Manifest Destiny How 13 became 50

“The meeting point between savagery and civilization.”

Turner’s “Frontier Thesis” "(Westward Expansion)...begins with the Indian and the hunter; it goes on with the disintegration of savagery by the entrance of the trader... the pastoral stage in ranch life; the exploitation of the soil by the raising of unrotated crops of corn and wheat in sparsely settled farm communities; the intensive culture of the denser farm settlement; and finally the manufacturing organization with the city and the factory system."

Daniel Boone www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hwqdQ0SkjQ

The Louisiana Purchase The acquisition of the Louisiana territory (828,000 square miles) by the United States from France in 1803.

The California Gold Rush of 1849 $2 billion worth of gold 900,000 people 750,000 lbs of gold The California Gold Rush of 1849

The Homestead Act of 1862 Free 160-acre lots in the unsettled West to anyone who would file a claim, live on the land for five years and make improvements to it, including building a dwelling.

The Donner Party

Who Were The Donner’s? The Donner Party was a group of 87 Americans heading to California. The party included the families of George Donner and James Reed They arrived from the East at Independence, Missouri on May 10, 1846. Two days later, they left for California. 11

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Traveling West The Donnor Party joins a large wagon train until they get to Wyoming. On July 19, the Donnor Party decides to take a short cut~ known as Hastings Cutoff. They separate from the Wagon Train. 13

George Donner & Wife 14

Map With Dates 15

Taking A “Short Cut” The shortcut did not work and they were three weeks behind on their trip. When they reach the Sierra Nevada, they get caught in a snowstorm. It blocks their passage. They cannot get to California now. Supplies are low and moral is low too. They set up two camps at Donner Lake, each camp is six miles from the other camp. 16

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Trapped in a Snowstorm The storms of the west trapped this party; leaving them with no way to get to California before winter. The emigrants slaughtered their oxen, but there was not enough meat to feed so many for long. They are trapped in the Sierra Nevadas until spring, when they can once again try to get to California. 15 men try to use snowshoes to get to Sutter’s Fort, which is about 100 miles away. 18

Where They Were Stranded 19

Reaching California Four people out of the fifteen die, trying to reach California. The survivors resorted to cannibalism, then continued on their journey; three more died and were also cannibalized. 8 surviving snow shoers reach California on January 19, 1847, six months after the Donnor Party took their ill fated short cut. 20

The Relief Teams When the First Relief arrived, 14 emigrants had died at the camps and the rest were extremely weak. Most had been surviving on boiled ox hide, but there had been no cannibalism. When the Second Relief arrived a week later, they found that some of the 31 emigrants left behind at the camps had begun to eat the dead. By the time the Fourth Relief had reached the camp, only one man was alive. The last member of the Donner Party arrived at Sutter's Fort on April 29th. 21

Of the original 87 pioneers, 41 died and 46 survived How Many Survived? Of the original 87 pioneers, 41 died and 46 survived 22