Transcript The Expansion of the US

The Expansion of the US
and the Sectional Crisis
1787-1860
By Dave Forrest
The Expansion of the US
• After the American
Revolution the US grew
from a nation on the east
coast with 13 states to a
country stretching from
the Atlantic to the Pacific.
The Northwest Ordinance
• The Treaty of Paris,
which ended the
Revolutionary War,
established the
Mississippi River as the
western edge of the US.
• After the defeat of
Native America tribes in
the Northwest Territory
many settlers claimed
land west of the
Appalachians.
Louisiana Purchase
• In order to pay its war
debts, France sold the
the Louisiana Territory
to the US.
• With this purchase the
US doubled its size,
gaining control of the
entire Mississippi River.
Manifest Destiny
• Many Americans
believed that it was the
US’s destiny to have
settlers spread from
east to west.
• They believed that it
was God’s plan and that
the US was justified in
taking Indian lands and
territory belonging to
Mexico.
Settlers Head West
• Farmers and ranchers
headed west looking for
land.
• Gold and silver miners
left the east seeking
their fortunes.
• In the 1840’s many
settlers traveled west
on the Oregon Trail.
Mexican Territories
• In the 1830’s many US
citizens settled in
northern Mexico.
• They raised cattle and
grew cotton.
• However, when the
Mexican government
stopped their
immigration, the settlers
rebelled establishing a
Texas Republic.
The Annexation of Texas
• Several months later
the citizens of Texas
voted to be annexed by
the US, despite
Mexico’s continued
claim of ownership.
• Texas wanted to enter
the Union as a slave
state. It was not granted
statehood until 1844.
The Mexican American War
• Texas’ entry into the
Union outraged Mexico.
• In a 1846 the US sent
troops into the disputed
territory, leading to the
Mexican American War
• After two years of
fighting the US defeated
Mexico
The Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo
• With its defeat, Mexico
was forced to cede
much of its northern
lands to the US in 1848.
• Much of the American
South west, including
the the states of
California, Arizona,
Utah, Nevada, and
parts of New Mexico
and Colorado became
part of the US.
The Sectional Crisis
The Sectional Crisis:
North v. South
• In the early years of the
US the North and the
South competed for
political power
• The sectional crisis was
the debate over which
new Western territories
would be admitted to
the US as free states,
and which as slave
states
1820-The Missouri
Compromise
1820 The Missouri
Compromise
• The US had 11 free
states and 11 slave
states. Missouri wanted
be admitted as a slave
state
• In the compromise
Missouri was admitted
as a slave state, but
Maine came in as a free
state
• All new territories north
of Missouri’s southern
boundary would be free
1850 Compromise
1850 Compromise
• California admitted to
Union as free state
• Utah and New Mexico
could vote whether to
be slave or free
• North had to enforce
Fugitive Slave Act,
returning runaway
slaves in the North back
to the South
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
• This bill in Congress
overturned Missouri
Compromise
• Called for Nebraska to
be a free state, but
Kansas to be a slave
state
• Fighting broke out in the
Kansas territories
between pro and antislavery groups
1860 The Sectional Crisis
Leads to Civil War
• In 1857 the US Supreme Court ruled that
former slave Dred Scott was not a free man,
even if he had been working in a free territory
• In 1859 John Brown raided Harper’s Ferry,
hoping to incite insurrection against
slaveholders
• In 1860 Lincoln, a northern was elected
President, winning no southern states
1861 The South Secedes
• The southern states met and seceded
(left the Union)
• They declared themselves a new nation
called the Confederacy
• They wrote their own Constitution and
elected Jefferson Davis to be their
President
• The stage was set for the Civil War