.
Westward Expansion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qrjg9ul
R-xo
Manifest Destiny Rap
Traveling West in the Early 1800s
Getting there is half the battle…
• How did people travel before there were
roads?
– Follow rivers, employ Native American guides,
follow Native paths, navigate by stars
– Covered wagons was most popular form of travel
• New roads helped linked the East to
settlements in the West
Oregon territory = fertile
soil, mild climate, plentiful
rainfall attracted thousands
of settlers
~ travelers along the
Oregon Trail faced many
hardships; the greatest
threat came from
diseases like cholera
and dysenterty
California Territory
GOLD GOLD GOLD!!
• Discovery of GOLD is Sutter’s Mill, California
led to rapid western migration
• 1849 – 80,000 people rush to CA (49ers)
• Lawlessness leads to rise in crime and violence
• California came to develop a diverse
population
– African-Americans found work in mining camps
– European immigrants came to mine for gold
– Chinese immigrants came to build railroads
UTAH
• Mormons move to Utah to escape religious
persecution
– AKA “Latter Day Saints”
• Follow the Bible and the Book of Mormon
Homework
• Create your own advertisement for settling
one of the locations we discussed today
• Oregon
• California
• Utah
Bell Ringer!
• What would it take for you to support
Revolution?
–Revolution = major change in society
–Can lead to a new form of government,
new leaders, but also violence
• List some possible reasons that you
believe would justify a revolution
Spanish in Texas
American settlers in Texas
• Spain gave Austin senior a
land grant, junior fulfills
• Mexico wins
Independence from Spain
• Settlers moved to Texas
for its rich soil, many came
from South, wanted to
expand cotton and slavery
Americans in Texas revolt against
Mexican rule
I’m in
charge now,
do what I
tell you, or
else…
• By 1830 20,000 American had moved to Texas,
outnumbered Mexicans in many places 10 to 1
• Mexico’s ruler – Santa Anna – began enforcing
“strict” laws:
– Required Texans to worship at Catholic Church
– Declared slavery illegal
Texas declares independence
President Houston
1836 ~ Santa Anna lays siege to Alamo
Alamo, San Antonio
Mexican army attacks
the Alamo – the
defenders refuse to
surrender
188 Texans v.
6,000 Mexican troops
“The enemy has demanded a
surrender…I have answered the demand
with a cannon shot, and our flag still
waves proudly from the walls. I shall
never surrender or retreat!
-William Travis
After fall of the Alamo, new volunteers were
inspired to join the Texan forces to avenge their
fallen comrades “Remember the Alamo!”
1836 Battle of San
Jacinto wins Texas
Independence
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71EctJ-PWqM
~ battle lasted 18
minutes; 630
Mexicans killed,
700 captured
~ for his release
Santa Anna
grants Texas
“independence”
Lone Star Republic
• Faced many challenges:
– Mexican gov’t refused to accept the treaty Santa
Anna had signed
– Texas was nearly bankrupt
– Indian groups attacked Texan communities
~ Polk urges Congress to annex Texas
~ the annexation of
Texas leads to war
with Mexico…
War with Mexico
Polk ordered General Taylor and his forces south to the Rio
Grande, into disputed territory that Mexicans claimed as their
own. Mexico claimed the Nueces River — about 150 miles
(240 km) north of the Rio Grande — as its border with Texas.
American
blood has
been shed
on
American
soil
What
spot
exactly??
~ Americans win…
at Monterrey
at Buena Vista
at Veracruz
at Mexico City
Many Americans believed the war had gone
too far…
Why were we taking Mexico City?
Resistance to the War
• Henry David Thoreau – “On Civil Disobedience”
– He believed the war was unjust and was waged to
spread slavery
– He refused to pay taxes to fund the war
• His argument was that not all
laws or actions by governments
are good and that humans
have an obligation to break the law
if it violates their moral beliefs
Civil Disobedience and the Mexican
war
– What choices do you have if you find yourself
called to fight in a war you disagree with?
– St. Patrick’s Battalion – Irishmen who witnessed
atrocities against Mexicans during the war and
deserted joining the Mexicans instead! (treason)
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idKD47x0JaM
~ The treaty that ends the war forces Mexico to CEDE or give up
all of California, Utah and New Mexico – these lands were called
the “Mexican Cession”
Results of the War
• The US paid Mexico $15 million dollars and
agreed to respect the rights of Spanishspeaking Americans.
• A few years later Manifest Destiny is complete
with the Gadsden Purchase – a narrow strip of
land in present day Arizona and New Mexico –
land needed to complete a railroad
Mixing of Cultures
War With Mexico – Crash Course!
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkdF8pOF
UfI