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The United States Acquires Alaska
⦁ An early supporter of American expansion was William Seward, Secretary of State.
⦁ In 1867, Seward arranged for the U.S. to buy Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million.
⦁ Some people thought it was silly to buy what they called “Seward’s Icebox” or “Seward’s folly.”
⦁ Time showed how wrong they were. In 1959, Alaska became a state.
⦁ For about two cents an acre, the United States had acquired a land rich in timber, minerals, and, as it turned out, oil. -
The U.S Takes Hawaii
⦁ In 1867, the United States took over the Midway Islands.
⦁ The Hawaiian Islands had been economically important to the United States for nearly a century.
⦁ In 1887, they pressured Hawaii to allow the United States to build a naval base at Pearl Harbor.
⦁ On August 12, 1898, Congress proclaimed Hawaii an American territory, although Hawaiians had never had the chance to vote.
⦁ In 1959, Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States. -
American Expansionism
⦁ Throughout the 19th century, The U.S. extended their control toward the Pacific Ocean.
⦁ By the 1880s, many American leaders had become convinced that the United States should join the imperialist powers of Europe and establish colonies overseas.
⦁ Alfred T. Mahan of the U.S. Navy. Mahan urged government officials to build up American naval power in order to compete with other powerful nations.
⦁ The construction of modern battleships transformed the country into the third largest naval power. -
Spanish American War
-In 1898, the United States went to war to help Cuba win its independence from Spain.
-Early in 1898, President McKinley had ordered the U.S.S. Maine to Cuba to bring home American citizens in danger from the fighting and to protect American property.
-On February 15, 1898, the ship blew up in the harbor of Havana. More than 260 men were killed.
-In 1898, American newspapers claimed the Spanish had blown up the ship.
- On April 20 the United States declared war. -
America and Cuba
-When the United States declared war against Spain in 1898, it recognized Cuba’s independence from Spain
-Teller Amendment, stated that the United States had no intention of taking over any part of Cuba
-The Treaty of Paris, ended the war, and further guaranteed Cuba the independence
-Though officially independent, Cuba was occupied by American troops when the war ended
-Platt Amendment In 1900 the newly formed Cuban government wrote a constitution for an independent Cuba -
America and the Philippines
-In February 1899, the Filipinos rose in revolt.
-Many of the 70,000 U.S. troops sent to the Philippines were African American
-It took the Americans nearly three years to put down the rebellion
-About 20,000 Filipino rebels died fighting for independence
-The war claimed 4,000 American lives and cost $400 million, 20 times the price the United States had paid to purchase the islands -
America and China
-U.S. imperialists saw the Philippines as a gateway to the rest of Asia, specially China
-China was seen as a vast potential market for American products
-The United States began to fear that China would be carved into colonies and American traders would be shut out
-To protect interests in 1899, a series of policy statements called the Open Door notes were created
-The notes addressed the leaders of imperialist nations proposing that the nations share their trading rights with the United States -
America & Puerto Rico
-Not all Puerto Ricans wanted independence, as Muñoz Rivera did
-Some wanted statehood, while still others hoped for some measure of local self-government as an American territory
-As a result, the United States gave Puerto Ricans no promises regarding independence after the Spanish-American War
-Puerto Rico would be controlled by the military until Congress decided otherwise.
-Congress, retained the right to extend U.S. citizenship, and it granted that right to Puerto Ricans in 1917. -
Teddy Roosevelt and the World
-1901 Vice-President Theodore Roosevelt took the role of a world leader
-Construction of the Panama Canal ranks as one of the world’s greatest engineering feats
-By 1913, the height of the construction, more than 43,400 workers were employed
-More than 5,600 workers on the canal died from accidents or disease.
-The total cost to the United States was about $380 million
-On August 15, 1914, the canal opened for business, and more than 1,000 merchant ships passed through during its first year. -
Woodrow Wilson and the World
-In 1913, President Woodrow Wilson gave the Monroe Doctrine a moral tone
-According to Wilson the United States had a moral responsibility to deny recognition to any Latin American government it viewed as oppressive, undemocratic, or hostile to U.S. interests
-United States recognized any government that controlled a nation, regardless of that nation’s policies or how it had come to power
-Wilson’s policy pressured nations in the Western Hemisphere to establish democratic governments