Factors Influencing Manifest Destiny

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at "Manifest Destiny" , a reference to the inevitable expansion of the territorial boundaries of the United States westward to the Pacific Ocean and beyond. It discusses how the concept of "Manifest Destiny" was frequently used by American expansionists to justify the U.S. annexation of Texas, Oregon, New Mexico, California, and later U.S. involvement in Alaska, Hawaii, and the Philippines. It provides an examination of the factors that influenced the expansion of the country westward during the 1840s and 1850s, followed by a summary of the research in the conclusion.

Outline
Introduction
Background and Overview
Immigration
Slavery
Improvements in Transportation
Innovations in Agriculture
Availability of Native American Land and Resources
California Gold Rush -- 1848

From the Paper:

"In the 40 years before the Civil War, the rate of urban growth was not confined to the East, but it was the most dramatic there; in fact, by 1860, more than a third of the people living in the Northeast were urban residents, compared with only 14 percent of westerners and 7 percent of southerners. "Although the majority of northerners still lived on farms or in small farm towns, the region was clearly urbanizing" (Nash & Jeffrey 2001:335). As a result, tens of thousands of people headed North seeking work in major metropolitan areas in factories of all sizes. At this point, cities of all sizes grew. "The population of New York and Philadelphia doubled and tripled.""

More papers on Factors Influencing Manifest Destiny:

• Narrative Essay # 5030 : "The Manifest Destiny"
• Analytical Essay # 103154 : "Manifest Destiny: the Backbone of America"
• Essay # 46747 : "The Spanish-American War"

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