Manifest Destiny Chapter 9.2

American Mission By the 1840s expansion fever gripped the country because it was believed westward and southward expansion was ordained by god.

 Manifest Destiny- was coined when describing the annexation of Texas in 1845. The phrase began to reflect the belief that the US destiny was to expand to the Pacific and south into Mexican territory. (manifest meaning obvious).

Attitudes Towards the Frontier Reasons for traveling west: some due to personal economic problems such as the panic of 1837 making people want to start new. The vast land was another reason for farmers and merchants followed seeking new markets.

Settlers and Native Americans Increasing numbers of Americans moving west affected Native Americans, some tribes moved others assimilated to the white culture and few fought hard to keep whites away.

The Black Hawk War 1/2 Early 1830s white settlers in western Illinois and eastern Iowa pressured Native Americans to move west of the Mississippi River. Several tribes met with Chief Black Hawk of the Sauk Tribe and convinced Black Hawk to lead a rebellion after a prophet told the chief of a vision he had.

After fighting from Illinois to the Wisconsin territory, the Illinois militia slaughtered 200 Sauk and Fox people which finally forced the tribes west of the Mississippi.

Middle Ground Middle ground was historically where neither Native Americans nor settlers dominated. Settlers needed Native Americans as guides and trading partners. By the 1840s the middle ground was far west of the Mississippi due to the Indian Removal Act of 1830.

Fort Laramie Treaty 1851 - A treaty was signed between a group of Native American tribes and the US government. With westward expansion and fear of attack, The Cheyenne, Arapaho, Sioux, Crow and others joined US representatives at Laramie Wisconsin.

The deal was that Native Americans would not attack settlers and in turn the government would let them control the Central Plains east of the Rocky Mountains stretching roughly from the Arkansas River north to Canada and giving annual payments.

Settlers increased, land trampled, depleted buffalo and elk, the government continued to violate the treaties eventually pushing the tribes into reservations.

Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail became one of the busiest and well-known trails stretching 780 miles Missouri to Santa Fe New Mexico. Covered wagons with goods would travel in groups of 100. Hitting Santa Fe the wagons would disband and sell the silver gold and furs before heading back to the US starting the first American presence in New Mexico and the Mexican province of Arizona.

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail from Missouri to Oregon. Marcus and Narcissa Whitman set up mission schools along the route to convert Native Americans to Christianity. The trail traced some of the path Lewis and Clark traveled and they boasted in letters about the fertile soil and abundant rainfall attracting hundreds of other Americans. By 1844 through much travel and much death along the journey about 5,000 settlers made the journey to Oregon.  

The Mormon Migration One group migrating west along the Oregon trail was the Mormons. Mormon history began in Western New York in 1827 when Joseph Smith and five associates established the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Fayette New York in 1830.

Smith and his followers moved west settling in Nauvoo Illinois in 1839. The community grew in five years to 20,000 followers. Printed protests spoke out against Mormons belief in multiple wives (polygamy) Smith broke into the shop and broke the printing press. He was arrested and an anti-Mormon mob broke into the jail and murdered Smith and his brother.

Brigham Young, Smiths successor, moved the group in 1847 to the edge of the desert near the Great Salt Lake. They divided the land by the size of the family, irrigate and built a prosperous community called Salt Lake City and they called the land Deseret. They proposed it to be a state in the union but the government declined.

Resolving Territorial Disputes 1/2 The Webster Ashburton Treaty of 1842 settled disputes about the land that is now Maine and Minnesota between the US and Britain but the Oregon territory was the one point of contention because of the "joint occupation".

Resolving Territorial Disputes 2/2 1844 President James Polk's presidential platform called for annexation of the Oregon Territory.

Fifty-Four Forty or Fight

"Fifty-Four Forty or Fight" a slogan referring to the latitude line which is the northern limit of the territory. By the mid 1840s the fur trade was in decline and the British interest declined.  Polk believed the land north of the 49 degrees latitude line was unsuitable for agriculture and the northern boundary was drawn establishing the current boundary.