GACE Study Guide Laura Brittain March 6, 2011

Transcription

1 GACE Study Guide Laura Brittain March 6, 2011

2 GPS Standard: S4H6:The student will explain westward expansion of America between 1801 and a. Describe territorial expansion with emphasis on the Louisiana Purchase, the Lewis and Clark expedition, and the acquisitions of Texas (the Alamo and independence), Oregon (Oregon Trail), and California (Gold Rush and the development of mining towns). b. Describe the impact of the steamboat, the steam locomotive, and the telegraph on life in America. c. Describe the impact of westward expansion on Native Americans.

3 Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase was the largest acquisition of land in the history of the United States. The purchase was partially a result of the United States desire for more land and the opportunity to expand further west. However, Thomas Jefferson was largely encouraged to act when he learned of Napoleon s desire to re-establish French Colonies in Louisiana which could ultimately have a negative economical impact on trade. So in 1802, Jefferson sent Robert R. Livingston to France to negotiate the purchase of New Orleans and portions of Mississippi for two million dollars. Napoleon initially declined. France, however, soon fell into financial turmoil as they did not have sufficient funding to support a renewed war with Great Britain. Jefferson sent James Monroe to join Livingston in further negotiation with Napoleon. Because France was in desperate need of money, Napoleon offered far more than the U.S. had initially anticipated, and agreed to sell the entire Louisiana Territory for fifteen million dollars. The United States signed a treaty to purchase the territory on April 30, 1803, which double the size of the country in one purchase. louisianapurchase/louisianapurchase.htm

4 Lewis and Clark Expedition Eager to explore the new territory acquired by the Louisiana Purchase, Thomas Jefferson commissioned Captain Meriwether Lewis to explore the territory via the Mississippi River. Jefferson allowed Lewis to choose a co-commander for the journey. Lewis chose William Clark, a skilled river-man, geographer, and mapmaker. So after great preparation and much anticipation, Lewis and Clark set forth on their journey May 14, 1804 with forty-two soldiers and hired hands, moving slowly by boat along the river. On November 4th, they met a man named Toussaint Charbonneau who offered his services as an interpreter. Although there was nothing particularly valuable about Charbonneau himself, his wife, Sacajawea, had tremendous potential for assistance on the journey, so they joined the voyage. With Sacajawea s guidance the group eventually crossed the Rocky Mountains, followed the Snake and Columbia Rivers, and made it to the Pacific coast in the fall of Lewis and Clark returned to St. Louis in September of 1806 with detailed accounts of their journey in the form of journals, maps, and further documentation of geography and various Native Americans civilizations

5 Acquisition of Texas The United States offered to buy Texas from Mexico twice during the 1920 s, but were declined. In 1924, Mexico offered an incentive to Americans to move to Texas by offering land at a low cost and tax exemption for four years. As a result, thousands of Americans migrated to Texas. The cheap land led to the formation of American settlements in Texas that ultimately challenged the Mexican government. As a result, the Mexican government barred Americans from any further immigration to Texas. In 1836, Texans declared their independence from Mexico after a series of fighting. As a result the dictator of Mexico, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led an army to Texas. After a thirteen day battle in which Texans vigorously defended their land from the surprise attackers, Mexico destroyed American troops in the famous Battle at the Alamo. Although America lost the battle, the Alamo will forever be remembered by Texans as a time of great sacrifice towards freedom. In response to the Battle at the Alamo, General Sam Houston gathered troops and defeated the Mexican army in the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, Houston took Santa Anna captive and persuaded him to sign the Treaty of Velascon, which agreed to pull Mexican troops out of Texas. Supposedly, he promised to persuade Mexico to grant full freedom to Texas to become a part of the United States. However, the plan was never crystalized. So in 1846 the US offered again to buy the disputed territories and Mexico refused. The US declared war with Mexico on May 13, After nearly two-years of fighting, Mexico signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which succeeded California and New Mexico to the United States and acknowledge the the Rio Grande as the boundary of Texas.

6 The Oregon Trail With land secured through the Louisiana Purchase and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Americans were eager to venture west. One of the most popular routes for westward migration was the Oregon Trail. Migrants would typically embark on their journey from either Iowa or Missouri, relying on hired guides to lead their families along the 2,000 mile Oregon Trail. With all of their possessions stored in covered wagons, and livestock trailing behind, migrant families crossed the Great Plains and went through the South Pass of the Rocky Mountains. From that point, migrants chose to either head north to Oregon or south to California or New Mexico. The five to six month journey along the Oregon Trail presented many challenges. There was a constant danger of disease, and many travelers contracted cholera and died. Nearly all of the travelers walked the distance of the trail. Women typically faced the most exhausting days, as they would walk all day with their male counterparts and then have to cook and wash once they had stopped for the evening. The journey was largely free of negative interaction with Native Americans, as less than one percent of migrants lost their lives due to interaction with the Native peoples. Despite the hardships that the travelers faced, many migrants found comfort in traveling communally with friends, neighbors, and relatives

7 California Gold Rush On January 24, 1848, James Marshall discovered gold near present day Sacramento while working as a foreman for John Sutter s sawmill. His discovery captured international attention and sparked a mass migration of people to California in search of gold, known as the California Gold Rush. Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to California filled with high hopes of striking gold and becoming instantly wealthy. These migrants were known as the Fortyniners because a majority of migrants arrived in 1849 in search of gold. Many migrants threw caution to the wind, leaving behind their farms, jobs, and families. The gold rush attracted the first Chinese migrants to the Western United States. Similar to American Forty-niners, the Chinese migrants were mostly poor, young men in search of wealth. Because so many men flocked to California, the towns that they left behind largely became ghost-towns where stores and businesses were forced to shut down. The migrants created mining towns around the various mining sites. These towns were usually volatile, filled with alcohol, gambling, and prostitution due to the lack of women and families. Although hundreds of thousands of migrants mined, only a tiny fraction actually found enough gold to strike it rich. Some Forty-niners returned home emptyhanded and disappointed. However, some miners stayed, moving their families out to California as they continued to seek gold or started farming and other means of businesses. The California Gold Rush was pivotal in increasing the population of the state. Following the Gold Rush, cities were booming, as agricultural and urban populations continued to grow. The city of San Francisco, for instance grew from 1,000 people to more than 50,000 following the Gold Rush.

8 Steam Boat The steamboat was invented by John Finch in 1785, however, it is Robert Fulton s design that coined him the nickname father of steam navigation. By the early 1800 s the steamboat had revolutionized shipping in America, which stimulated the agricultural and industrial economies as shipping was more readily available and financially feasible. The boats were also useful in transporting large numbers of passengers. Steam Locomotive Thomas Savery first patented the crude steam engine in 1679, but it was the perfection of the steam engine by James Watt in 1765 that powered the locomotive. Watt s perfection of the steam engine launched the Industrial Revolution. Similar to the Steam Boat, the locomotive was used to ship supplies and passengers more quickly and efficiently than ever before. The locomotive, however, had greater potential than the steam boat, as it could transport people and goods across land. Towns were connected suddenly like never before. Telegraph Just as the locomotive revolutionized transportation, the telegraph revolutionized communication. In 1832, Samuel Morse found a way to send signals through electric cables. Congress funded an experimental telegraph in 1843, and by 1860 more than 50,000 miles of wire connected the country. The country was completely transformed with the ability to communicate so rapidly. The invention of the telegraph also benefited the rail industry as railway stations could communicate easily with towns about delays or complications..

9 Westward Expansion and the Native Americans Throughout the early nineteenth century, the United States had signed treaties with Native American peoples, forcing them to surrender their land and move westward. One famous incident was Andrew Jackson s Indian removal policy which forced thousands of Cherokee to abandon their homes and follow the Trail of Tears towards present day Oklahoma. Many Native Americans died during the migration of disease, hunger, and exhaustion. Unfortunately, their strife did not end there. American s notion of Manifest Destiny inspired people to continue to seek land out west. With the acquisition of land from France and Mexico, settlers began to move west in large numbers. The lands that the Native Americans had been forced to move to were once again being bombarded by settlers moving westward. Many Native Americans further west were encountering settlers for the first time. Not only did the white settlers encroach upon their land, but the settlers were relentlessly slaughtering buffalo, the animal which sustained many tribes. Tensions between Native American tribes and settlers became more apparent and violent as the nineteenth century progressed. Despite attempts made by Congress to ease tension, fights continued to erupt. In 1864 the Sand Creek Massacre occurred when a volunteer militia slaughtered 133 Native men,

10 women, and children. Indian Hunting, which became popular in the late nineteenth century became a way of further harassing and eliminating tribes. In 1867, Native American forces, under the leadership of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, retaliated at the Battle of Little Big Horn in which 2,500 tribal men surprised Custer and his troops, killing every man. Their victory was short lived, as they tribes lacked the political organization and supplies to keep their troops united. Ultimately, they were forced to accept defeat and live on a reservation. Fighting continued, and many more Native Americans died in events such as the Wounded Knee Massacre. The United States government decided to reverse it s own policy which allowed tribes to live communally on reservations. The Dawes Severalty Act of 1887 slowly transferred the tribal ownership of land to individual owners, thus destroying the Native American communal culture. The act also vigorously promoted the assimilation of Native Americans, forcing Natives to leave thousands of years of customs and traditions to adopt the religion and customs of white Americans. part4/4p2959.html