Territorial Expansion Research Paper

The role of territories played a great role in the division of the United States prior to the Civil War. The North and the South states could not agree or compromise on slavery. There was a sectional divide between the North and the South. The South was trying to sustain and utilize slavery. The North wanted to end Slavery. Slavery was becoming more divisive and it threatened to expand westward because people who were non slave holders did not want to complete with slaveholders in new territories. Missouri prepared to enter the Union as a slave state and to balance it out Maine would enter a free state. The United States had soon entered war with Mexico over Texas and its western territories. The issue of expanding slavery had resurfaced. Slavery

During the time period of the frontier, American development has spread over the westward area due to the rapid effectiveness of Americanization. The frontier removed people from their origins and fused them into a mix of people. Also, it shaped democracy in order to allow the public to participate and form an organized government. Lastly, it led to American nationalism, which is, extreme pride of a country. The American Frontier has helped unite the country because of the effects that resulted in an diverse nation.

From the years 1800-1850 the nation was full of battles and prosperity. Territorial expansion was a cause in most of the battles, but also gained prosperity for the nation. There were many impacts on national unity between those time periods, but the main impact was territorial expansion. This is true because of the Louisiana Purchase, the purchase of Oregon territory, and the Mexican War.

Territorial expansion played a major part in national unity socially, economically and politically. As more settlers and immigrants came to America, the need for more land grew, forcing people westward. People of many different backgrounds migrated and settled among each other, creating new and diverse communities. As new land was discovered, the government would decide which states would become slave states and which states would become free state, thus creating political differences between the citizens. Economically, it made sense to move westward to where there was more land for farming and helped create the cotton industry towards the 1850’s.

By the mid nineteenth century, the United States was expanding westward rapidly. And as America expanded, so did the sectionalism. The rifts between the North and the South, caused by conflicting views on Westward Expansion were becoming more evident. Not only were the debates over westward expansion tedious; the ever growing social debate was also becoming alarmingly prevalent. And in 1860, the Civil War broke out, ultimately because of economic, political and social aspects of westward expansion. Therefore, westward expansion caused the Civil War.

It gave the U.S. more room. By having more room we had more land to do important things with. With the new land we could have an abundance more farm land which equals more food. There were more places to industrializes, make new states, cities, within those cities factories were built. With having a bigger nation, everyone wasn’t crowed in one little area. The people moved into new lands and spread out more. With people moving and spreading out more, it increased the population. So by having more room after the land was purchased there many important things that had happened which made it a turning point in the 19th

Ever since the first English colonists arrived in Jamestown and Plymouth, the colonists and eventually Americans have always considered expanding west, whether the land was previously inhabited or not: And like most things, many people had different opinions if and how it should be done. Before the 1800s, this issue already had opinions on the best solution. One example of this can be observed by King George III in The Royal Proclamation of 1763, in which he forbade all English settlement past a line in the Appalachian Mountains. Contrarily, Daniel Boone carved out the Wilderness Road and built the settlement of Boonesborough in the late 1700s. These sharp contrasts in ideas led to future debates. From 1800-1855, territorial expansion ignited nationwide debates: The supporters of territorial expansion rallied behind the term “manifest destiny,” while the opposition argued the unconstitutionality of the acquisition of territory, and the future negative consequences expansion may cause.

In the early 1800s, America changed in a lot of ways in a short amount of time. The change that occurred was, for the most part, the result of the industrial development. The industrial advancements in the early 1800s had a huge amount of consequences, both positive and negative. But the industrial development from 1800 to 1860 affected the North and the South in hugely different ways. The prominent differences eventually caused an amazing amount of tension between the two regions as they moved in completely separate directions. Mainly, the North and the South differentiated when it came to cultures, economies, and political views.

The movement of people that has resulted in the settlement of America is one of the most fascinating and significant topics in the history of the United States. Nowhere else has an area of equal size been settled as a result of the initiative of small groups and individuals. Westward expansion helped stimulate the American economy.

Westward expansion was a new thing and time in our country and had many impacts on the American people and ways of life. The government made it available to buy a lot more of land in the West. Our government gave opportunities for people to move west for a better life or more land in the west. The government gave opportunities like the homestead act where the government would give families 160 acres of land if they moved west at the time this deal was going on. This act was signed into law by President Lincoln in 1862. People moved west for any opportunity they could. People moved for a new life, more land, and more opportunities in

The Westward Expansion has often been regarded as the central theme of American history, down to the end of the19th century and as the main factor in the shaping of American history. As Frederick Jackson Turner says, the greatest force or influence in shaping American democracy and society had been that there was so much free land in America and this profoundly affected American society. Motives After the revolution, the winning of independence opened up the Western country and was hence followed by a steady flow of settlers to the Mississippi valley. By 1840, 10 new western states had been added to the Federal union. The frontier line ran through Iowa, Missouri and Arkansas on the western side

settled property. This property included many different types of land. Farmers were able to buy

Later, many questions arose regarding if the newly acquired territory should allow slavery. In the attempt to solve this, Henry Clay led the Missouri Compromise which admitted Missouri as a slave state, and Maine as a free state creating a balance in Congress. This led to the belief that later in the future slavery be prohibited north of the southern border of Missouri in the remaining of the Louisiana Purchase. The issue of slavery continued to be an issue as the nation expanded because the Missouri Compromise didn’t apply to new territories that were not part of the Louisiana Purchase. By the new land acquired, the Southern economy increased because of the “Cotton King”, which also increased the labor in order to maintain the newly achieved economy. One the other hand, the North believed that the expansion of slavery was very small because they didn’t depend on slavery for their economic survival. The North relied on on textile industry on southern crops was increased by the creation of the cotton gin. Many Americans kept migrating to the west despite after the Missouri Compromise was adopted. Many would cross to the Oregon Territory, which belonged to the British and many more settled in Mexican territory

The U.S. government encouraged westward expansion through the Louisiana Purchase and the Homestead Act. President Thomas Jefferson acted on the Louisiana Purchase, after buying the land from France for millions of dollars, he also believed in the idea of moving west and thought of it as a

A positive political effect of Westward Expansion included the Homestead. This piece of legislation attempted to compromise between government and citizen needs. One major and well known political issue that became larger because of westward expansion was slavery. The south claimed they were under attack by radical northern abolitionists. The Northerners attempted to dominate US politics for the purpose of protecting slaveholders human property.