Westward Expansion

• Land between the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean is one of the most extraordinary landscapes on earth

• In the 1800’s, this land was both attractive and daunting to American settlers

• Motivated by Manifest Destiny and profit, Americans began expanding west

• By 1850, people viewed the West as a land of opportunity

• Many different types of people moved West, including: 

• Ranchers and “cowboys” who raised cattle and other livestock

• “Homesteaders” who were given free land by the government in exchange for a 5-year contract to build a home and start a farm

• Pioneer women who helped establish homes, farms, and schools

Western land…

• Included wide-open spaces for farming and ranching

• Was full of resources such as gold, silver, timber, and more

• Provided the opportunity for people to start new towns and businesses

• Allowed people to spread religion

• People in search of gold, known as the “Forty-Niners” for moving to California during the Gold Rush in 1849

• Explorers who drew maps, established relationships with Native Americans, and trapped animals for fur

• Chinese-Americans and other immigrants in search of a new life

Context

• All of them represented courage, hard work, and “rugged individualism” - the idea that Americans can get through any challenge by relying on themselves

• Their experiences created an image of the “Wild West” an exciting place with both rewards and risks