power and and. This however affected native americans heavily because as the United States became aggressive and took more land after wars that occurred in that time period. Events such as the Trail of Tears, and the First Seminole War, and other events similar greatly affected the native

    Read More

  • Native American Colonization Effects

    572 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Effect of European Exploration and Colonization on Native Americans Everyone knows that the colonization of Europeans on the Native American’s land has been disastrous to its people. The exploration of these new lands did not start with Columbus as most of us have been taught, instead stretching back all the way to the fifteenth century A.D, when millions of Native Americans lived in the America’s rather than the small amount we reduced them to. The Europeans brought other things than death to the Native Americans, however.

    Read More

  • How Did Technology Affect The Plains Indians

    489 Words  | 2 Pages

    The lives of the Plains Indians were heavily influenced by governmental action and technological innovations in the second half of the 19th century. As settlers moved to the Plains, conflict between the settlers and the Plains Indians arose. This, in turn, led to a lost of culture of the Plains Indians. Although new technology came to the West and the government enforced treaties, in the Plains Indians best interest, however, it actually was the very force that caused dissimulation within the Plains Indians’ community. Governmental actions such as setting up reservations and the Dawes Act worked in the new settlers best interest.

    Read More

  • Westward Expansion Dbq

    832 Words  | 4 Pages

    Manifest Destiny and the Westward Expansion was made so that the Americans could expand as far as the Pacific Ocean. All though this was a benefit for the Americans, it caused the Native Americans and the Mexicans to deal with a lot of hardship. There were many political, economic, and social reasons for Manifest Destiny, but these reasons did not always have positive outcomes. The Westward Expansion and Manifest Destiny negatively impacted the economic vision of America.

    Read More

  • Native Americans Dbq

    772 Words  | 4 Pages

    Native Americans were greatly affected by the expansion of the United States during the 1800s. As the U.S. moved west, they stole large amounts of Native American land by settling the land and killing the Natives who once lived there. Also during this time, their culture was being taken from them due to assimilation. While United States citizens were expanding into the west, many Native American lives were lost. They were also responsible for destroying a major food and supply source for Native Americans.

    Read More

  • The Wounded Massacre Art Analysis

    881 Words  | 4 Pages

    During the beginning of American westernization, the Native Americans occupied the west. The United States government was demanded to force the Indians out of their own homes. Those of the men who refused were brutally murdered. The continuance of westernization grew the number of Indians murdered daily. Throughout the war battles were fought, land was taken, and agreements took place.

    Read More

  • Essay On Native Americans Forced Assimilation

    1058 Words  | 5 Pages

    With the arrival of Anglo-Americans, Native Americans lost much more than just their land. Tribes were forced onto reservations, stripped of their culture, wealth and place in society, with no hope of regaining what they owned unless by complete assimilation. For the latter half of the 19th and early 20th centuries, many Anglo-Americans continually pushed for Native Americans to abandon their cultures and “savage” ways. However, despite the many attempts to force Natives into Anglo-American culture, many Native Americans found ways to negotiate with the demands of the Anglo-Americans through mainly social, economic and legal means.

    Read More

More about The Impact Of Westward Expansion On Native Americans

Open Document