Development of the frontier from the time of the Northwest Ordinance to the 1890s
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Northwest Ordinance
Passed by Congress to establish laws in the Northwest territory. -
Enabling Act
Passed by the 7th Congress of the united State, the Enabling Act set the rules and procedures for adding new states. -
Louisiana Purchase
Purchase of the Western territory from the French. -
Lewis and Clark Expedition
Expedition led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the western area bought in the Louisiana Purchase. -
Lewis and Clark's Expedition Ends
Lewis and Clark come back home with treasure troves of new information. -
Indian removal Act
Signed by President Andrew Jackson to relocate Indian tribes to unsettled lands in exchange for the area the tribes currently lived within the state borders. -
Gold Rush
Gold is discovered in California. -
Oregon Trail Established
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Homestead Act
Signed by President Abraham Lincoln to encourage Western migration by promising 160 acres of land to settlers in exchange for a small filing fee. -
Frontier disappears
Fences cage in the open space and make it harder to move cattle.