Chapter 9

Question 1

What was the chief goal of American expansionists?

Who are the expansionists? Expansionists – favored territorial growth - emerged after the American

Revolution (1775-83) because eager to spread “American Ideals”

Wanted to expand territory beyond the 13 original states

Manifest Destiny Emerged in 1800s Referred to belief that God wanted the U.S.

to own all of North America Eager of Manifest Destiny best illustrated by

expansion into Oregon Country- settled by United States

and Canada under Convention of 1818

Manifest Destiny (cont.) In presidential election of 1844 James K. Polk

used slogan “Fifty-four Forty or Fight”- After elected, Polk settled dispute with Britain securing the territory (today: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and parts of Montana and

Wyoming

Manifest Destiny (cont.) Close to the nineteenth century, U.S.

was able to acquire outlying territories of Alaska, the Hawaiian Islands, Midway Islands, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Guam, Wake Island, American Samoa, the Panama Canal Zone, and the U.S. Virgin Islands

Question 2 What was the Oregon Trail? Which

settlers traveled along this trail, and why?

Oregon Trail Route from Independence, Missouri

to Oregon City, Oregon Made by mountain men of fur trade

on the 1830s and publicized by 1843 2000 mile wagon route and emigrant

trail

Oregon Trail (cont.) First only passable by foot and horseback

until 1836 when first migrant wagon organized and trail was cleared further

Ferries and bridges made it faster and safer

Oregon Trail (cont.)

1846-1869 (epoch years) trail were used by about 400,000 settlers, farmers, miners, and businessmen and their families

Use of trail declined when first transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, making the trip westward faster, cheaper and safer

Question 3

What was the goal of the Treaty of Fort Laramie? How did it affect Native Americans?

Treaty of Fort Laramie By 1815 bound the Indians to territories away

from major trails. Signed in 1868,assigned reservations to the

Sioux and Northern Cheyennes in Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming territories, but restored only temporary peace to the region.

This protected migrants by restricting Plain Indians.

Question 4

Who were Antonio Lόpez de Santa Anna and Sam Houston? How were the two men linked?

Antonio Lopez

• Was a pointless general

• He was a president who influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and governments

• He was president for eleven non-consecutive periods of years.

Sam Houston

• Houston was a statesman, politician and solider

• He became a key figure in history of Texas

• He was elected as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas

Question 5

How did James K. Polk encourage territorial expansion?

Background James K. Polk was the 11th President He was a Democrat and was Governor

of Tennessee. Was running for presidency against

Henry Clay.

Clay- tried to take expansionists issue and indirectly take slavery out of the campaign by declaring that they were opposed to the annexation of Texas.

Polk- Publicly asserted that Texas should be “re-annexed” and all of Oregon re-occupied.

Question 6 What was the Gadsden Purchase? Why

did the United States seek this purchase?

Gadsden Purchase A land purchase where the United

States obtained 29,640 square miles of land including present day New Mexico and Southern Arizona from Mexico.

As a result the U.S used the land to build railroads.

Question 7

What was the Wilmot Proviso? Did it Unite or divide Congress? Explain.

Wilmot Proviso It was a proviso created by David Wilmot of the Whig

party It stated that it would ban slavery from any land won

from Mexico This divided the Northern and Southern Whig parties IT never passed senate but always passed house of

representatives for 15 years Every time the proviso went into court it caused tension

between the North and South This also led to the antislavery Republican party in 1854

Wilmot Proviso (cont.)

This proviso helped create the Compromise of 1850

This stated that California was a free state but New Mexico and Utah got to choose

Question 8

What was the goal of the forty-niners?

Forty-niners – miners who went to California after the discovery of gold in 1848

The new lands in the West seemed too distant for rapid settlement

Workers at John Sutter’s sawmill found flecks of gold in the American River.

The mass migration of 80,000 people was called the California Gold Rush.

Half traveled by land, the other by sea (shortcut: Isthmus of Panama)

Many came from South America (Chile and Peru)

25,000 from China in the 1850’s Population 1847: 14,000

Five years later: 225,000

Question 9

What were the causes of westward migration?

Westward Expansion The gold rush of 1848, and the quest for land

and it’s resources. Land represented wealth the more land you

had, the wealthier you were considered. Many people believed that going west and

having more land was there manifest destiny

Westward Expansion (cont.) Homestead act gave an applicant

ownership at no cost. People typically got 160 acres of

undeveloped land. Only counted for land west of the

Mississippi, to encourage people to migrate west.

Also there was population growth, so people wanted to leave the busy cities and be able to own their own farm land.

Question 10

How did the revolution in Texas lead to war with Mexico?

Question 10 The US wanted to make the border named the Rio

Grand but the mexico didn’t want to President Polk sent a general with troops down to Rio

Grand to protect the border Polk wanted mexicans to attack so he would gain

support of the Senate to go to war Eventually the mexicans cross the border and attack

american soldiers and that was the start of the mexican american war

After two years the mexicans agreed to call the border the Rio Grand and seeded the california territory to the US and Us gave them 15 million dollars as a gift

Question 11

What were the effects of the Mexican-American War and the California Gold Rush?

Mexican-American War Territorial gains on the United

States behalf, an internal conflict over slavery, & downfall of the Mexican Government.

Led to disruptions in congress and the build up of hatred between the North and South.

Mexico was forced to give up the United States

United States Claimed over 500,000 square miles of new territory.

Stoked the flames of sectional controversy in American national politics.

After his Victory at Vera Cruz Scott advanced with his army toward Mexico City.

California Gold Rush

White and Chinese miners hoping to strike it rich during the California Gold rush ,1852

James Wilson Marshall found the first few pieces of gold in Coloma, California.

Farming Settlements were greatly affected

Creation of mines and settlements led to widespread destruction of habit. (Animals)

Biggest migration in history took place.

“ the yellow metal was a magnet that pulled people from all over the world”

United states expands sea to sea, Gadsden purchase.

References Question 1

- "Manifest Destiny." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History. Ed. Thomas Carson and Mary

Bonk. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2000. 598-599. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 17 Sep. 2012. - "Expansionists." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History. Ed. Thomas Carson and Mary Bonk.

Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1999. 299-300. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 17 Sep. 2012.