Transcript From Sea to Shining Sea

From Sea to
Shining Sea
Part 4
Manifest Destiny
Between the early 1830s and the mid 1850s, a
new political party called the “Whigs” ran in
opposition against the Democrat party of Andrew
Jackson. They believed in “congressional
supremacy” instead of “presidential supremacy”.
“Whig” was a term used to describe someone
who was opposed to “tyranny” a word that many
Whigs had used to describe Andrew Jackson.
The Whigs were pro-business, favored
“modernization” of the nation, and believed that
public education was necessary for the good of
the country.
In the election of 1836, Andrew Jackson followed
tradition, and did not run again. The Democrats
chose his vice president, Van Buren, to run. The
Whigs were regionally divided, and lost, making
Martin Van Buren our 8th president.
Martin Van Buren
William Henry Harrison
Hugh Lawson White
The Election of 1840
“The Log Cabin Campaign”
Tired of losing to the Democrats, the Whigs
worked hard to win the presidential election
of 1840. The country had been going
through an economic depression, and many
people blamed President Van Buren for
what was happening. Some people even
referred to him as Martin “Van Ruin”. The
Whigs chose William Henry Harrison, “Old
Tippecanoe”, who had defeated Native
Americans in battle years before.
► Many
Democrats made
fun of William Henry
Harrison, and said he
was “too old and senile”
to be president.
► They said that if he was
given a barrel of “hard”
cider and his retirement
money, he would be
happy to spend his day’s
in a cabin.
► The Whigs jumped on
this, and tried to use the
“common man” image.
► They
tried to present
Van Buren as being “rich
and snobby”, when in
fact, it was Harrison that
had come from a
wealthy background.
► He chose a man named
John Tyler, a former
Democrat, as his running
mate.
► With the slogan
“Tippecanoe and Tyler
Too”, they won the
election of 1840.
► “Old
Tippecanoe” took
office on March 4,
1841.
► The day was cold and
wet, and Harrison did
not wear a hat or
overcoat.
► He spoke for over an
hour and a half—the
longest inauguration
speech in history.
► Later in the month, he
developed a nasty cold,
and died on April 4th.
William Henry Harrison
► John
Tyler our 10th
president, became the
first vice president to
assume office on the
death of a president.
► Although a Whig, he went
against many wishes of
the party, and they kicked
him out!
► The Democrats didn’t
want him either.
► He became known as a
“lame duck”, or a leader
who can’t get much done.
Manifest Destiny
►“Manifest”–
Something that is
clear or obvious.
►“Destiny”–
Something that is
going to happen.
As the 1840s progressed many people began to
believe in an idea called “Manifest Destiny”. It
was the belief that the United States was
destined to stretch all the way to the Pacific
Ocean or “From Sea to Shining Sea”.
As early as 1819, future President John Quincy
Adams stated:
“The world has to accept the idea of…the
continent of North America as our proper
dominion. From the time we became an
independent nation, it was as much a law of
nature that this would become our claim as
that the Mississippi should flow to the sea.”
By the 1830s and 1840s, many Americans began
looking toward New Mexico and California with great
interest.
The entire Southwest once belonged
to Mexico. This huge territory
included all, or parts of the
following modern-day states:
Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada,
Utah, and Colorado. The capital
was Santa Fe.
Much of the American Southwest is hot and
dry. There are also desert and mountainous
areas as well. Before the Spanish came,
some Native Americans had success with
irrigation, while others hunted. The
Spanish settled part of the area, and built
Santa Fe, which is located in the current
state of New Mexico. It grew into a busy
trading town, but the Spanish refused to let
Americans settle in New Mexico.
Santa Fe is one of the oldest cities in the U. S.
► After
winning its independence from Spain, Mexico
allowed Americans into the territory.
► William Becknell was the first American to head to
Santa Fe. He led a group of traders from Missouri.
► The
Mexicans were eager to trade and buy their
goods. Other Americans followed.
► The “Santa Fe Trail” was developed as a trade route in
the 1820s.
California
By the 1840’s, Mexico was in control of California.
The Spanish had actually been there 100 years
before the English had set up their colonies along
the Atlantic Coast. California has large mountain
ranges and fertile valleys to raise crops.
Northern California receives a lot of rain, while
Southern California is much drier. For most of
the year, and in most parts, California enjoys mild
temperatures.
Spanish priests and soldiers built a series of
missions and settlements up and down the coast
of California. The natives of the region put up
little resistance as the Spanish forced them to
work for the missions, and to learn more about
the Catholic faith. At times life was rough for
them, and many died from overwork, and
disease. Conditions even worsened when Mexico
got its independence. Ranchers often cruelly
mistreated the Indians. Their population
dropped to just about 100,000 by 1850.
Spanish Missions in California
Expansion:
A Right and a Duty
By the mid 1840’s, less than 1,000 Americans
were in California. However, more and more
Americans felt it was their duty to spread our
ideas of government and our culture to all types
of people. At the time, they believed it was our
right and our duty to spread all the way to the
Pacific Ocean. Newspapers even started to
spread the idea of “Manifest Destiny”.
The Election of 1844
► The
Whigs choose the well-known Henry Clay.
► The
Democrats chose lesser-known James K.
Polk.
► Voters
came to know that Polk favored adding
Texas and the Oregon Country into the U.S.
► Polk
insisted that all of Oregon to its northern
border should join the United States.
James K. Polk and Henry Clay
► “Fifty-four
forty
or fight” was a
campaign
slogan.
► Americans
chose the
expansionist
James K. Polk,
who became
our 11th
president.
After winning the election, President
Polk had to act on his promise to
extend the United States from the
Atlantic to the Pacific. Happily, the
issue over Oregon was settled
peacefully, but problems over Texas
led to a bloody war with Mexico.
Dividing Oregon
► Despite
his campaign promises for expansion,
President Polk did not want war with Britain.
► In
1846, a treaty was worked out, extending
the border between Canada and the U.S. The
border was set at 49 degrees north. The U. S.
got everything south of the line.
► The
future states of Oregon, Washington, and
Idaho were carved out of this region.
Mormons Seek Refuge in Utah
The largest single group of settlers to move
into Mexican territory, were members of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—
given the nickname “Mormons”. Their church
was founded in 1830 by a man named Joseph
Smith in upstate New York. The church
attracted many followers, but not without
some controversy.
Troubles With Neighbors
► Mormons
at first believed property should be
owned as a group. Some Mormons also were
involved in polygamy—having more than 1 wife.
► Mormons had to move around frequently, and they
moved from New York, to Ohio, then on to
Missouri.
► In Missouri they were especially hated, because
they frequently voted the same way. Most were
Northerners and were anti-slavery. Missourians
worried that they would take over.
The Mormons were forced to move
several different times.
► Under
an “extermination” order from Missouri’s
governor, the Mormons were driven from the
state, and then set up a community they built
in a swampy area in Illinois along the
Mississippi River. Their city was called Nauvoo.
► Problems again developed between their
neighbors, and in June of 1844, Joseph Smith
was killed by a mob. Brigham Young, their
new leader, decided to move them to the
Rocky Mountains, which at that time, WAS
NOT in the United States.
The Mormon city of Nauvoo
grew rapidly, and at one time
rivaled Chicago as the biggest
city in the state of Illinois.
The Mormons were
again kicked out of
a place they had
settled, when they
began to leave
Nauvoo in the
winter of 1846.
A Difficult Journey
The Mormons were forced out of Nauvoo while it was
still winter in 1846. They faced a large challenge in
moving 15,000 people across the continent. Many of
them camped the next winter along the Missouri River in
Nebraska. In 1847, the Mormons entered the Salt Lake
Valley. (Again, it is important to note that in the
summer of 1847, the Salt Lake Valley was still
claimed by Mexico.) In the ensuing years, thousands
of Mormon pioneers came to Salt Lake City in covered
wagons and in handcarts. Salt Lake City became a
major rest stop and trading center for many people
moving throughout the west.
Much of the Mormon Trail
followed, and was similar to
the Oregon Trail.
Salt Lake City is still referred to today
as “The Crossroads of the West”
Annexing Texas
►Originally
in 1836, the U.S. had refused to
annex Texas. By 1844, many Americans
had changed their minds.
►That year, Sam Houston, the president of
Texas, signed a treaty of annexation with
the United States.
►The Senate refused to ratify the treaty
because they thought it would lead to war
with Mexico.
►To
get the Senate to sign the treaty, Sam
Houston pretended that he would become
an ally of Great Britain.
►We
did not want Europe’s greatest power
to have a foothold on our western border.
►In
1845, Congress approved Texas joining
the United States. Trouble begins with
Mexico.
Anger in Mexico
► Mexico
had never
accepted Texan
independence. Now
they were furious
that the U.S. had
annexed Texas. They
were worried that
Americans in New
Mexico and California
would rebel.
► Mexicans
had
refused an offer to
buy New Mexico and
California for $30
million. Mexico did
not want to lose
more territory.
► There was also a
debate about which
river was Texas’s
western border.
Mexico claimed
the border with
Texas was the
Nueces River.
Texans argued
that the river
border was the
Rio Grande.
Sparking the War
► Polk
had General Zachary Taylor cross the
Nueces River and go to the Rio Grande. This
was in the disputed territory.
► In April, Mexican troops crossed the Rio Grande
and soldiers on both sides were killed.
► Polk claimed that “American blood had been
shed on American soil.”
► At his urging, Congress declared war on
Mexico.