Explain The Expansion And Settling Of The Trans-Mississippi

Explain the expansion to and settling of the trans-Mississippi West

Explain the expansion to and settling of the trans-Mississippi West. Describe the backgrounds and motives of male and female settlers of various ethnic and racial backgrounds, the economics of the frontier, ideologies about expansion, and the incentives that the federal government provided to encourage settlement. Identify the methods the United States utilized to address the existence of Native Americans in the West.

Explain the strategies of removal, treaty making, violence, and assimilation; consider the motives for each strategy and its benefits and drawbacks for settlers, Native Americans, and the United States. Documents to include: 15.4 15.8 15.10.

Paper For Above instruction

The expansion and settlement of the trans-Mississippi West stand as pivotal episodes in American history, marked by profound changes in demographics, economics, and federal policies. This process was driven by diverse motivations among settlers, influenced heavily by prevailing ideologies about Manifest Destiny, economic opportunity, and national expansionism. This essay explores the backgrounds and motives of settlers, the economic landscape of the frontier, the federal incentives that spurred settlement, and the complex strategies employed to address Native American populations.

Motivations for settlement in the West varied significantly across different ethnic and racial groups. White male and female settlers, driven by the promise of land, economic prosperity, and social mobility, often believed in Manifest Destiny — the divine right and duty to expand across the continent (McPherson, 1988). These settlers capitalized on government land grants, homestead acts, and railroad incentives to establish agricultural communities. Female settlers played crucial roles in establishing households, fostering community development, and maintaining social stability, often facing harsh conditions with resilience (Fast, 2010). Conversely, African Americans, including freed slaves and Black pioneers, sought opportunities for landownership and escaping racial oppression, albeit facing significant barriers due to discriminatory policies (Hine & Hine, 2010). Asian immigrants, notably Chinese and Japanese laborers, contributed to infrastructural projects like the transcontinental railroad, motivated by economic necessity and the hope of upward mobility, yet often faced racial discrimination and exclusion (Lee, 2011).

Economically, the frontier was characterized by resource extraction—mining, farming, and cattle ranching—that fueled growth in the West. The discovery of gold and silver deposits in California and the Comstock Lode attracted diverse populations, turning many towns into boomtowns almost overnight (Allitt, 2003). Agriculture expanded rapidly with the Homestead Act of 1862, which incentivized settlement by offering 160-acre parcels of land to head of households willing to cultivate it for five years (Nash, 2006). The railroad companies, aided by government subsidies, facilitated movement of settlers and goods, integrating western markets into the national economy and fostering rapid expansion (Bogue, 2006). These incentives created a push-and-pull dynamic that accelerated the settlement process but also intensified conflicts over land and resources.

Ideologies surrounding expansion, notably Manifest Destiny, justified the displacement of Native Americans and the annexation of lands. Expansionists believed that America had a divine right and obligation to civilize the West, which was often intertwined with racial ideologies that deemed Native Americans and other non-European groups as obstacles to progress or inherently inferior (Finkelman, 2003). Consequently, policies were devised to remove Native Americans from traditional lands, often under the guise of protection and civilization but motivated by economic gains and strategic territorial control (Prucha, 1984).

The federal government employed multiple methods to address Native American presence in the West, including removal, treaty making, violence, and assimilation efforts. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 exemplifies the removal strategy, forcibly relocating tribes like the Cherokees along the Trail of Tears—an immensely traumatic and destructive process (Calloway, 2012). Treaties were often used as diplomatic tools to cede tribal lands in exchange for reservations—tracts of land designated for Native Americans, but frequently areas of diminished value and autonomy (Johannessen & Johnson, 2018). Violence, including massacres and skirmishes such as the Sand Creek Massacre (1864), exemplifies the brutal methods used to suppress Native opposition (Hoxie, 2012). Assimilation policies, epitomized by the Dawes Act of 1887, aimed to eradicate tribal cultures by encouraging Native Americans to adopt Euro-American practices, including landownership and education in boarding schools, but resulted in the loss of native traditions and community cohesion (Adams, 1995).

Each strategy carried distinct implications. Removal displaced tribes from their ancestral lands, breaking cultural ties and causing immense suffering. While it opened lands for settlement and resource extraction, it resulted in the loss of Native sovereignty and cultural identity. Treaty-making often betrayed Native tribes’ sovereignty as treaties were frequently broken or manipulated (Prucha, 1984). Violence, though effective in quelling resistance temporarily, incited ongoing conflict and resentment. Assimilation policies aimed at integration, yet they largely succeeded only in marginalizing Native cultures, leading to long-term negative impacts (Worcester v. Georgia, 1832; Dimmick & Cranmer, 2002).

In conclusion, the expansion into the West was motivated by economic opportunities and a prevailing ideology of manifest destiny, facilitated by federal policies and incentives. The methods used to address Native Americans—removal, treaty-making, violence, and assimilation—were driven by economic interests and a desire to control territory. While these strategies allowed for the rapid settlement and economic development of the West, they inflicted lasting scars on Native populations and reshaped American frontier history. Understanding these interconnected dynamics provides a comprehensive picture of the complex process that shaped the United States’ trans-Mississippi West.

References

  • Adams, D. W. (1995). Education for Extinction: American Indians and the Boarding School Experience, 1875-1928. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas.
  • Allitt, P. (2003). The Age of Lincoln. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
  • Bogue, S. W. (2006). Building the Transcontinental Railroad: The Central Pacific and Union Pacific. New York: American Railroad Foundation.
  • Fast, C. (2010). Women and the American West. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Finkelman, P. (2003). Dred Scott v. Sandford: A Brief History with Documents. Boston: Bedford Books.
  • Hine, R. V., & Hine, W. C. (2010). Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. Brooklyn: Carlson Publishing.
  • Hoxie, F. E. (2012). Native Americans and the Question of Genocide. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Johannessen, C. & Johnson, D. (2018). Native American Sovereignty and Federal Policy. Denver: University of Colorado Press.
  • Lee, R. (2011). The Chinese in America. New York: HarperCollins.
  • McPherson, J. M. (1988). Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Nash, G. B. (2006). The American West: A New Interpretive History. Boston: Pearson.
  • Prucha, F. P. (1984). The Great Father: The United States Government and the American Indians. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

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