Transcript The Oregon Trail War with Mexico California Gold Rush

The Oregon Trail
War with Mexico
California Gold Rush
Pages 447-451
Workbook 79
The Oregon Country
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1834 – Christian missionaries journeyed to
the Oregon Country to set up missions and
teach Christianity to the Indians.
The Oregon Country was made up of
present-day Oregon, Washington, and
Idaho and parts of Montana and Wyoming.
The Oregon Dream
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Missionaries sent letters to people back
East telling about the green valleys,
wooded hills, and fertile soil of the Oregon
Country.
Many people began to dream of living in
this part of the country.
The Oregon Trail
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The Oregon Trail led northwest more than
2,000 miles from Independence, Missouri
to Oregon City in Oregon.
The Pioneers traveled across the
Continental Divide, an imaginary line that
runs north and south along the highest
points of the Rocky Mountains.
The Journey West
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The average trip lasted about six months.
Fresh water was scarce.
Sudden storms soaked travelers.
Wagons broke down.
Rivers had to be crossed.
Many died along the way.
Settlements quickly grew.
President James K. Polk
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President Polk was the second President
from the state of Tennessee. (1845-1849)
He signed a treaty with Britain establishing
the boundary between British Canada and
the United States. (Oregon Country)
The treaty gave the U.S. the lands that are
now Oregon, Washington, Idaho, western
Montana, and Wyoming.
President James K. Polk
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President Polk believed in Manifest
Destiny.
He thought all the lands west of Texas
should be part of the United States.
Ownership of these lands were in question
between the U.S. and Mexico.
Trouble with Mexico - 1846
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President Polk sent soldiers into lands in
southern Texas that were disputed between
the U.S. and Mexico.
Mexican troops crossed the Rio Grande
and attacked an American patrol.
Polk asked Congress to declare war on
Mexico.
War with Mexico – 1847-1848
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The United States invaded Mexico by sea
led by General Winfield Scott.
The Treaty of Guadalupe ended the war in
1848.
The United States purchased California,
and the land that makes up Utah, Nevada,
Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and
Wyoming for $15 million.
California Gold Rush 1848-1849
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In 1848 gold was found near Sacramento,
California.
Workers at Sutter’s Mill were building a
waterwheel when gold was spotted in the
water.
More than 80,000 gold seekers came to
California in 1849.
They were called the forty-niners.
Sutter’s Mill 1848-1849