1. Americans Head West seeking Their Manifest Destiny…. By Morgan J. Burris & Jenny Strader Lexington Middle School

2. John L. OSullivan coined the term MANIFEST DESTINY (1845): God has given the continent to Americans and wanted them to settle WESTERN lands 1800 – only 387,000 white settlers west of Appalachian mtns By 1820, over 2.4 million. By Civil War more than on Atlantic coast. Reasons: Religious Freedom & Land

4. 1 st pioneers called SQUATTERS - because they settled on land that they did not officially own Government eventually guaranteed squatters they could have the right to buy the land up to 160 acres for $1.25/acre

5. New Technology that helped open the Great Plains for farming Jethro Wood – Iron plow 1819 John Deere - Steel Plow 1837 Cyrus McCormick - Mechanical Reaper 1834 Allowed Wheat (Grain) to be harvested with far less efforts

7. Why?? Thought the Great Plains were NOT Fertile Closer to markets in China and Asia Oregon: Claimed by US, Native Am. & Britain - 1818, agreed to both settle and fix border dispute later

8. Convert – American missionaries tried to convert Native Americans and persuaded others to come to land…. Willamette Valley, Oregon

9. Mountain Men= Guides; created several East to West Passages Kit Carson – Famous Trailblazer Oregon Trail & Santa Fe Trail – most popular routes / maps Overlanders - People who moved out West

11. Took 5-6 Months 15 miles a day Traveled in Covered Wagons Used Staging Areas on Frontier Towns to gather supplies, guides, and other families to go West together Donner Party (1846): - 87 Overlanders followed guidebook and got trapped in Mountains. 41 died of starvation and the others were forced to eat the dead

13. o Most Overlanders had a great fear of conflict with Native Americans o Most were peaceful; offered help o Native Americans did fear the new arrivals would take away their food and shelter and alter the Buffalo migration patterns TREATY of FORT LARAMIE: - Signed by 8 Native Am. Tribes and they agreed to specific territorial boundaries and to maintain peaceful relations against US settlers & Govt Payments - Gave the U.S. Settlers land and made other areas off limits to settle (Great Plains) - Treaty was violated by Americans several times

15. Young image of B. Young Reason – Religious Freedom Joseph Smith murdered, Brigham Young leads thousands to Great Salt Lake, Utah in 1847. Became a popular Trail The Death of Joseph Smith Brigham Young