Westward Expansion

NOTES ON EARLY WESTWARD EXPLORATION (Lewis & Clark + Other Explorers)

I. Jefferson’s Vision and Goals (Pre–Louisiana Purchase)

  • Jefferson dreamed of a transcontinental route to the Pacific since the 1780s.

  • Motivations:

    • Economic expansion (especially fur trade).

    • Agrarian ideal (more land for farmers).

    • Rivalry with Britain, France, and Native nations.

    • Desire for an internal water route linking the Mississippi to the Pacific.

II. Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806)

Purpose

  • Explore newly acquired Louisiana Territory.

  • Find a practical water route to the Pacific.

  • Map the region officially for the U.S.

  • Assess commercial potential (fur, farming).

  • Establish diplomatic relations with tribes.

Preparation

  • Led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

  • Extensive training: science, medicine, astronomy, botany.

  • Jefferson gave Lewis unlimited credit (unprecedented).

  • 48 men total by departure: hunters, boatmen, soldiers.

  • Supplies: surveying tools, maps, weapons, gifts for tribes, medicines.

  • Main vessel: keelboat Discovery.

Major Events

  • May 14, 1804: Depart St. Louis up the Missouri River.

  • Encounter many fur traders early — sign of commercial importance.

Key Tribal Encounters

  • Oto & Missouri tribes – friendly.

  • Sioux (Yankton) – friendly.

  • Teton Sioux (Pierre, SD) – hostile confrontation, resolved by Chief Black Buffalo.

Sacagawea and Charbonneau

  • Met at Fort Mandan (Nov 1804).

  • Sacagawea (Shoshone) becomes translator, guide, symbol of peaceful intent.

  • Her brother Cameahwait provides critical horses/mules for mountain crossing.

Geographical Challenges

  • Fort Mandan – winter headquarters; Sacagawea gives birth.

  • Great Falls – lengthy portage, dangerous terrain with cacti and rattlesnakes.

  • Three Forks – declared source of Missouri.

  • Rockies/Bitterroot Mountains – most dangerous stretch; aided by Nez Perce.

Reaching the Pacific

  • Stormy passage along Columbia River.

  • Build Fort Clatsop on the south side of the Columbia.

  • Winter 1805–06 spent in wet, miserable conditions.

Return Journey

  • Split into two routes:

    • Lewis explores Marias River.

    • Clark follows Yellowstone River.

  • Only violent incident: Lewis’s group kills two Blackfeet after attempted horse theft.

Outcome

  • Return to St. Louis in 1806 as national heroes.

  • Each captain receives 1,600 acres.

  • Produced:

    • First accurate maps of the West (published 1814).

    • Descriptions of 100+ plant species, 100+ animal species, 25 bird species.

    • Peaceful contact with ~50 tribes.

  • Cost: ~$39,000.

III. Importance of Maps

  • Prior maps unreliable (mostly from traders).

  • Accurate mapping was essential for:

    • Military strategy.

    • Settlement patterns.

    • Trade routes.

    • Claims of sovereignty.

OTHER MAJOR EARLY EXPLORERS

1. Davy Crockett (1786–1836)

  • Folk hero, soldier, storyteller, congressman.

  • Explored Tennessee, Kentucky, and Texas.

  • Conflicts with Creek Indians; fought in Creek War (1811–1813).

  • Hunter/trapper; tales encouraged frontier expansion.

  • Died at the Alamo → legendary status.

2. Daniel Boone (1734–1820)

  • Key explorer of Kentucky, Kansas, Missouri.

  • 1775: Found Cumberland Gap (Appalachians → Kentucky).

    • Becomes "Wilderness Trail."

  • Frequently clashed with Shawnee; captured twice.

    • Once adopted into the tribe (unusual respect).

  • Later lived in Spanish Louisiana (Missouri).

  • Known for long hunting/trapping expeditions.

3. Zebulon Pike (1779–1813)

  • Major explorer of the Southwest and central territories.

  • 1804: Found Mississippi headwaters.

  • 1806: Explored areas near New Mexico, Colorado.

    • Pike’s Peak named after him.

  • Likely gathered intelligence on Spanish settlements.

  • Wrote influential reports on terrain and Native tribes.

4. Jedediah Smith (1799–1831)

  • Mountain man, fur trapper, pathfinder.

  • First white American to:

    • Cross the Sierra Nevada.

    • Travel overland to California.

    • Explore the Great Basin and Great Salt Lake regions.

    • Cross the Continental Divide via South Pass.

  • His journals influenced migration routes during the 1848–55 Gold Rush.

KEY THEMES FOR APUSH

  • Federal support + scientific curiosity = American expansion.

  • Mapping = claim to sovereignty + military advantage.

  • Encounters with Native nations varied (from cooperation to violence).

  • Fur trade = backbone of early western economy.

  • Explorers paved the way for:

    • Manifest Destiny.

    • Settlement of Oregon Territory.

    • Encroachment on Native land.

    • Military forts and trade posts.

NOTES ON KEY EXPLORERS OF THE AMERICAN WEST

Davy Crockett (1786–1836)

  • Soldier, frontiersman, and U.S. congressman.

  • Explored Tennessee and later Texas.

  • Known for legendary marksmanship and frontier storytelling.

  • Expert bear and raccoon trapper.

  • Wrote Bear Hunting in Tennessee, which shaped Western frontier folklore.

  • Died at the Alamo, elevating him to folk-hero status.

Daniel Boone (1734–1820)

  • Early white explorer of Kentucky.

  • Discovered the Cumberland Gap, enabling passage through the Appalachians.

  • By 1800, over 200,000 settlers used this route.

  • Fought Shawnee tribes in the 1770s; captured twice but escaped.

  • Later moved to Missouri (then Spanish territory).

  • Boone County named after him.

Zebulon Pike (1779–1813)

  • Explored the central and southwestern regions: Oklahoma, Nebraska, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas.

  • Led 1806–1808 expedition likely meant to observe Spanish military presence.

  • Pike’s Peak named for him.

  • Published a travel account in 1810, based almost entirely on memory.

  • His mapping helped the U.S. understand southwestern geography.

Jedediah Smith (1799–1831)

  • Mountain man, trapper, and trailblazer.

  • Rediscovered South Pass, crucial for later migration to Oregon and California.

  • Explored Central Rockies, Arizona, Nevada, California.

  • First American to travel overland into California from the southwest.

  • Kept no published journals, but his routes influenced later settlers.

  • Early inspiration for Gold Rush era paths.

Benjamin Bonneville (1796–1878)

  • Army officer and explorer of the Oregon Country and the Great Basin.

  • Traveled the Oregon Trail as early as 1832.

  • Explored Green River area and founded Fort Bonneville as a fur-trade post.

  • Explored Snake and Salmon Rivers into Fort Nez Perce.

  • Established contact with Shoshone along the Bear River.

  • Famous not by his own writing, but through Washington Irving’s book The Adventures of Captain Bonneville.

John Colter (1773–1813)

  • Member of Lewis and Clark Expedition (Corps of Discovery).

  • Afterward, explored alone in the Yellowstone region.

  • First known white person to describe Yellowstone’s geysers.

  • First to see Jackson Hole and Yellowstone Lake.

  • Survived a dramatic escape from Blackfeet warriors while trapping beaver (1808).

  • Considered the spiritual “founder” of what became Yellowstone National Park.

SPURS TO WESTWARD EXPANSION (Early 1800s) — NOTES

I. Government-Supported Infrastructure

These projects made the West reachable, profitable, and attractive.

1. National Road (Started 1811)

  • First federally funded highway.

  • Connected Maryland to Illinois.

  • Demonstrated federal commitment to western development.

  • Enabled movement of settlers, mail, military, and trade.

2. Land Grants

  • Government gave 160 acres to War of 1812 veterans.

  • Encouraged settlement in frontier regions.

  • Non-veterans could buy land cheaply (≈$1 per acre).

3. Canals

  • Massive canal-building boom in early 1800s.

  • Most famous: Erie Canal (1817–1825).

    • Connected Great Lakes to the Hudson River.

    • Lowered transport costs dramatically.

    • Turned New York City into the greatest U.S. trade hub.

4. Steamships

  • Robert Fulton’s steamboat (1807) revolutionized river transport.

  • Faster, upstream navigation became possible.

  • Boosted Mississippi and Missouri River traffic, especially through St. Louis.

II. Economic Push Factors in the East

Economic problems encouraged migration to the Midwest.

1. Declining Land Productivity

  • Soil exhaustion in Eastern states.

  • Reduced crop yields → fewer farming opportunities.

2. Rising Unemployment + Overcrowding

  • Northeastern cities struggled with job scarcity.

  • Crowding pushed families to seek opportunities elsewhere.

3. Small Farmers Pushed Out

  • Wealthy plantation owners bought up smaller farms.

  • Many landless farmers migrated west.

4. Population Shift

  • Midwest population growth: 11% per year (1790–1820).

  • Northeast: only 2% per year during same period.

III. Formation of New States

Driven by rapid population growth in western territories.

1. Northwest Ordinance (1787)

  • Established rules for admitting new states rather than expanding old ones.

  • Guaranteed basic rights and banned slavery in the Northwest Territory.

2. Enabling Act of 1802

  • Required 60,000 people for statehood application.

  • Ensured orderly westward political expansion.

3. New States Formed (1800–1830)

  • Ohio (1803)

  • Indiana

  • Illinois

  • Mississippi

  • Alabama

  • Many others followed, reaching 26 states by 1840 (up from 13).

IV. Conflicts With Native Americans

As settlers pushed west, violent conflict became inevitable.

1. Battle of Tippecanoe (1811)

  • Fought between William Henry Harrison (Indiana governor) and Shawnee Confederacy.

  • Tecumseh had organized a multi-tribal resistance.

  • Harrison launched a preemptive strike.

  • Heavy U.S. casualties (~30% dead/wounded), but Native forces defeated.

  • Tecumseh survived and later joined the British in the War of 1812.

2. Creek War (1813–1814)

  • Internal Creeks split: some pro-U.S., others anti-U.S.

  • Ended with forced cession of two-thirds of Creek territory in Georgia.

  • Opened massive areas for cotton plantations.

3. Forced Displacement Begins

By 1825:

  • Most Native peoples in Alabama and Florida displaced.

  • Georgia, Kentucky, and South Carolina saw heavy settler encroachment.

  • Set stage for later events like:

    • Indian Removal Act (1830)

    • Trail of Tears (1830s)

V. The “Civilized Tribes”

Five major Southeastern tribes adopted many European-American customs:

  • Cherokee

  • Creek

  • Choctaw

  • Chickasaw

  • Seminole

Characteristics of acculturation:

  • Western dress and housing.

  • English language adoption.

  • Plantation farming.

  • Formal written laws and constitutions (especially Cherokee).

Despite assimilation, they were still forcibly removed — highlighting U.S. expansionist priorities over treaty obligations.

Key Takeaways for APUSH

✔ Federal investment in infrastructure sped up expansion.
✔ Cheap/free land attracted settlers.
✔ Economic struggles in the East pushed families westward.
✔ New states formed rapidly under federal guidelines.
✔ Expansion caused significant conflict with Native nations.
✔ Even “assimilated” tribes faced removal.