Reasons for Westward Expansion (AQA A-Level History): Revision Notes
Reasons for Westward Expansion
White American settlement of western territories intensified from the 1840s onwards and accelerated dramatically in the 1860s and 1870s. The Homestead Act of 1862 and the expansion of railroad networks drove this movement, which brought extensive conflict with Native American populations, particularly those living on the Great Plains. The treatment of Native Americans by the US government during this period has generated substantial historical debate and criticism.
Historiographical debates on motives for expansion
Historians have offered competing explanations for the large-scale westward movement in the 1860s and 1870s. No single interpretation commands universal acceptance.
One school of thought argues that no overriding motive existed and that expansion simply happened without deliberate direction. An alternative interpretation emphasises demography (the study of population characteristics, such as size, growth, density, distribution and vital statistics). According to this view, once initial settlers arrived, millions more immigrants followed and reproduced at high rates, creating self-sustaining population momentum.
Other historians contend that westward expansion represented deliberate federal government policy during and after the Civil War. They argue this policy followed the ruthless and aggressive imperialism practised by Spanish, French and British powers in North America during earlier centuries. From this perspective, the US government consciously promoted territorial expansion as a continuation of European colonial patterns.
A further interpretation presents westward expansion as part of a special mission to bring the benefits of American democracy and freedom, along with the American way of life, to new territories. This view emphasises ideological and cultural motivations rather than purely material or demographic ones.
Four Main Historical Interpretations:
- No overriding motive - expansion occurred without deliberate direction
- Demographic momentum - population growth and immigration created self-sustaining movement
- Deliberate government policy - continuation of European colonial imperialism
- Ideological mission - spreading democracy and the American way of life
Reasons for expansion before the Civil War
Several developments in the 1840s initiated westward movement before the Civil War intensified the process.
Many settlers had begun moving to the West in the 1840s partly due to religious persecution. The Mormons provide a notable example. Mormons (members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also called the LDS Church, who believed in the 'Book of Mormon') were set up by Joseph Smith in 1830. By 1831 they had settled in Kirtland, Ohio, where they built their first temple. However, their beliefs were unacceptable to most Americans at the time and they experienced severe persecution.
The Mormon Migration Journey
The Mormons' westward journey demonstrates the push of religious persecution:
- 1830: Church established by Joseph Smith
- 1831: Settled in Kirtland, Ohio - built first temple
- 1837: Forced to move due to persecution
- 1844: Joseph Smith and his brother murdered by a mob in Illinois
- 1847: Brigham Young led the community to Salt Lake City area
- Destination chosen: Barren land with mountain streams for irrigation, remote enough to avoid persecution
Beyond religious factors, the West appeared to offer the possibility of starting a new and better life together with cheap and fertile land. The government encouraged settlers to move west because the more Americans living in an area, the better the government's opportunity to take control. Furthermore, the discovery of gold in California in 1848 brought approximately 300,000 people to the area, demonstrating the powerful draw of economic opportunities.
Manifest Destiny as ideological justification
The move west was profoundly influenced by the concept of 'Manifest Destiny'. Manifest Destiny was a belief held by many Americans that God had chosen them to populate the lands from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean. This ideology first gained prominence through the writings of journalist John L. O'Sullivan, who had long supported US territorial expansion. In 1845 he used the phrase in an essay entitled 'Annexation' published in the Democratic Review. In this article he urged the US to annex the Republic of Texas, arguing that it was 'our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions'. He claimed Americans possessed a divine right to populate the whole North American continent and to spread Christian and republican values.
O'Sullivan contended that incorporating territories into the USA would bring liberty and freedom to other American territories. If the USA did not acquire these territories, they could well be seized by a rival colonial power.
O'Sullivan's Vision in 'The Great Nation of Futurity' (1839)
In this earlier article, O'Sullivan articulated the core ideology:
- America's national birth (Declaration of Independence) marked the beginning of a new history separating the nation from the past
- Described Americans as "the nation of progress, of individual freedom, of universal enfranchisement"
- Claimed America's future would establish "the moral dignity and salvation of man"
- Portrayed expansion as ending "the tyranny of kings" and bringing peace
- Concluded by asserting America was destined to be the great nation of the future
The Dark Side of Manifest Destiny
Manifest Destiny functioned not merely as an idealistic vision but also as a racial doctrine of white supremacy that granted no Native American or non-white claims to any permanent possession of lands on the North American continent. It:
- Justified white American expropriation of Native American lands
- Served as a slogan to legitimise US expansion in the 1840s and 1850s, especially into Texas and California
- Was later deployed to justify United States imperial ventures in the 1890s and early twentieth century
- Led to US possession or control of Hawaii and the Philippine Islands
Federal policies encouraging expansion, 1865-77
After the Civil War, several federal government initiatives actively promoted and facilitated westward expansion.
Federal territories
During the Civil War the federal government was determined to secure control of the lands west of the Mississippi. This was accomplished through the creation of federal territories governed by officials appointed by the federal government in Washington. These vast open spaces were populated with settlers. As territories they became subject to the laws of the USA. When the population reached 60,000 the inhabitants could apply to become a state, which gave them the right to some degree of self-determination. They then had their own elected state assembly and were given authority to make their own laws.
The Homestead Act 1862 and subsequent land acts
To encourage settlement in these areas, the government introduced the Homestead Act of 1862. This released land in 160-acre plots, available to farmers for free on the basis that they would farm the land for five years. The first claim under the Homesteads Act was made by Daniel Freeman for a farm in Nebraska on 1 January 1863. Settlers from all walks of life including newly arrived immigrants, farmers without land of their own from the East, single women and former enslaved people came to meet the requirements.
How the Homestead Act Worked
The application process required several steps:
- File intentions at the nearest Land Office
- Land Office checked for any ownership claims
- Prospector paid a $10 filing fee to claim the land temporarily
- Additional $2 commission paid to the land agent
- After five years of farming, the land became the settler's property
Result: By 1865, 20,000 homesteaders had settled on the Plains.
However, this expansion occurred at the expense of the Native American tribes who lived on the Plains.
The Homestead Act was followed by several others designed to encourage further settlement:
- The Timber and Culture Act of 1873: Gave homesteaders an additional 160 acres provided 40 acres were planted with trees
- The Desert and Land Act of 1877: Offered a further 640 acres at $1.25 per acre provided some of it was irrigated
These acts were successful and people flocked to the West. This led to the development of 'bonanza' farms (very large farms in the United States performing large-scale operations, mostly growing and harvesting wheat). By 1880 there were nearly 3,000 of these large farms of more than 1,000 acres.
Pull and push factors
People moved to the Plains due to both pull and push factors.
Pull factors included the offer of free or very cheap land such as offered by the Homestead Act or railroad companies which were also very active in advertising the opportunities for settlement. Migration also offered the chance of a new start. Moreover, letters home from those who had already gone West, and who were successfully farming, encouraged people to move onto the Plains themselves.
Push factors also drove migration. Many people were looking to escape poverty and unemployment in the East and were looking for good farmland. Some moved to the Plains to escape religious persecution, such as the Mormons. Ex-soldiers from the US Civil War saw a lack of opportunity when they returned home, so looked to the West for a new start.
Railroad expansion
The government was keen to encourage railroad expansion to the West, realising this would lead to even more migration to the area. In 1862, Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act authorising two companies to build a transcontinental railroad. Native Americans were not consulted even though the railroad would run through their lands. The Central Pacific was to build eastwards from Sacramento, California, while the Union Pacific would build westwards from Omaha, Nebraska. Eventually the two lines met at the newly arranged site of Promontory, Utah, in May 1869.
The railroad companies, allocated land by the government to cover the cost of the enterprise, hired settlers on to the Plains with 'buy now, pay later' schemes. For Native Americans, the trains disturbed the buffalo herds and brought more land-hungry settlers to the Plains. In its first full year, 1870, the railroad carried 15,000 passengers but this reached one million twelve years later.
Impact of the Transcontinental Railroad
The railroad's completion transformed westward expansion:
- Connected East and West coasts for the first time
- Dramatically reduced travel time across the continent
- Enabled mass migration: from 15,000 passengers (1870) to 1 million (1882)
- Railroad companies actively recruited settlers with attractive payment schemes
- Negative impact: Disrupted buffalo herds and brought more settlers to Native American lands
The second gold rush
Gold discoveries provided another powerful incentive for westward movement. This began in the Black Hills of Dakota in the mid-1870s. There had been rumours about gold in this area since the Civil War and prospectors found gold near present-day Custer in South Dakota in 1874, but these deposits were small. However, the following year much larger deposits were found in Deadwood Gulch and thousands of gold-seekers flocked to the new town of Deadwood.
Treaty Violations in the Black Hills
The main problem was that the US government had recognised the Black Hills as belonging to the Native American tribe, the Sioux, by the Treaty of Laramie of 1868. Once again, these rights were ignored, demonstrating that government policies and settler actions repeatedly violated agreements with Native American nations.
Key Points to Remember:
- Historiographical Debates: Historians debate whether westward expansion resulted from demographic momentum, deliberate government policy, or ideological mission
- Manifest Destiny: Popularised by John L. O'Sullivan in the 1840s, provided both religious and racial justifications for territorial expansion, but also functioned as a doctrine of white supremacy
- Homestead Act of 1862: Offered 160-acre plots for free after five years of farming, attracting diverse groups including immigrants, former enslaved people, and single women
- Federal Initiatives: Land acts, railroad construction (transcontinental railroad completed 1869), and gold discoveries all accelerated westward movement in the 1860s-70s
- Native American Impact: Westward expansion consistently occurred at the expense of Native American tribes, whose land rights were repeatedly violated despite formal treaties