The west was an expansion area which had a lot of resources and many opportunities for all type of people, they saw the west as the place you could do whatever you want and be whoever you want. The Gold Rush and the Homestead Act were two things that really impacted the way of how the US were formed changing the structure of the country and the point of view about expansion and the distribution of lands. The Gold Rush of 1849 was the most important event because it concentrated almost all of the attention of one nation in one objective. “When gold was discovered in west of the US, thousands of prospective miners traveled by sea or by land to San-Francisco” (History.com). Basically, lots of people traveled there to get rich and a prospective …show more content…
Basically, the reason why the Gold Rush of 1849 was the most important event in the Westward Expansion was because gold was discovered in California, consequently this brought too many people to there. The Homestead Act set in motion a program of public land grants to small farmers and any adult citizen or who want to become a citizen. “The Homestead Act opened up settlement in the western US, allowing any american to put a claim for up to 160 acres of land” (History.com). When the Homestead Act was signed, anyone including freed slaves, could have their own lands, this cat also helped small farmers. “The Homestead Act provided that any adult citizen or person who wanted the become a citizen who headed a family, could qualify for a grant of 160 acres of public land by paying small registration fee and living there for 5 years” (History.com). The Homestead Act also helped people who are not citizen, and people who headed a family, with the condition of 5 years living there and by paying a small fee. Basically, the Homestead Act helped many people by providing land for
From 1840 - 1890 the west became a target for United States expansionist campaigns. Motivated by the many job and life opportunities offered by this new land, people flocked by the droves to the West. Although ideological factors formed a small role in this trend, the natural resources, new technologies, and abundant land played the major roles in the development of the West beyond the Mississippi. For starters, the fertility and abundance of the West encouraged settlers into its land, and influenced the lives they led once they established there. The rich soil, pastures for grazing, and precious natural minerals led to the settlement of thousands of miners, ranchers, and farmers.
Over 300,000 people migrated to California during the California Gold Rush. One way that these migrants contributed to Westward Expansion was that they boosted the economy in California. Many small cities in California that had previously consisted of a few hundred citizens soon had tens of thousands of residents. Another way that the 49ers contributed to Westward Expansion was their impact on the Native Americans. As the mining industry in California grew, the Native’s sources for food were killed and contaminated by chemicals and silt.
Western Expansion Western expansion is the populating of the western part of the United States. This event took place in the mid 1800s to the early 1900s, and it was the western area of the United states expanding to the pacific area of America. This event took place in result of the Manifest destiny, gold rush of 1849, the homestead act, and railroads.
In conclusion, the westward expansion was one of the most important times in American history but one of the hardest for those who made the journey. The settlers had to go through a lot of hardships to get a new life in the west. The Gold Rush helped bring people to the west and populate California so it became a state. People such as Sacagawea helped Lewis and Clark helped explore the new terrain and make maps so people could live there. Even though the pioneers got diseases, had conflicts with the Native Americans, and had to travel for long periods of time in a ship or covered wagon, they never gave up hope.
Alex Gaines HISTORY 265 Melissa Payne 6 October 2017 MIDTERM EXAM FIRST AMERICAN WOMEN How did gender roles define the lives of Native Americans before contact? How did European men react to women’s roles in Native societies? Why did they believe women worked more than men?
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
Did you know that the start of the California Gold rush brought more than 250,000 people west to California? The Gold Rush was a defining time in the history of California. The outcome of the California Gold Rush was a significant compromise in the nineteenth century because it led to forming of towns as people migrated, forming of California as a state, and the Compromise of 1850. On January 24, 1848, a discovery was made that changed many Americans’ lives. January 24, 1848 James W. Marshall, a carpenter from New Jersey, discovered gold.
The U.S had gained a lot of land, or frontiers in the West from Mexico. The land was undeveloped, therefore the U.S had to find a way to develop the land. The U.S would come up with the Homestead Act. The Homestead Acts states that any citizen or anyone planning to become a citizen is eligible to gain 160 acres of land, typically to form farms. The plan was intended to make the people stay in that land and create a
In 1814 the Manifest Destiny occurred, manifest destiny is when lots of United States citizens moved out west so they could be start their lives and gain lots of property. The main reason Americans wanted to move out west was so they can gave the mass quantities of land and be able to farm and make a great living off of it. But the Manifest Destiny affected lots of things three of them being the Native Americans, slavery, and the relationship between the North and South States. The Manifest Destiny affect the Native Americans greatly in multiple ways, their population their food and their culture.
The Gold Rush supposedly inspired the largest mass movement of people in world history because of the incredibly large masses of gold being found in the West. People found thousands of dollars in gold and people of all different cultures and backgrounds moved Westwards in hopes of finding gold as well. The Gold Rush left a positive effect on American History because Americans became wealthier and more foreigners came to California which expanded diversity. To start, Americans were able to sell this gold in exchange for loads of money. One man who only had a piece of land that was four feet square “got thirty pounds of gold in less than a month.”.
People in America during this time seeking for opportunities out west that they did not think they had in the east. During this time, gold was discovered in California that attracted many people not just from America, but all over the world. Plus, the government encouraged people to go mining for gold by giving miners cheaper land to live on out west. As stated in the Homestead Act of 1862, United States Congress, a law providing free land for citizens of the United States in western territories. This act encouraged people to mine for gold in California so they could have cheaper land than they would anywhere else.
The California Gold Rush is a unique point in history that helped to shape the U.S. Without the gold rush, California may not be considered a part of the U.S. because it could easily have been acquired by Mexico. With the gold rush the U.S. wanted to obtain California both for its gold and to expand its growing population. Obtaining California was a benefit for many reasons. However, the part of the landscape of California was ruined in the process because many of its rivers were diverted destroying much of its natural landscape.
The California Gold Rush was a rush of people in search of gold in California. The gold was discovered in the Sacramento Valley in early 1848 which sparked the gold rush. The rush was a huge influence in how America was shaped into what it is today. It shaped California into what it is today. Without this gold rush California would be like it is today but it would have taken way more years and it wouldn’t be such a diversely populated state.
The Homestead Act and Pacific Railway Act were both implemented by the government in hopes of igniting Westward expansion. The Homestead Act was finalized in 1862, it allowed “any head of a family or anyone older than 21 could have 160 acres of public land on the payment of small fees” (W&R,133). In short, the Homestead Act allowed the expansion towards the West to be affordable and later (with the introduction of railways) it would prove profitable. The Pacific Railway Act was also passed in 1862 and it “granted a charter of incorporation to the Union Pacific Railroad, which was authorized to build a line from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to the western boundary of Nevada. The Central Pacific, incorporated under the laws of California in 1861, was
The Homestead Act is a special Act that promoted migration to the western part of US. Public lands were made easily accessible to settlers with a small filing fee in exchange for 160 acres of land to be used for farming. Homesteaders received ownership of the land after continuously residing on the land for five years. Homesteaders also had an alternative of acquiring the land from the government by paying a specified amount per acre, after six months of residency. The Homestead Act resulted in the distribution of million acres of public land (Library of Congress n.p).