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Westward Expansion Timeline
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Cotton Gin invented
The modern mechanical cotton gin was invented in the United States of America in 1793 by Eli Whitney (1765–1825). Whitney applied for a patent on October 28, 1793; the patent was granted on March 14, 1794, but was not validated until 1807. Cotton Gin is important because it was a machine that revolutionized the production of cotton by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber. -
Cotton Gin invented
The patent was granted -
XYZ Affair
The XYZ Affair was a political and diplomatic episode in 1797 and 1798, early in the administration of John Adams, involving a confrontation between the United States and Republican France that led to an undeclared war called the Quasi-War. The XYZ Affair is important because it was a diplomatic incident between French and United States diplomats that resulted in a limited, undeclared war known as the Quasi-War. -
The XYZ Affair
It ended -
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (1803) was a land deal between the United States and France, in which the U.S. acquired approximately 827,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million Louisiana Purchase is important because it gave the U.S. control of the Mississippi River and the port city of New Orleans, both of which were used by farmers to ship their crops and get paid. -
Agreement of 49th Parallel
Oregon boundary dispute.
The Treaty of 1818 set the boundary between the United States and British North America along the 49th parallel of north latitude from Minnesota to the "Stony Mountains" (now known as the Rocky Mountains). Agreement of 49th Parallel is important because it has been under joint occupancy, in which citizens of both countries travel and trade freely. -
Adams-Onis Treaty
The Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819, also known as the Transcontinental Treaty, the Florida Purchase Treaty, or the Florida Treaty, was a treaty between the United States and Spain in 1819 that ceded Florida to the U.S. and defined the boundary between the U.S. and New Spain. Adams-Onis Treaty is important because it settled border disputes between the United States and the Spanish Empire, proved vital to the nation's security. -
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an effort by Congress to defuse the sectional and political rivalries triggered by the request of Missouri late in 1819 for admission as a state in which slavery would be permitted. At the time, the United States contained twenty-two states, evenly divided between slave and free. Missouri Compromise is important because it admitted Missouri to the Union as a slave state and barred slavery from the Louisiana Territory north of the 36°30' parallel. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine was articulated in President James Monroe's seventh annual message to Congress on December 2, 1823. The European powers, according to Monroe, were obligated to respect the Western Hemisphere as the United States' sphere of interest. Monroe Doctrine is important because it stated that the newly independent United States would not tolerate European powers interfering with the nations in the Western Hemisphere, and if the European powers did interfere, then the United States. -
Indian Removal Act/Trail of Tears
The Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830, authorizing the president to grant unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders. A few tribes went peacefully, but many resisted the relocation policy. The Indian Removal Act/Trail of Tears is important because it unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders. -
The Battle of the Alamo
For the site of this battle, see Alamo Mission in San Antonio. For other uses, see Alamo (disambiguation). The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. The Battle of the Alamo is important because it was the location of an important battle for Texans fighting for independence from Mexico. -
Texas Claims Independence
The Texas Declaration of Independence was the formal declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico in the Texas Revolution. It was adopted at the Convention of 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos on March 2, 1836, and formally signed the following day after mistakes were noted in the text. It is important that Texas claimed Independence becuase it focused on the rights of citizens to “life” and “liberty” but with an emphasis on the “property of the citizen.” -
The Battle of the Alamo
The battle ended -
Trail of Tears
Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, the Cherokee nation was forced to give up its lands east of the Mississippi River and to migrate to an area in present-day Oklahoma. The Cherokee people called this journey the "Trail of Tears," because of its devastating effects. Trail of Tears is important because it remains one of the worst human rights disasters to befall Native American peoples in United States history. -
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears ended -
Texas annexed to U.S.
Both Congress and the convention voted for annexation. A state constitution, drawn up by the convention, was ratified by popular vote in October 1845 and accepted by the United States Congress on December 29, 1845, the date of Texas's legal entry into the Union. It is important that Texas annexed to U.S. because it was a large amount of land for the United States, but caused tensions between the United States and Mexico when finalized. -
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (Tratado de Guadalupe Hidalgo in Spanish), officially entitled the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits and Settlement between the United States of America and the Mexican Republic, is the peace treaty signed on February 2, 1848, in the Villa de Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is important because it added an additional 525,000 square miles to United States territory -
Mexican-American War
Mexican-American War ended -
Mexican-American War
A war between the U.S. and Mexico spanned the period from spring 1846 to fall 1847. The war was initiated by Mexico and resulted in Mexico's defeat and the loss of approximately half of its national territory in the north. Mexican-American War was important because it was were the US annexation of Texas and the Americans' desire for California and other Mexican territories. -
California becomes a state
n 1849, Californians sought statehood and, after heated debate in the U.S. Congress arising out of the slavery issue, California entered the Union as a free, nonslavery state by the Compromise of 1850. California became the 31st state on September 9, 1850. -
Gadsden Purchase
he Gadsden Purchase is a 29,640-square-mile region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that was purchased by the United States in a treaty signed on December 30, 1853 by James Gadsden Gadsden Purchase is important because it was an agreement between the United States and Mexico, finalized in 1854, in which the United States agreed to pay Mexico $10 million for a 29,670 square mile portion of Mexico that later became part of Arizona and New Mexico. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Antislavery supporters were outraged because, under the terms of the Missouri Compromise of 1820, slavery would have been outlawed in both territories. After months of debate, the Kansas-Nebraska Act passed on May 30, 1854. Kansas-Nebraska Act is important because it organized the remaining territory acquired in the Louisiana Purchase so that such territories could be admitted to the Union as states.
