Westward Expansion America’s “Manifest Destiny” CICERO © 2011

Manifest Destiny “Manifest Destiny” was a phrase created in the 1840s by an American journalist. It was used to justify American westward expansion into areas such as Texas, Oregon, and California. Manifest destiny refers to the widely held belief that –the United States system is better than any other (best government, best economy, etc.) –Therefore, the United States had both a right and a duty to spread out across the entire continent. –American expansion was inevitable, necessary, and had been ordained by God! CICERO © 2011

Manifest Destiny Fulfilling this manifest destiny, many argued, would benefit everyone involved: –American settlers would gain access to much needed land (the population of the United States was growing very quickly at this time) –Through farming and construction, those settlers would improve the land, making it more productive – which would benefit society as a whole (Many Americans believed that native people who did not build permanent homes and who might not farm wasted the land) –Non-Europeans (especially Indians) would have the opportunity to learn the American way of life CICERO © 2011

Manifest Destiny Although the phrase was new, the idea was not. Even as British colonists, settlers pushed their geographic boundaries farther and farther west, always looking for new land and a better way of life. Thousands of Americans ignored the Proclamation of 1763, which forbid settlement of the Ohio River Valley. Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap Daniel Boone was a famous American frontiersman. The stories of his adventures have become legendary. Boone is considered one of America’s first folk heroes. CICERO © 2011

Examples of American Expansion Northwest Ordinance (1787) reverses the terms of the Proclamation of 1763 Louisiana Purchase (1803) doubles the size of U.S. territory War of 1812 – designs on Canada and Florida Monroe Doctrine (1823) Hands off the Western Hemisphere Indian Removal Act (1830) Trail of Tears, 1838 Texas Revolution (1836) Annexation of Texas, 1847 Mexican War (1846) Polk uses border dispute to justify expansion Mexican Session (1848) California, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona Gadsden Purchase (1853) from Mexico — $10 million Purchase of Alaska (1867) from Russia — $7.2 million Spanish American War (1898) Guam, Puerto Rico, Philippines CICERO © 2011

How does this painting explain the attitude of Americans in the mid-1800s? Spirit of the Frontier/American Progress, 1872 by John Gast CICERO © 2011

Why did early settlers flood across the country during the mid-1800s? The California Gold Rush Fertile land for farming, especially in the Oregon Territory. Ranchers could raise cattle descended from Spanish herds in areas buffalo previously inhabited by buffalo CICERO © 2011

How did they get there? CICERO © 2011

Conestoga Wagon “Prairie Schooner” The wagons were named for the Pennsylvania town where many were built. Oxen or mules usually pulled these wagons in traveling groups called wagon trains. They got the nickname “prairie schooner” because of their ship-like appearance moving across the grassy plains. CICERO © 2011

The Train Wagon Shorter, lighter, and easier to navigate than the Conestoga Water-tight bonnet and slanted side rails helped to keep rain out Why might pioneers travel in large groups as shown in this 19 th century painting? CICERO © 2011

The Stagecoach Passenger coaches were a popular form of public transportation in the early 1800s They got their name because the coach driver changed horses every fifteen miles, or stage. The person who rode next to the driver usually carried a shotgun to guard against hostile American Indians or bandits, thus the phrase “riding shotgun.” CICERO © 2011

Steam Locomotive “Iron Horse” The first locomotive built in the United States was the Best Friend of Charleston. It began service in July 1, 1862 – President Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act, which called for building the Transcontinental Railroad. The tracks were completed in Promontory, Utah, on May 10, 1869 The ceremony for the driving of the “golden spike” at Promontory Summit CICERO © 2011

Steamboat Robert Fulton built the first successful steamboat, the Clermont, in Settlers who traveled west by ship faced an arduous journey of 18,000 miles around South America or sailed to the Isthmus of Panama, crossed overland to the Pacific Ocean, and sailed to California. CICERO © 2011

To encourage settlement, Congress passed the Homestead Act (1862) Any adult citizen – including freed slaves – who had never taken up arms against the Union could claim160 acres of “public” land, but in order to get the title, they had to –Make “improvements” (build a house and cultivate the land) –Live there for five years CICERO © 2011 “Go West Young Man!” Horace Greeley-1845 Only 40% of Homestead applicants fulfilled the requirements to receive the deed to the property.

Significance of the Frontier As the 1800s ended, the United States occupied the North American continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. In 1893, historian Frederick Jackson Turner proposed his Frontier Thesis –the frontier experience had shaped the character of the America and its people –The frontier was the source of America’s economic and political power CICERO © 2011

Significance of the Frontier Now that the frontier was closed, Turner’s thesis made some Americans nervous. Others saw the close of the western frontier as the beginning of a new era in American history. For some, overseas expansion represented the next frontier and proponents would again use the idea of manifest destiny to justify American claims in the South Pacific. CICERO © 2011