After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, a large amount of land west of the original 13 states and the Northwest Territory were acquired. The open land, additional benefits and other existing problems encouraged Americans to expand westward. The American people began to realize that the future of the country lay in the development of its own western resources. There were many reasons that made the people face the grueling and dangerous movement west, but the primary reason was economy.
"Like the Spanish conquistadors before them, the Americans looked beyond the Mississippi, they saw an open beckoning. Despite the presence of hundreds of Indian nations with rich and distinct cultures, who had populated the land for thousands of years-from the desert of the Southwest and the grassy prairies of the Great Plains to the high valleys of the Rocky
Mountains and the salty beaches of the Pacific Coast-Americans considered the west to be an empty wilderness. And in less than fifty years, from the 1803 purchase of Louisiana Territory to the California gold rush of 1849, the nation would expand and conquer the West" (Herb 3).
The ocean had always controlled New England's interests and connected it with the real world. Puritanism was still very strong in the north so the moral unity of New England was exceptional. Having a very unmixed population of English origin, New England contrasted very much with the other sections.
All this and the fact that they needed to cross populated states in order to expand west set this section part from the others (Leuetenburg and Wishy 37).
New England's population compared to other regions was poor, and the population growth was even poorer. The trans-Alleghany States by 1820 had a population of about 2.25 million, while New England had over 1.5 million.
Ten years later, western states had over 3.5 million with the people northwest of the Ohio River alone numbering 1.5 million.
"In 1820 the total population of New England was about to equal to the combined population of New York and New Jersey; but its increase between 1820 and 1830 was hardly three hundred thousand, not much over half that of New
York, and less that of gain of Ohio. If Maine, the growing state of the group, be excluded, the increase of the whole section was less that of the frontier state of Indiana"(Turner 41)
Fortunately...
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... Expansion and Regional differences). Since the invention of the cotton gin made the cultivation of cotton profitable, it was only a question of finding the land to cultivate the cotton. All the people had to do was look westward.
What made the people move west? Economics, land, and opportunity to profit were primary factors. With three thousand miles of free and available land, and the opportunity to start a new and better life, and make more money doing it, people packed their bags and moved in.
WORKS CITED
Herb, Angela M. Beyond the Mississippi: Early Westward Expansion of the
United States. New York: Lodestar Books, 1996.
Leuehtenburg, William E., and Bernard Wishy, eds Fronteir and Section.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1961.
Turner, Fredrick Jackson. The Frontier in American History. New York: Holt,
Tinehart, and Winston Inc., 1962
Turner, Fredrick Jackson. Rise of the New West. New york: Harper and
Brothers Publishers, 1966.
Turner, Fredrick Jackson. The United States 1830-1850. New York: W.W.
Norton & Company Inc., 1965.
"Westward Expansion and Regional Differences." An Outline of American
History. Downloaded from AOL. March 27, 1999.
Through the Louisiana Purchase a lot of problems with how Thomas Jefferson dealt with the Constitution can be found. Jefferson was the third president of the United States and the leader of the Democratic-Republican Party. Even though he believes in a strict interpretation of the Constitution his actions during the Louisiana Purchase violates this avowed Constitutional principle of his and it also went against his principal of low government spending.
The title of the document explains exactly what is in the document itself. Before the Declaration was even written, “the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia with the intention of voting for independence from England” (“Writing the Declaration”). Congress had the idea of selecting a group of people (a committee) to write out a document stating that the colonies were going to separate away from Great Britain and form a new nation. “The committee, composed of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman, in turn instructed Thomas Jefferson to write the declaration” (“Writing the Declaration”). Thomas Jefferson began work on June 11th and was able to finish writing by June 28th (“Writing the Declaration”). Imagine trying write a document for independence, creating a new nation, in such little
Two issues during the early republic were the ratification of the Constitution and the purchase of the Louisiana Territory. The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, yet there was a struggle for its ratification that went on until 1790. The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America in 1803.
land. They have to overcome losing their home and basically their life. Also, the Joads can relate
It would seem that a document written so long ago would not have a very large impact on our way of life now, but it was, and is, a basis on which our development as a democratic nation has been equated. If we were to influence our life now based on the text it would be important to look back into the past of the United States of America and read the document in context; develop an understanding of the intended audience. King George had been the announced audience, but the common people, in both the Colonies and in other countries, were an even more important audience. With this, Jefferson altered the mechanisms on which his message was delivered to make the Declaration of Independence far more accessible.
Though initially his decision was criticized, Thomas Jefferson 's pursuit of the Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the United States, as well as impacted the economy, religion, and race of the nation.
The Louisiana Purchase was the largest land transaction for the United States, and the most important event of President Jefferson's presidency. Jefferson arranged to purchase the land for $11,250,000 from Napoleon in 1803. This land area lay between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border. The purchase of this land greatly increased the economic resources of the United States, and proved Jefferson had expansionist dreams by doubling the size of the United States. Jefferson believed that the republic must be controlled by ambitious, independent, property-holding farmers, who would form the incorruptible bedrock of democracy (LaFeber 179). In order to complete his vision the country needed more land.
On July 4, 1776, the United States of America's Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Second Continental Congress, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This document, primarily written by Thomas Jefferson, announced that the thirteen colonies were declaring their independence and, in doing so, were independent states apart from the British Empire. The Declaration of Independence is comprised mainly of colonial grievances and assertions of human rights. The Declaration of Independence formed a profound foundation for the forefathers who wrote the United States of America Constitution and Bill of Rights and, therefore, the United States of America government.
To buy or not to buy, that is the question. Although it was the greatest “real estate” deal, the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 was perhaps one of the most controversial events in American History. President Thomas Jefferson, although he was a Founding Father and the primary writer of the Declaration of Independence, faced major opposition with his decision to purchase the Louisiana Territory from the French. Most of the opposition he faced, however, was domestic.
In 1803 the United States would make the largest and possibly most controversial land purchases in American history, the Louisiana Purchase. During the years leading up to this event the United States was still trying to solidify a national identity. There were two subjects that were causing for division of the new national identity, one being westward expansion. The Northern states and Federalists opposed the idea of westward expansion while the Southern States and the Jeffersonians backed this purchase. Although there was a struggle for a single national identity and this controversial purchase did not aid in finding that single identity, it was still the right decision for the United States. By purchasing this land from the French the United States would not share a colonial boundary with the French who were continuing to gain power under Napoleon. Purchasing the Louisiana Territory would prove to be beneficial for the United States for more reason than one.
The Declaration of Independence is possibly the most important document for the American people to this day. The Declaration came about in July 1776 after the colonists were tired of being ignored and taken advantage of by King George the 3rd of Great Britain. In September of 1774 all 13 colonies, aside from Georgia, came together to discuss how to approach this ever growing problem that Great Britain is causing to their country. They decided that if they could not reconcile with Great Britain, then they would met again on May 1775.
One of the signers that sign the Declaration of Independence was Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson was an American lawyer and Founding Father, and principal author of the Declaration of Independence. He was elected the second Vice President of the United States and the third President. He was also the one who started the Declaration of Independence with Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. He signed the Declaration of Independence because he was the one who started it and also he was the one who wanted to change The United States of America to be a better place for people to live also to have freedom of speech, because other countries don’t have what The United States has and he was also the most wanted man in Great Britain just for saying these words.
The Louisiana Purchase was the most influential and important land purchases in American history. The acquired land in this historical purchase proved to far outweigh what most Americans at the time could imagine. The Louisiana Purchase more than doubled the size of the United States, and lead to many great discoveries and societal benefits. Some of the major and most prominent ways that the Louisiana Purchase influenced the evolution of American were the expeditions of Louis and Clark on the newly acquired westward territory, increase in the countries resources, which in turn increased in trade and resulted in a richer, more economically stable country, and it also played a very pivotal role in the relationship with African Americans, which still is remembered and prevalent in today's society.
On July 4th, 1776, America 's most important document in history was announced, "Declaration of Independence". The Declaration of Independence defined America 's prestige, value, and its freedom. It was the document which stated American colonies now did not want to be the part of British property. It is one of the most important days because for the first time in the history of America; it was on its own and stood as a single country. The majority of the Declaration of Independence was written by Thomas Jefferson which was debated by Congress and made many changes in the original document. One of the major changes made by Congress was removing an attack on the institution of slavery.
The role of jealousy, love and betrayal play a major role in The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. The entire play is based on the human interactions of the characters as related to Othello and Desdemona. The characters’ personalities, their social status, and their relationships to each other control the story line and their fate in the play. Othello is portrayed early in the play as an outsider with animalistic characteristics by Iago and Roderigo because of jealousy. “Your heart is burst; and have lost half of your soul/Even now, now, very now, an old black ram/Is tupping your white ewe”.(531) Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, accuses Othello of using witch craft on his daughter. “If she in chains of magic were not bound/ Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy/ So opposite to marriage that she shunned…” (535) This point is important because Othello must defend himself not only to Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, but to the entire Venetian Senate. “And till she come, as truly as to heaven,/ I do confess the vices of my blood./ So justly to your grave ears I’ll present/ How I did thrive in this fair lady’s love, / And she in mine.” (539) Othello proves himself to be an intellectual hero early in the play. He has worked hard to gain respectability and power, but because he has a different background, is from another country, is dark-skinned and is older than Desdemona, he becomes jealous very quickly of Cassio. Cassio is from the same social class, is compatible with Desdemona and is a young handsome man. Iago has also convinced Cassio to seek favor with Desdemo...