Chapter 12

Territorial Expansion, 1820-1854

From Sea to Shining Sea

After the U.S. acquired the Louisiana Territory, Americans looked forward to a country that extended from coast to coast

The government worried that it may not be able to protect and provide services to a country that large

We already had: Louisiana Purchase - 1803 Adams-Onis Treaty - 1819

Spain ceded Florida and any claims in Oregon to U.S.

The U.S. was to give up claims to Texas and pay Spain $5 million

What about slavery in these new territories?

Because of the Missouri Compromise, slavery was prohibited from the areas of Kansas to Oklahoma

But what about any new territories? That would be faced later

Whigs were against expansion Democrats were for it In the 1840s opportunities to acquire

more land arose Map, p. 337 For example -- Texas

Texas The great plains of the American

continent extended into Texas and Mexican Territory

Moses Austin thought he could make money raising cattle there; it was also near a water source for transportation

Austin also felt the land would be good for cotton

Moses Austin died leaving his idea to his son, Stephen Austin

So Stephen Austin made a deal with Mexico: Allowing 300 American families to settle in Texas Each household would receive 177 acres to farm

and 1300 acres for grazing Austin promised that settlers would follow

Mexican law, learn Spanish, and observe Catholicism

But 20,000 whites and 2,000 slaves had come by 1834

Texas became American in culture and custom and also became very prosperous

Then in 1831, Mexico abolished slavery

In 1833, General Santa Anna became president

Santa Anna worked to centralize the powers of his government

He then canceled foreign trading rights

And he ended much of the autonomy Texans enjoyed

Some Anglo and Hispanic Texans rebelled and seized the Alamo in San Antonio

Santa Anna would not negotiate and led 6,000 troops to the fort

Only 200 Texans were at the Alamo , including Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett

Sam Houston was off in the east trying to raise an army to help those at the Alamo

Santa Anna waited for 10 days for the Alamo to surrender

Texans were waiting for Sam Houston to arrive

When Santa Anna realized this, he attacked and ordered all prisoners killed, except for some women

The executions got Texans mad

Then at San Jacinto, Houston defeated the Mexican army and took Santa Anna captive

Santa Anna agreed to give independence to Texas in order to win his freedom

After Santa Anna’s release, he refused to recognize this independence

Santa Anna could no longer fight because his demoralized army had had enough

Lone Star Republic In October 1836, Sam Houston

became president Texas set up a government like that

of the U.S. It then legalized slavery Texans hoped for annexation to the

U.S. Andrew Jackson like the idea, but

Congress didn’t

Congress didn’t like the idea of slavery in Texas

So Jackson delayed recognition of Texas

When Martin Van Buren became president in 1836, he opposed annexation

Later, statehood was secured by President John Tyler and approved of by President James Polk, his successor

Oregon Country Oregon Country was shared by Britain and

the U.S. It was peopled by fur trappers and

mountain men Jeremiah Johnson (liver-eatin’) Jim Beckwourth (discovered a pass through

Sierra Nevadas) Jedidiah Smith (opened South Pass in Wyoming) Jim Bridger (explored Rockies & was first to see

Great lake

These men met every year to trade, tell stories, and give geography lessons

They said it was possible to cross overland to Oregon

And so established the Oregon Trail

Oregon Trail

Map, p. 342 Missionaries were the first to use it The trail began at Independence,

Missouri In 1843 the first wagon train left

The people swore to observe rules of behavior and cooperation

Mountain men were hired to lead

The trail crossed Kansas to the Platte River, to Fort Laramie and South Pass in Wyoming, through the Rockies, to the Snake and Columbia Rivers, to the Pacific

Today we find trail ruts Members of the wagon train made 20

miles a day -- on a good day

Native Americans didn’t bother them because they weren’t staying to take their land

There were deaths from accidents and from disease Children got lost forever in the grasses Grave markers were placed by the side

of the trail and let people know they were on the right trail

In July 1843 the Oregon Territory was divided between Britain and the United States at its present boundary

Santa Fe Trail In 1609, Santa Fe was established by

Spanish adventurers and there were restrictions on trade with the U.S.

When an independent Mexico abandoned these Spanish restrictions, an American named William Becknell blazed an 800-mile trail to Santa Fe

Becknell was a businessman from Independence, Missouri

He brought goods to the 7,000 inhabitants of Santa Fe who were starved for goods

Santa Fe was too far away from the center of Mexico to feel connected to it

Becknell made lots of money Other merchants followed Inhabitants felt more linked to U.S.

Push to the Pacific James Polk won the Presidential

Election of 1844 Chart, p. 345 In his inauguration speech he stated:

He would serve only 1 term He would finalize Texas’ admission to US He would acquire New Mexico and

California from Mexico He would get Oregon

Texas’ admission to U.S. had been secured by Inauguration Day

Oregon had also been settled by that day

Then Polk offered Mexico $30 million for California and New Mexico

Mexico refused Polk finagled a war

War with Mexico

Map, p. 349 Santa Anna was president, and he

moved cautiously with U.S. Polk was determined to go to war, so

he asked Congress for a Declaration of War against Mexico because of bad debts

To help Congress decide, Polk then ordered Zachary Taylor to take 1,500 men from the Nueces River in Texas to the Rio Grande in Mexican Territory

This resulted in a skirmish where 16 American soldiers were killed in April of 1846

However, Polk declared Mexico the aggressor and got his declaration of war

Within 2-years time, the United States conquered most of this western territory

Mexicans were ill-equipped and demoralized from incessant civil wars

Summer 1846 – Santa Fe was taken without resistance; California was also taken

September 1846 – Zachary Taylor took Monterrey

February 1847 – Taylor took Buena Vista

September 1847 – Mexico City was taken

Many in U.S. believed expansion was inevitable, pre-ordained, and just

John O’Sullivan, a New York journalist, had coined the phrase “Manifest Destiny” in 1840s

Americans felt it had come to be The Mexican/American War was

settled by the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, signed in February 1848

In this treaty: Mexico ceded to the U.S. the Rio Grande,

California, New Mexico, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada

The U.S. paid Mexico $15 million and assumed Mexico’s $3 million debt to U.S.

Mexico had lost 1/3 of its territoryThe partition of their country in this way left

a bitter taste in the mouths of Mexicans

Opposition

The Mexican War was generally popular in the United States

It was an easy fight Only 1,700 died in battle and 11,000

died of disease But there were critics of the war Many Whigs, including Abraham

Lincoln, voted against it

New England clergymen were against the war

Intellectuals like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau felt the war was unjust Thoreau refused to pay taxes because he

felt it was that money which would pay for that unjust war; he went to jail

Some military were against the war like Ulysses S. Grant who said it was an unjustifiable war

After the war, Polk said he wanted more of Mexico, plus Cuba, the West Indies, Hawaii, and Canada

He didn’t get them

Railroads

Map, p. 351 Railroads built during the 1840s and

the 1850s truly transformed America With technology from England our

first 2 railroad systems took off The Charleston & Hamburg in S. Carolina The Baltimore & Ohio in Maryland

Later several other lines developed They carried passengers and freight

into areas without canals Railroads expanded so that by 1860

all the states east of the Mississippi had service

Initially, canals were cheaper to use for freight

By the 1850s, many railroads had put some canals out of business

Because of the use of iron, railroads helped develop an iron industry in America as well as others

Railroads helped to develop towns Towns invested in railroads Governments provided land grants

Industry Industry began expanding into other

areas besides the textile industry Bringing all the processes under one

roof was new to many areas Products had been made in homes

previously This was cottage industry or the putting-

out system Work was also done in small workshops

As industry grew, work life became more impersonal

Even though the use of machines had increased by 1860, we still could not be called an industrialized nation

But we were changing New inventions kept on coming List, p. 355

Immigration

The original reason for mechanizing was because America had a labor shortage

But that changed quickly Between 1820 and 1840, about

700,000 immigrants arrived in the U.S. mainly from the British Isles and Germany

During the 1840s, immigration increased

4.2 million came between 1840 and 1860

They came from Ireland mainly where there was a potato famine

1.5 million arrived from Ireland fron 1845 to 1854

They were Catholic and many in U.S. didn’t like Catholics

They put signs in business windows saying “No Irish Need Apply”

Also during that time about 1 million Germans arrived Artisans Farmers Those who wanted democracy

All wanted economic opportunity and a better life

The majority worked for wages Those without much money stayed in

the cities Others who could buy land, moved on Chart, p. 356

Religious Movements

Religious movements took hold in the first half of the 18th century

Mormons One of the more controversial religions

to develop Known as the Church of Latter day Saints

or the Mormons Became controversial in the 1820s &

1830s

Founded by Joseph Smith of New York Searched for a faith that made sense to

him Claimed an angel led him to a buried

book of revelations and special stones to help translate it

It became known as the Book of Mormon This book spoke of Mormons being the

descendents of ancient Hebrews who came to America

It placed America at the center of Christian history and it appealed to many

Joseph Smith and his followers moved west to Nauvoo, Illinois and built a model city

People around Nauvoo didn’t like the Mormons’ claim that they had new revelations from Christ

In 1843, Smith said he received another revelation from God sanctioning polygamy and he saw himself as a prophet of God

Smith announced his candidacy for president in 1844

The state of Illinois charged him with treason and jailed him

He and his brother were murdered there in Carthage, Illinois by an angry mob in June 1844

Mormons continued to make converts in England, and then they came to America

In 1840 there were 6,000 Mormons By 1870 there were 200,000

Brigham Young led the Mormons after Smith’s death and led them to Salt Lake City, Utah

At that time it was still under Mexican control

They established the Republic of Deseret

Map, p. 342 Picture p. 343

They lived apart from American society and still practiced polygamy

They were industrious, disciplined, and committed to the welfare of other Mormons

They transformed the Salt Lake Valley into a productive area

They appealed to the downtrodden

They went against accepted religious standards They used the Bible and the Book of

Mormon They practiced polygamy They worked to have economic

cooperation rather than competition

Shakers Name comes from their convulsive

dancing that was part of their rituals Their founder was Mother Ann Lee from

England They formed a tightly knit community in

New Lebanon, New York They were artisans (Shaker furniture) They were hostile to materialism

Members had to reject sex and teach of its evils

They thought the end of the world was near

They believed the second coming of Christ would be in the form of a woman

They had to keep making converts to survive since they rejected “natural increase”

Around 1850 there were 6,000 Shakers in 8 states

They lived apart from society There are perhaps 5 or 6 Shakers today