Westward ExpansionChapter 13

Trails to the WestSection 2

The Santa Fe Trail•In 1821, William Bicknell led a wagon train

from Independence, Missouri to Santa Fe, New Mexico.

•Hardships experienced along the way: rivers, deserts, mountains

•Importance: established a route for overland trade with Mexico that stretched about 800 miles

The Oregon Fur Trade•John Jacob Astor sent the first

American fur-trading expedition to Oregon and established the American Fur Company in 1808.

•Trappers who supplied furs were called mountain men.

•What happened to the fur trade in the 1830s: beaver supply was nearly exhausted, so trappers had to look for new ways to support themselves

Missionaries Travel West to Oregon in the 1830s

•Purpose of missionaries: to bring their religious beliefs to the Indians

•Famous missionary couple: Marcus and Narcissa Whitman

•How missionaries spurred settlement of the West: their reports of Oregon led eastern farmers to seek fertile land, mild climate, and plentiful rainfall

On the Trail•Trail stretched more than

2,000 miles from Missouri to Oregon

•Travelers left in spring and had to reach Oregon in 5 months. If they did not make it in time, they risked death in the Rockies during the winter.

•Between 1840 and 1860, more than 50,000 people reached Oregon.

Pioneer Life

•Settlers had only hand tools to clear the land, plant crops, and build shelters.

•Threats included disease, accidents, and natural disasters

Women in the West•Reason women’s status

was raised in the West: they were necessary for their families’ survival

•In 1869, Wyoming Territory was the first state to grant women the right to vote.

Native American and Settlers•Relationship between the two groups:

uneasy peace between the two groups•In the 1850s, the discovery of gold

brought large numbers of miners to northern Oregon. In 1855, war broke out there briefly.

Let's Think:

•What factors might have discouraged Americans from traveling to Oregon?

Let's Think:

•What factors might have discouraged Americans from traveling to Oregon?▫The journey was long and hard. Native

Americans sometimes attacked travelers and settlers because they were angered by the presence of strangers on their lands. There was danger of not making it across the Rockies before winter.

Conflict with MexicoSection 3

Events Leading to Texas’s Independence•American settlers in Texas came into

conflict with the Mexican government because they were slaveholders, even though the Mexican government had abolished slavery. In 1830, Mexico banned further American Settlement.

•After Santa Anna established a dictatorship, Texans declared independence.

Events Leading to Texas’s Independence

•Mexican troops laid siege to the Alamo, a mission in San Antonio. Although the Texans were defeated, this event inspired others to join Texas's Army.

Events Leading to Texas’s Independence

•Later, the Texans defeated Santa Anna’s army at San Jacinto.

•Sam Houston became president of the new Republic of Texas. He hoped that the United States would annex Texas. However, public opinion in the United States was divided because Texas was a slave state.

Annexing Texas and Oregon• James K. Polk negotiated a

treaty with Britain to divide Oregon, which became the states of Washington, Oregon, and part of Idaho.

• Tensions with Mexico increased because Mexico had never recognized Texan independence.

• Also, the United States claimed that the southern Texas border was the Rio Grande River, while Mexico claimed it was the Nueces River.

The Mexican-American War• When war broke out between Mexico and the United

States, it was most popular among southerners and westerners, who wanted more land. Many northerners, however, opposed the war because they thought it was an attempt to extend slavery.

• Stephen Kearny led troops that captured Santa Fe, New Mexico and later California.

• General Zachary Taylor won a victory at the Battle of Buena Vista. An American army under General Winfield Scott captured Veracruz and then marched on to Mexico City.

The Mexican-American War• The Treaty of Guadalupe

Hidalgo formally ended the war. Under the treaty, Mexico recognized the annexation of Texas and ceded a vast territory known as the Mexican Cession to the United States. This territory included present-day Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.

• In the Gadsden Purchase of 1853, the United States paid Mexico $10 million for a narrow strip of present-day Arizona and New Mexico.

A Rush to the WestSection 4

Seeking Refuge•The Mormon Church was founded by Joseph

Smith in 1830. Hostility forced the Mormons to move from New York to Ohio, and then to Missouri. After Joseph Smith was murdered, Brigham Young led the Mormons to the valley of Utah’s Great Salt Lake.

Conflict With the Government• Utah became part of the United States in 1848. The

Mormons almost immediately came into conflict with the U.S. government over three issues:▫ Problem: Non- Mormans had no say in the election process▫ Solution: Congress took away control of elections from the

Mormon Church

▫ Problem: Non- Mormans had difficulty doing business in Utah

▫ Solution: Church leaders agreed to stop favoring Morman –owned businesses.

▫ Problem: Polygamy, which is the practice of having more than one wife at a time, was illegal in the United States.

▫ Solution: Church leaders agreed to ban polygamy. Finally, in 1896, Utah became a state.

Let's Think:

•Why did the Mormon's leave Illinois?

Let's Think:

•Why did the Mormon's leave Illinois?▫Joseph Smith was

murdered and they feared for their safety

Gold Is Discovered•In January 1848, gold was discovered at

Sutter’s Mill near Sacramento. Fortune seekers, called “forty-niners”, came to California in search of gold. In just two years, the population of settlers in California zoomed from 14,000 to 100,000.

Miners and Mining Towns•Mining towns supplied miners with food,

supplies, and entertainment.•Since California was not yet a state, federal

law did not apply within mining towns, so vigilantes, or self-appointed law enforcers, punished people for crimes.

California’s Changing Population• During the gold rush, people from Europe, Asia, Australia,

and South America came to California. Chinese workers faced discrimination and were usually hired only for menial labor. Some southerners brought their slaves to California, but slavery did not take root because miners believed only those who participated in the hard labor of mining should profit. California’s Native American population declined by about two- thirds during the gold rush. They were killed by vigilantes gangs who wanted their land. By 1850, only 15 percent of Californians were Mexican.