Knowing about your country’s history is very important in developing a better understanding of various aspects of it. When you know how a country, the US for example, came into being and how it developed into what it is right now, you will understand its political, social, cultural, and economic systems in a much better way. That is why students should focus on the key historical events that have shaped their country’s future.
One such historical process that changed America forever was the Westward Expansion. Students who study history in college should already be familiar with this event. But if you’re not, or maybe you have to do some research for your history paper, then going through some essay samples about Westward Expansion will help you. Over the years, GradesFixer collected many Westward Expansion essays that are a great resource to use for writing your own paper. When you carefully read some of these essays, you will get to know every detail you need to know about this historic process.
If you want to familiarize yourself with the movement of settlers into the American West as the result of the Westward Expansion, some of the basics of the story below will be a good education for you. Let’s talk about what the Westward Expansion was, why it happened, and what were its results.
What was the Westward Expansion?
During the 19th Century, the United States federal government decided to acquire more than 1.6 million square kilometers of land on the west side of the Mississippi River. As a result of this purchase, a lot of people started migrating to these western lands. This historical process is what is known as the Westward Expansion.
The Reasons for the Westward Expansion
There were several reasons why this land was acquired by the US and why people migrated to it. Some of the most important causes were:
- A very large amount of land was available for very cheap.
- There were mining opportunities for gold and silver.
- The expansion of the railway led to easier access to various supplies, which made living in the West more comfortable.
- The idea of Manifest Destiny, whereby it was believed that it was the white man’s destiny to spread the word of Christianity by controlling land, also contributed heavily to this expansion.
The Effects of the Westward Expansion
Many believe that it was the result of the Westward Expansion that America became such a strong force in the world. Anyone who has studied the history of the country knows that the Westward Expansion showed the determination of the settlers to claim lands in order to expand the US from coast to coast. As a result of the movement of settlers into the American West, new farms, houses, and factories were built. The natives lost their land in the process, but the settlers were able to boost the country’s economy as a result of this historical process.
While people believing in Manifest Destiny thought that it was their god-given right to expand their territories, the actual inspiration behind the process was not just spiritual. There was some enormous economic potential in the acquisition of this land, and a large number of people moved to the West to develop their own farms. At the end of the day, the significant reasons behind this historical process were largely related to economic gains that clearly worked out for the settlers in the long run.
Conclusion
So, if you’re a student in college and you’re studying history, you should definitely study the Westward Expansion in more detail. There is a lot that you can learn from this part of the country’s history as it was motivated by many different reasons. Studying something like this during your education will help you learn a lot about how economies, politics, religion, and society works. It will also teach you many important lessons about determination and loss if you study this historical process from the perspectives of both sides.
