How Did America Move Westward Through Manifest Destiny?

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America is one of the world’s largest countries, spanning all the way across the continent of North America, However, America was not always this large: it only began to take its current form in the early 1800s. During the 1800s, America expanded Westward through Manifest Destiny because of relocating Native Americans, the Mexican American War, and the California Gold Rush. (Danzer 280, “Mexican-American War” 1-2, “The Gold Rush of 1849” 1-2) First, Americans believed they must venture towards the West coast because it was “Manifest Destiny.” This means that the Americans believed that westward expansion was their destiny planned for them by God. Not only this, but Americans also had practical reasons for moving west, such as seeking new markets or “attempting a fresh start” (Danzer 281). …show more content…
On their way to California, white settlers conflicted with Native Americans. For example, in the early 1830s, settlers along the border of Iowa and Illinois were pressuring Native Americans to move west of the Mississippi River. During this period of pressure, the Native American tribe leaders had a meeting in which one leader told of a prophecy. This prophecy led the Natives to believe they must rebel against the white settlers: the rebellion failed miserably and it led to the murder of over 200 people. As white settlers pushed further west, smaller conflicts occurred until in 1851 when the Treaty of Fort Laramie was established. This treaty allowed Native Americans to inhabit the Central Plains without any interference from white settlers as long as they did not attack white settlers. White settlers broke this treaty many times, but continued to move west anyways.(“The Americans

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