Westward Expansion
Table of Contents
• Manifest Destiny
• The Gold Rush
• Frontier Life
• Native Americans
• The Myth of the West
2
Manifest Destiny
•
•
•
•
Expansion to the Pacific
Seen as obvious and inevitable
Not necessarily a religious idea
Spread of democracy and EuropeanAmerican lifestyle
• Exterminate or convert Native Americans
• Tame the western landscape
3
Manifest Destiny
4
• What do you think the woman in this picture
represents?
• What is she doing?
5
What are these people doing, and why do you
think they are in the picture?
6
• What does this part of the picture show?
• What is its significance?
7
• Who else is being forced westward?
• What is happening here?
8
Why do you think this bear was included in this part of
the picture?
9
Can you tell what is
going on here?
10
• Why do you think the artist painted this picture?
• What is the larger message he was trying to
convey about Manifest Destiny?
11
The California Gold Rush
•
•
•
•
•
Sutter’s Mill—1848
‘49ers
Little law and order
Supporting businesses
Growth of towns and cities
12
The California Gold Rush
13
• What is the title
of this source?
• What different
elements make
up this source?
14
What do you think this
scene depicts? Is it meant
to be realistic?
Here’s a hint: The opening
paragraph here quotes a man
as saying, “I am a miner who
wandered from ‘Away Down
East,’ and came to sojourn in
a strange land and ‘See the
Elephant.’”
What might “see the
elephant” have referred to?
15
• What is going on in this
scene? Does it look like a
scene from a mining camp?
Why or why not?
• Why might the artist have
included this scene?
Hint: This paragraph
warns miners not to
“take thy money, nor thy
gold dust, nor thy good
name, to the gaming
table in vain.”
16
What do you think might
be going on in this scene?
(Hint: The sign on the far
right tent says, “Store.”)
Listen as your teacher reads
you this passage from the
text that describes the scene
shown here.
• What does the passage tell
miners not to do?
• Why do you think it gives
these instructions?
17
• What is going on in this
picture?
• What does this scene indicate
about the recommended
course of action for a miner in
the face of danger?
18
• What does this scene imply
about miners’ daily lives?
• Did they have many luxuries?
• What types of domestic
activities did they have to do?
19
• What are the men doing in this
scene?
• What does this picture indicate
about how miners often spent
their free time and money?
20
Although the “Miners’ Pioneer Ten Commandments” was written
in 1853, this version of it (with the drawings) wasn’t created until
1887—well after the Gold Rush had ended.
Why might the 1887 version have been created, and who do
you think the intended audience for it was?
21
Frontier Life
• Homestead Act of 1862
• Great Plains settlement
• Sod houses
22
Frontier Life
23
This picture
shows a
typical
pioneer house
on the Great
Plains.
• What does the house appear to be made of?
• Does it seem to be in good shape?
24
Do you think this family would have been comfortable
living in this house?
25
• What does the landscape in this picture look like?
• What do you think it might have been like to farm
here?
26
What do you see in
the foreground?
• What does this tell you about the distance between the
house and the farm?
• What does it tell you about the conditions of the soil?
27
• What is this?
• Why do you think it might have been located here?
28
Look at the family’s attire.
• Do you think they dressed this
way every day?
• How formal do their clothes
look considering their
occupation?
29
Who do you think might have taken this
photograph, and why?
30
Native Americans
•
•
•
•
“Indian wars”
Treaties
Reservations
Perceptions of Native Americans
31
Native
Americans
32
• Who does the snake
represent in this political
cartoon? How can you
tell?
• Why do you think the
cartoonist chose a
snake for this
representation?
33
• Who is in the snake’s
grasp? What is the snake
doing?
• What is the meaning of
this representation? (Hint:
what do the words on the
snake’s body say?)
34
• Who is this? What
is he doing?
• What is his
relationship to the
Native
American/snake?
(Hint: look at the
sign on the tree.)
• What do you
think his
actions
represent?
35
• What does this piece
of paper say?
• What does the book next to
it say?
• Why do you think the
cartoonist included these
in the picture?
36
This cartoon is titled
“The Nation’s Ward.”
• What does this mean?
• Why do you think the
cartoonist drew this
cartoon? What
message was the
artist trying to
convey?
37
Native
Americans
38
The professional
photographer Edward
S. Curtis took this
photograph around
1908. During his
career, Curtis
photographed hundreds
of images of Native
Americans.
Why do you think he might
have focused his career on
this subject?
39
This photograph is titled
“Arikara Medicine
Ceremony—The
Ducks.”
What appears to be
happening in the photo?
40
• Why do you think
Curtis chose this
scene to photograph?
• What might he have
found interesting
about it?
41
The Myth of the West
•
•
•
•
Romantic fascination
Media portrayal
Buffalo Bill
Realities of life in the West
42
The Myth of the West
43
This 1899 handbill advertises Buffalo Bill’s traveling
show.
What does the subtitle say? What does it imply about
the show?
44
Describe
Buffalo
Bill’s
appearance
and stature.
How effectively do you think
this picture of him might have
portrayed the image of the
cowboy that the show was trying
to convey?
45
• What is going on in the center of the picture?
• What do you think this scene is attempting to represent?
46
• What is happening in the upper left-hand corner of the
picture?
• What does this scene portray about Native American
culture as Buffalo Bill might have wanted audiences
to understand it?
47
• How does this part of the poster portray the American
West and Native Americans?
• How do you think potential audiences at the time
would have responded to this?
48
Why do you think Buffalo Bill’s mythologized version of
the West appealed so strongly to audiences?
49
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