The Westward Expansion

Paper Summary:

The paper takes a look at various phases in the westward movement in the US, including the initial forays in the west by fur-traders, land speculators and farmers, the Louisiana Purchase from the French, the Texas Annexation of 1845, the Mexican-American War of 1846-48 that resulted in the Mexican Cession of 1849 and extension of the US borders to the Californian coast and the Treaty of 1846 with the British for the Oregon territory. The paper also discusses the reasons for the westward expansion, including the underlying philosophy behind the movement called Manifest Destiny.

Outline:
Manifest Destiny
The Initial Pioneers and Trail-blazers to the West
The Louisiana Purchase
Moving Further West
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"At the time of the signing of Treaty of Paris (1783), which formally ended the American Revolutionary War, the United States of America consisted of thirteen former British colonies concentrated in the east of the North American continent and hemmed in by the rugged Appalachian region to the west . Within a relatively short period, however, the newly formed country started to expand westward and by mid nineteenth century encompassed a huge mass of territory extending from the Atlantic coast right down to the Pacific coast in the west--transforming the United States of America into one of the biggest and most powerful nations in the world. This remarkable Westward Expansion is a fascinating story of adventurous 'mountain men,' pioneering farmers, diplomatic statesmanship, military conquest, and brutal subjugation of the Native Americans."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bakeless, John. Daniel Boone, Master of the Wilderness. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1989.
• Decebal. (n.d.) "The Mexican American War." All Empires Online History Community. Available from http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=war_mexican [ Accessed June 16, 2008]
• Fleming, Thomas. The Louisiana Purchase. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2003.
• Greene, Jack P. and J.R. Pole, eds., A Companion to the American Revolution, Malden: MA, Blackwell Publishing, 2003
• Haynes, Sam W. and Christopher Morris, eds. Manifest Destiny and Empire: American Antebellum Expansionism. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 1997.

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