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name the two major US expansions, 1789-1838
north-east and south-east colonies
1803 - Colony of Louisiana
why was George Washington worried about Native Americans, 1783-1794
pre 1783 - British Empire controlled Native American land (north-east and south-east colonies)
1783 - British gave north-west and south-west colonies to USA due to the Treaty of Paris, following defeat
Washington feared the Native Americans and British Empire would ally to fight for the land back
what happened in 1794 that expanded US territory
Battle of Fallen Timbers
Washington defeated the Native Americans
making them sign the Treaty of Greenville
to hand control of their land over to the US government
explain the significance of the Battle of Fallen Timbers
key turning point in the relationship between the US government and Native Americans
creating tension and conflict between the populations
Washington’s defeat of the Native Americans in this battle demonstrates the power of the US state
and the role government played in the US expansion, 1789-1838
how did Thomas Jefferson try to encourage settlement in the West
divided territory in the West into 640 acre plots to incentivise settlers to buy land
rich land speculators would buy this land to sub-divide into smaller plots, which were more affordable and generated large profit margins for the speculators
explain the significance of Jefferson’s encouragement of settlement in the West
rich land speculators buying and sub-dividing the land enticed more people to buy due to the relatively affordable prices
demonstrating the role of individuals in the expansion of the US, especially in the West
explain the significance of the Louisiana Purchase, 1803
Colony of Louisiana covered an immense region of land
1800 - French claimed the Colony of Louisiana
Jefferson purchased the Colony of Louisiana for a meagre US$ 15 million
the French were incentivised to sell the Colony to the US as they were currently fighting the British and had suffered defeat to ex-Haiti slaves
thus the French needed money for military operations as they were over-extended militarily and monetarily
allowing the US to capitalise on French weakness
what roles did Lewis, Clark and Sacagawea play in US expansion
after 1803 Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson sent the explorers Lewis and Clark to establish trade routes to the Pacific Ocean
along the way, the explorers met Native American tribes and Sacagawea, a Shoshone woman who acted as their guide
Lewis and Clark were able to establish trade routes for fur
explain how a need for security was a factor in US expansion
during the War of Independence, the British had received a lot of support from Native American nations
many Native American tribes felt betrayed by the British when they surrendered to America
worse so when Britain handed over 230 million acres of Native lands west of the Appalachian Mountains
which contained the ancestral homes of millions of Native Americans
Washington and the US faced conflict from US tribes over this land
after the US’ humiliating defeat in the Battle of Wabash at the hands of Little of the Miamis (November 1791), Washington placed 80% of the government’s budget into a huge campaign against the Ohio Indian Confederacy
1794 - Native Americans were defeated in the Battle of Fallen Timbers and the Treaty of Greenville was signed, forcing Native Americans to hand over north-western territory
with the additional submission of the Spanish and British, America was able to use the Mississippi River to trade, promoting growth and US expansion
1812 - final battle fought against the British, securing the US’ rights to land in the far north and southern states from further British invasion
1819 - Florida was purchased from the Spanish to secure American possessions in the east, encouraging further settlement east
explain how the actions of pioneering Americans was a factor in US expansion
some historians argue that brave pioneers were significantly responsible for US expansion
as some pioneers/frontiersmen began settling in Native American lands before the War of Independence
frontiersmen demand that the colonial government help defend them against Native American conflict
when no help was given, settlers would attack Native Americans themselves
1783 - British loss in the War of Independence caused frontiersmen in Native American lands to demand that the government opened them up for white settlement
the myth of Daniel Boone glorifies the migration of frontiersmen in the 1760s, with Boone’s story detailing how he bravely escaped imprisonment by the Shawnee Indians
Boone’s adventure stories were read to young American children, romanticising white settlement in Native American lands to the youth
after the War of Independence, Boone claimed thousands of acres of land in western Kentucky, demanding the government recognise his right to own the land he had fought for
1792 - following Boone’s demands, Kentucky was made a state
pioneers established farms and businesses as they waited for the government to give them the rights to own the land, gradually pushing the Native Americans from the land
explain how the desire for trade was a factor in US expansion
1803 - Louisiana Purchase occurred whilst Jefferson was still in talks with France about the purchase of New Orleans
Jefferson was able to pay a meagre US$15 million for the Colony of Louisiana
the purchase added 530 million acres of land to the US
Jefferson immediately sent out Lewis and Clark to set out trading routes to the Pacific Ocean
Lewis and Clark established key fur trading routes, exploiting the new territory to hunt and sell beaver pelts to markets in Europe
this encouraged other traders to being heading westwards to exploit the new lands
the US government followed later, claiming the areas as American
explain how the belief in democracy was a factor in US expansion
Jefferson believed that people could only be trusted to vote if they were property owners
also believing in concept of the ideal American man as a ‘yeoman farmer’
which was an individual who owned their own piece of land and could provide for themselves
Jefferson argued that ‘yeomen farmers’ would make more sensible democratic decisions than those who had nothing to lose
Jefferson also argued that if land ran out, American would end up just like Europe, with too many people fighting for control of limited land, leading to failure of American democracy
1787 and 1790 - Jefferson sold plots of 640 acres in the northwest and southwest to rich land speculators so that it could be farmed
1801 - Jefferson becomes president and looks for more ways to give people access to land
1803 - Jefferson’s government completed the Louisiana Purchase
he then set up systems to quickly divide and sell the land, believing it would maintain American democracy
explain how land speculation was a factor in US expansion
historians such as Patty Limerick suggest that a major cause of US expansion was to satisfy the demands of rich land speculators and investors
speculators would buy cheap land from the government and then sub-divide, to sell on for big profits
1784/1785 - US Land Ordinance was set up to survey and parcel up land into neat squares of 6 miles, which were further sectioned into 36 sections of 640 acres
each acre was sold for US$1-2, but the government would only sell plots of 640 acres
most farming families barely saw US$100 per year, meaning they could not afford the US$640 payment
this caused many farming families to squat on the land without paying, hoping they would raise the funds by the times the bailiffs came visiting
speculators were the main audience for the government hoping to sell the plots, with the government offering 10% discounts to speculators who could afford the US$640 payment up front
speculators could either sell the titles to the land to the squatting sellers for large margin profits or try to have these squatters evicted
1/3 of all land in Wisconsin (500,000 acres) was bought by just 68 men
explain how the exploitation of land and people was a factor in US expansion
historian Edward Baptist argues that the legality of slave ownership in southern states is what incentivised the migration of wealthy investors to the west
1790 - slave owners in the Old South states began to send their slaves down to Kentucky and Georgia to tame the land and make it productive
1792 - Kentucky entered the Union as a new state as a result of the migration of slaves
mid-1790s - sale of slaves had become an extremely profitable business, with ‘Georgia-men’ marching slaves purchased in the middle states to the Old South to be sold in the Deep South
this businesses was so profitable it caused some white settlers to kidnap free black people in the North to sell into the system
northern businessmen drove settlement to the Deep South as many were willing to invest in the new cotton industry cropping up here, driving a further desire for expansion
the highly profitable Deep South states were soon adopted as part of the US
slavery was a key part of the US’ economy, with its profitable nature causing even further expansion south due to its suited climate
which states formed the Old South
Delaware
Maryland
Virginia
North Carolina
what was the 1790 census estimate of the number of enslaved people
c.700,000
describe the change in the number of enslaved people, 1790-1830
1790 - c.700,000
1830 - c.2 million
rapid change on a large scale, caused by the expansion of territory west and south
explain the difference in slavery institutions between northern and southern states
north was not suitable for plantations due to colder climate
Churches in the north preached that all people, regardless of race, were born free
South had a warmer climate, more suitable for plantations such as cotton, rice and tobacco
Churches in the south preached that black people were made to serve their white counterparts
which is significant as it demonstrates that southerners were trying to justify their exploitation of the slave industry using religion
explain how forced movement grew slavery in the South
forced movement was the movement of slaves within the US to southern state
causing a mass migration of enslaved people to the south
causing a vast increase in the slave labour and slave labour-produced products in the south
explain how the invention of the Cotton Gin grew slavery in the South
1793 - Eli Whitney invented the Cotton Gin
the Cotton Gin separated seeds from the cotton, increasing the production rate of refined cotton
this meant that plantations needed more slave labour to meet increased demands
causing the trading of slaves in the south
explain how the pushing system grew slavery in the South
pushing system was a system used by plantation owners
which forced enslaved people to work harder and faster
this increased production rates of cotton
meaning more enslaved people were need to meet the increased demand and workload
causing the forced mass migration of enslaved people south
explain how the Louisiana Purchase grew slavery in the South
1803 - Louisiana Purchase added 530 million acres of land to the US’s total area
this meant there was more viable land available for cotton harvesting and production
as the hot climate lent itself to cotton production
this caused a need for more enslaved labour in the new territory
leading to the forced mass migration of large populations of enslaved people south by ‘Georgia-men’
to increase plantation profits
what concept underpinned slavery in the south
racism
the inherent cultural beliefs of white settlers
that they were chosen by God
making their black counterparts inferior
both in their eyes and in the eyes of God
state the five ‘civilised’ tribes
Cherokees
Creeks
Choctaws
Chickasaws
Seminoles
explain Washington’s approach to Native Americans
1790 - Washington tried to ‘civilise’ the indigenous tribes
Washington saw Native Americans as biologically-equal to white settlers
but as he viewed their society as less ‘civilised’ than his white society, he saw the Native American nations as culturally and socially inferior, creating a hierarchy of cultures
and leading to Washington and white settlers’ cultural imposition on the Native Americans
within this cultural imposition, Washington tried to persuade tribes to take on more ‘civilised’ cultural aspect
some white settlers actively tried to integrate into the Creek Indian culture
give an example of white and Native American assimilation
1825 - concepts of urbanisation were imposed onto the Cherokee tribe
causing them to build their own capital city, Echota
explain how the Creeks and Seminoles resisted assimilation
there was a war caused by tensions between the Creeks and the white settlers
due to the white settlers’ attempted cultural imposition
thus the resistance to assimilation was enacted through a policy of violence
what happened to Creek land, 1814
1814 - Creeks had to give up 23 million acres of land after losing a war to the Seminoles
explain Andrew Jackson’s approach to Native Americans
1830 - Jackson became US president
Jackson held a racist view of the Native Americans, believing they were inferior
instead of civilising the tribes, Jackson aimed to remove them entirely so cotton planters could move in on the land
thus Jackson held economic, racist and political motivations towards the removal of Native Americans
Jackson enacted his approach through the 1830 ‘Indian Removal Act’
this legislation created a territory for the Native Americans in the west, where they would be forcibly removed to
this act removed people from their culture and ancestral environments
it was another important turning point in the relationship between Native Americans and the US
what piece of legislation was integral in Jackson’s approach to Native Americans
1830 - Indian Removal Act
describe Cherokee resistance, 1830-1838
legal opposition
the Cherokees took their case to the State of Georgia Supreme Court
the supreme judges agreed that the Cherokees had rights to the land
however, they stated that the US government knew what was best for the tribe
describe Seminole resistance, 1830-1838
violent opposition
1835-1842 - Seminole started a war against the US
1842 - US invited the Seminole Chief to peace talks, where they arrested him
describe Creek resistance, 1830-1838
violent opposition
Creeks took revenge on white settlers
by stealing their livestock and crops
with some radicals committing murder and arson
what was the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears was the forced journey towards the new territory in the west
that caused the death of 26% of the Cherokee population due to bad conditions
such as weather, mistreatment and malnutrition
1838 - US army forced the remaining 18,000 Cherokees to march to the west
what had the Native Americans lost by 1838
1838 - Jackson’s government had forced over 46,000 Native Americans to leave their ancestral land
caused by government policy, policies of violence and racist ideologies
Native Americans had lost 25 million acres of land to white settlement and slavery
