Was Expansion Inevitable?

By samdeg

  • The Louisiana Purchase

    The Louisiana Purchase
    Although the Louisiana Purchase happened years before the American's expansion westward, it did however provide territory for westward expansion.

  • Lewis and Clark Expedition

    Lewis and Clark Expedition
    The Lewis and Clark Expedition was a federally funded expedition to explore the North America West. This expedition, of course led to the want to settle in the "new" lands.

  • Indian Removal Act

    Indian Removal Act
    Another event that made the American expansion westward inevitable is the Indian Removal Act. This act signed into law by Andrew Jackson, in simple terms "authorizing the president to grant unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders." This act basically allowed white Americans to expand west without consequences.

  • Manifest Destiny

    Manifest Destiny
    Manifest Destiny is one of the events in history that, in my opinion, made the American expansion westward inevitable. In simple terms, Manifest Destiny was the belief that white Americans were destined to settle the entire continent of North America. Because this idea was so widely believed, it made the expansion almost definite. Therefore making the expansion westward inevitable.

  • The Mexican American War

    The Mexican American War
    In my opinion, one of the biggest events that made the expansion inevitable was the Mexican-American War. The war gave the U.S. land in the west, this including what are now Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Wyoming, California, Nevada, and Utah. The Mexican-American War made in possible for white Americans to expand westward and because now that the United States has owner ship of the states in west, expansion was bond to happen if not inevitable.

  • The California Gold Rush

    The California Gold Rush
    The California Gold Rush helped make the westward expansion happen because it added to the want to expand west. As the name implies, the gold rush was the discovery of gold in California. This discovery brought millions of people to California and added to the want to expand and settle westward in hopes to find gold.

  • The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

    The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
    The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was the treaty that ended the Mexican-American War. Said treaty allowed for the extension of the boundaries of the United States west of the Pacific Ocean. Which added 525,000 square miles to the U.S. territory.