Westward Expansion In The Late 1800s And Early 1900s

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.

The establishment and growth of the railroad had many influences on the Westward Expansion of America in the later half of the 1800’s. The railroad fueled the conflict with the Native Americans of the Plains, induced growth in population and economy in previously established urban areas, and lastly expanded the lands that were used for agriculture. The railroad affected various aspects of America’s West and the Great Plains. The advancement of the railroad West added to the already tense relationship with the Native Americans of the Plains.

Based on the text by Robert Morgan, I do not agree with Morgan’s central idea. Mogan is telling us westward expansion is a good thing. I do not agree that westward expansion is a good thing. Morgan believes westward expansion was made up by us, the people, and he thinks the government just followed along, but he is nowhere near right. The government brought about the westward expansion and Thomas Jefferson made it happen.

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.

In the United States of America, the late 19th century proved to be a time of much change. With change, there was no shortage of challenges being presented to the country and its leaders. One of those leaders during that time was President Ulysses S. Grant, who came to recognize some of the biggest challenges would be the country’s negative economy and fair equal treatment to all citizens of the U.S. Another man that recognized some major challenges facing the U.S. at that time was Frederick Jackson Turner. He would go on to study Americanization for most of his life, and creating an ideology of what made America the way it is.

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.

During the 1800s, America was a prospering and powerful country so the People felt that it was their Manifest Destiny, or obvious fate, to settle from coast to coast. Therefore, they set out to get all lands in the West, and were determined to do so, no matter how much they had to give up. However, when the Americans started moving westward, they kicked Native Americans out along the way. They had no respect for other people’s ownership of the land and did anything they needed to obtain it. The idea of Manifest Destiny divided the nation in several controversial topics like Indian territories and slavery.

In the 19th century, America was growing more rapidly than it had in the past. Cities were multiplying in size wealthy places and the slums. From the popularity of cities to rural areas the need for land was high. Only so many people grasping for land meant someone had to go either the Natives or the Americans had to to do what they could with their own land. A philosophy of Manifest Destiny was brought forth but with a catch that expansionism could be seen as imperialism instead.

The benefits of the Manifest Destiny outweighed the consequences. This is because the U.S was able to get more resources, increase population in the west, advance trade, and improve technology. These benefits have contributed to the economic development in the U.S. Furthermore, as the U.S were fulfilling the Manifest Destiny, they also imposed the Homestead Act, which helped evolve frontiers. The discovery of gold in the west, specifically, in California lured more people to the west.

The transformation of the West changed the frontier into a new and growing part of the United States. Over the period of twenty five years the land changed drastically. New technologies were created allowing the expansion of the United States to continue marching forward. The Native Americans were conquered and the railroads brought greater civilizations. The United States had already started creating a path leading into the West by laying down railroad tracks, consequently the Indians fought back in fear of losing their homelands and people.

During the first half of the nineteenth century, America's size grew by 70%. This massive and rapid growth was due to the fervor of Manifest Destiny that was spreading throughout the country during this time. Manifest Destiny may be seen as a social idea, but the federal government was leading to the charge to expand the United States across the country. Whether it was declaring war, purchasing new territories, or settling court cases that allowed the federal government more control over infrastructure, the government of the United States was always fighting for westward expansion. The public may have been the ones out on the frontier, heading west to test their luck in new territories, but would they have new territories to discover if the

The westward expansion of of the U.S. began to happen around the 1800s. during that time the social opportunities increased since many people moved to the west because the government was paying them or giving them free land. The political opportunities did not increased as much since most of the people moving westwards were poor or immigrants and only white males had the right to participate in those events. The economic opportunities increased for the people who moved westward because of the gold rush and the opportu tires that were provided.