Transcript American Progress… aka Manifest Destiny

American Progress… aka Manifest Destiny
American Progress -by John Gast
(1872)
Manifest Destiny and
Its Legacy [1841-1850]
• Maine boundary with Canada
• Oregon boundary settlement
• Texas Revolution and Texas
Annexation
• Mexican War and the Mexican
Cession
• Overland Trails
• California Gold Rush
• Compromise of 1850
• Sectional Tensions
Maine Boundary Settlement, 1842
The Aroostook War - (Battle of the maps)
page533.jpg
Manifest Destiny
• “Manifest Destiny — a phrase used by leaders
and politicians in the 1840s to explain continental
expansion by the United States — revitalized a
sense of "mission" or national destiny for many
Americans.”
• An American political and societal belief that it
was the United States’ God-given right, its
apparent destiny, to overspread the continent of
North America
• John L. O’Sullivan - (1839) - notably in 1845
John L. O’Sullivan - Manifest Destiny
• “It is time for opposition to the Annexation of Texas to cease. . . . It is time for
the common duty of Patriotism to the Country to succeed—if this claim will
not be recognized, it is at least time for common sense to acquiesce [agree]
with decent grace in the inevitable and the irrevocable.
• . . . Why, were other reasoning wanting, in favor of now elevating this
question of the reception of Texas into the Union, out of the lower region of
our past party dissensions, up to its proper level of a high and broad
nationality, it surely is to be found, found abundantly, in the manner in which
other nations have undertaken to intrude themselves into it, between us and the
proper parties to the case, in a spirit of hostile interference against us, for the
avowed object of thwarting our policy and hampering our power, limiting our
greatness and checking the fulfillment of our manifest destiny to overspread
the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly
multiplying millions. . . .”
Manifest Destiny - Why?
• High birthrate and the
rapid influx of immigrants
(Irish and German) =
demand for space.
– Estimated 4 million
Americans moved west
between 1820 and 1850.
• Economic opportunity for
commerce and
entrepreneurial enterprise
• Land ownership = wealth
• Land ownership =:
– self-sufficiency
– political power
– Independent self-rule OR
popular sovereignty
• Panic of 1819 and Panic of
1837 caused people to look
to the West for a fresh start
• Opportunity for West Coast
• Frontier land =:
ports for trade
– inexpensive
– in some cases, free.
Manifest Destiny
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The Conquest of the West
• Manifest Destiny
• Aggressive and
‘Fantastic’
Advertising
• Oregon Country
• Republic of Texas
• Mexican War (18461848)
• Treaty of GuadalupeHidalgo
Overland Trails to the West, 1840
Map 13.3 Routes to the West, 1835–1860 (p. 374)
(Chapter 13) Emigrant Train Bedding
Down for the Night
A "train" of emigrants to the Far West
usually traveled around twenty miles a day in socalled Conestoga wagons. These wagons, shown
here, each had slanting gates and a cloth cover
supported by bows of bent wood. They were each
drawn by a team of four to six horses or mules. In
this painting, we see emigrants preparing for the
evening’s rest against the backdrop of a lovely
sunset. The horses have been unyoked from their
harnesses. The cover of the wagon on the right has
been taken down, exposing casks that probably
carried water. The women occupy themselves
taking take care of the small children, one an infant,
and preparing dinner. We see men and boys
performing various tasks. A man on the far left
gathers hay for the horses and livestock. Another
man, on the left, herds the cattle, while in the left
foreground a young man draws water from a
convenient stream. On different sides of the pot that
presumably holds dinner for the group, a balding
man holds a rifle and pets his dog, while a small
child does the wash. The painting projects an image
of plenty, cooperation, security (the rifle), and
contentment. Realistically, the serenity of this
painting was rarely evident on the Overland Trail.
Difficult trails, animals dying from thirst and
exhaustion, and frequent childbirths marked the
journey west for many emigrants.
1.
In what ways does this painting romanticize the
Overland Trail? How would this emigrant train
have forded a river? Would hay have been
available to feed the animals each night? Are
there enough horses to pull the four wagons
shown? The women all have clean, white aprons.
If they washed them, where did they dry them?
What's in the pot over the fire?
2.
Why did these emigrants bring sheep and cattle
with them?
3.
Does this painting reflect Americans’ general
perception of the trip west?
(Chapter 13)
Emigrant Train Bedding Down for the Night
Overland Trails
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The Texas Revolution (1835-1836)
•Texans angered by Mexican
government policy
•Texans refuse to convert to
Catholicism
•Texans refuse to give up
slavery
•Fighting erupts between
Tejanos and Mexican army
•Texans declare independence
from Mexico
•Famous battles:
Alamo, San Jacinto,
Goliad, et al
Texas Revolution
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Major
Battles in
the Texas
Revolution:
1835–1836
Map 13.1 American Settlements in Texas, 1821–1836 (p. 371)
The Alamo
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Assault on the Alamo (p. 371)
The Texas Revolution and the
formation of the Lone Star Republic
• 1835-- Texas declares independence from Mexico
• 1836-- Mexican army led by Santa Anna goes to Texas to
crush rebellion
– Battle of the Alamo
– Battle of San Jacinto
• 1836-- Santa Anna captured by Sam Houston and signs treaty
establishing the independence of Texas
• 1841-- Santa Anna returns to presidency of Mexico
• 1844-- James K. Polk is elected president of the United States
• 1845-- Santa Anna presidency overthrown in Mexico
• 1845-- United States annexes Texas. Mexico does not
recognize Texas independence or annexation
Sam Houston, by Martin Johnson Heade, 1846 (p. 373)
Texas Independence
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The
Election of
1844
President James K. Polk
• Tennessee Congressman
• “Young Hickory” Andrew Jackson
protege
• “Napoleon of the
Stump”
• President from 18451849
• Ardent Expansionist
Map 13.2 Territorial Conflict in Oregon, 1819–1846 (p. 373)
The Oregon Controversy, 1846: “54º 40’ or Fight”
Resolved by
treaty with the
British in 1846
Oregon - “54’ 40º or Fight!”
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The Mexican-American War
[1846-1848]
• 1846-- Polk orders General Taylor to advance to the
Rio Grande. Mexico attacks.
• 1846-- The United States declares war on Mexico
• 1846-- U.S. and Britain settle Oregon boundary
dispute
• 1847-- U.S. Army occupies Mexico City
• 1847-- Santa Anna is stripped of military command
• 1848-- Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ratified by U.S.
Congress
• 1849-- James K. Polk dies months after leaving
office.
General Zachary Taylor
• Born in Orange County,
Virginia in 1784
• In 1808 Zachary joined the
army as an infantry officer
• During the War of 1812, he
distinguished himself under
William Henry Harrison.
• General and popular hero of
the Mexican American War
• “Old Rough and Ready”
• The 12th President of the
United States
General Winfield Scott
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Born in 1786 near Petersburg,
Virginia
He practiced law, served in the army
War of 1812, was promoted to the
rank of lieutenant colonel
Scott undertook a successful five-mo
nth campaign from Vera Cruz to
Mexico City
In 1852 Congress offered Scott the
pay, rank, and emoluments of a
lieutenant general, the first person to
hold that office since George
Washington
“Old Fuss and Feathers”
Whig party's unsuccessful candidate
for President in 1852
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
• Born in 1795 in Japala in the
province of Veracruz
• At 15 became a cadet in the
Spanish Army stationed in
Mexico
• Fought in the Mexican War of
Independence in 1821
• Led a revolt against the new
emperor, Agustin de Iturbide
• Defeated the Spanish invasion
in 1829
• President of Mexico 11 times
• Often ruled as a dictator but
always overthrown
Major Battles of the Mexican-American War
Battles of The Mexican War
Street Fighting in the Calle de Iturbide, 1846 (p. 377)
James K. Polk and Expansionism
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Mexican-American War
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Mexican-American War:
American “Firsts”
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The United States' first foreign war.
The first war anywhere in the world to be photographed.
The first war in which steamboats played an important role.
The first war in which newspaper correspondents regularly
reported from the seat of war.
• The first war in which graduates of the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point participated. Among these were a
number of officers who would later face each other across the
battlefields of the Civil War: Robert E. Lee,Thomas J.
"Stonewall" Jackson, Braxton Bragg, Ulysses S. Grant,
George Meade, George McClellan, and William T. Sherman,
to name but a few.
Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo (1848)
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Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo:
Feb. 2, 1848
• Ended the Mexican War.
• TEXAS: Confirmed U.S. claims to Texas and set Texas’
boundary at the Rio Grande river
• MEXICAN CESSION: Mexico ceded California and
New Mexico to the United States
– (includes present-day California, Nevada, and Utah, and parts of Arizona,
New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming)
• PAYOUT: U.S. paid $15 million and assumed claims
against Mexico by U.S. citizens (about $2 million unpaid).
• Treaty was ratified by the U.S. Senate on Mar. 10, 1848,
and by the Mexican Congress on May 25.
Map 13.5 The Mexican Cession, 1848–1853 (p. 382)
Mexican-American War: Significance
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In the end, the Mexican American War had an
immense impact on United States history.
Thirteen thousand American lives were lost = two
thousand were on the battlefield.
It added over 500,000 square miles to the American
frontier.
It helped America to fulfill its “manifest destiny,”
extending it from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
With this new territory, however, came disputes that
led to further sectional divide and ultimately
contributed to the Civil War.
California
Gold Rush
Country
•1849 - Sutter’s Mill
Set of a ‘rush’ of
speculators headed for
California
So many people arrived
in CA during 1848-1849
that California was able
to attain statehood in
1850.
Map 13.6 The California Gold Rush, 1849–1857 (p. 385)
California: Spanish Missions and Presidios
• Much of the coast had
been settled by Spanish
Catholic missions and
Presidios
• Were set up to secure
settlements and provide
for local American
Indians
• Although part of
Mexican government =
VERY loosely connected
California and the Gold Rush:
California Statehood
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• California: Gold
discovered in 1848 - after
Treaty of GuadalupeHidalgo
• Gold Rush of 1849
• Drew people from all over
the US and world
• Enough settlers to gain
statehood by 1850
(Compromise of 1850) as
a “Free-Soil” State.
The California Gold Rush
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