CHAPTER 14 Manifest Destiny - Davenport Schools 14 Manifest Destiny: 1820–1860 447 meet. In...

1821–1830 1831–1840

442 UNIT 5 The Nation Expands: 1820–1860

Manifest Destiny1820–1860

CHAPTER 14★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

FocusThe drive to expand the boundaries of the United States became a goal

for many Americans in the 1830s. American journalist John L. O’Sullivandeclared: “It is . . . our manifest destiny to overspread the whole continent.”Eventually the United States government would acquire land in present-day Oregon, Texas, California, Utah, and the remainder of the Southwest.

Concepts to Understand★ How the beliefs and ideas of Americans led to westward expansion★ Why individuals and families migrated to the West and shaped

political events in Oregon, Texas, and California

Read to Discover . . .★ the reasons Americans moved westward.★ why Texans declared independence from Mexico.★ what caused war between Mexico and the United States.★ how the Gold Rush

of 1848 changed the history of California.

SETTING THE SCENE

Journal NotesPut yourself in the

position of Native

Americans on lands

west of the Mississippi

River. Record your

impressions of the

wave of settlers who

crossed into your lands

during the mid-1800s.

� MINING TOOLS

United States

World1821 Mexico wins independence

from Spain1825 Egyptian troops invade

Greece

1821 Stephen Austin founds colonyin Texas

Chapter OverviewVisit the American History: The Early Years to1877 Web site at ey.glencoe.com and click on Chapter 14—Chapter Overviews to previewchapter information.

HISTORY

1836 Battle of the Alamo fought1836 Texas wins independence

http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/ushistory/ahey2001/chapter14/overview.html

443CHAPTER 14 Manifest Destiny: 1820–1860

1841–1850 1851–18601842 Treaty of Nanking ends Opium

War in China1853 United States begins trade with

Japan

1846 Mexican War begins1848 California Gold Rush begins1848 Mexican War ends

1853 United States makes GadsdenPurchase

Among the Sierra Nevada Mountainsby Albert Bierstadt, 1868

Albert Bierstadt was an artist from the Hudson RiverSchool. Bierstadt specialized in painting grand picturesof awesome mountain scenery.

History

A R TAND

� MINIATURE BOOKS OF THE 1830S

attention of other people—people whowanted to claim more than the region’sfur-bearing animals. They came to capturethe land itself.

★ Settlers Move WestThe Oregon Country included the

present-day states of Oregon, Washing-ton, Idaho, and parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Canada. The RockyMountains bounded the region on theeast, while the Pacific Ocean hemmed iton the west.

The Oregon Country★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★


SECTION 1

GUIDE TO READING

Reading StrategyOrganizing Information As you read aboutthe Oregon Country, use a diagram like theone shown here to describe the conflictbetween Great Britain and the United Statesover the Oregon territory and to explain howthey resolved it.

Read to Learn . . .★ what nations had conflicting claims to

the Oregon Country.★ how traders and trappers paved the

way for western expansion.

Terms to Know★ rendezvous★ pass★ emigrate★ prairie schooner★ annex

Main IdeaBeginning in the early 1800s, Ameri-cans started settling the nation’s vastwestern territory.

PRAIRIE HUNTER

Conflict Solution

�

Geography

The grizzly bear stood so close HughGlass could smell it. With a steady finger,the fur trapper fired his musket. As the bul-let struck the animal, the bear hurled itselfinto Glass. Another trapper describedwhat happened next:

. . . [T]he bear caught himand hauled him to theground, tearing and lacerat-ing [cutting up] his body [at a] fearful rate.

Glass not only survived, he continuedto hunt grizzly bear and other animals inthe Oregon Country. The adventures offur trappers like Glass soon caught the

”“


Within the Oregon Country climatesand vegetation varied. Lands west of thecoastal mountains, called the Cascades,enjoyed mild temperatures and abundantrainfall. On the east side of the moun-tains, however, the landscape changeddramatically. The Cascades prevented therain-bearing clouds that rolled off thePacific from heading inland. As a result, adry plateau sprawled eastward from theCascades to the Rockies.

For the non-Native Americans whofirst set foot in the Oregon Country, itswealth lay in fur-bearing animals. Forcenturies, fashionable Europeans andNorth Americans wore hats made ofbeaver pelts. To meet the demand, furtrappers exhausted the supply of beaverin one stream after another. By the early1800s, a few adventurous trappersplunged across the Mississippi River insearch of new forests to hunt.

Trappers often traveled trails blazedby the Native Americans. Groups thatlived in the Oregon Country includedthe Cayuses, Yakimas, Chinooks, NezPerce, and Blackfeet. Most had deepancestral roots in the region, even asEuropeans and Americans refused torecognize Native American rights to theland. Instead, they labeled the lands a“wilderness” and freely staked theirclaims.

★ Conflicting ClaimsFour nations—Russia, Spain, Great

Britain, and the United States—tried totake control of the Oregon Country. Ofthese nations, Great Britain and the UnitedStates pursued their claims most actively.

The British based their claims in Ore-gon Country on the explorations of SirFrancis Drake and George Vancouver.Drake visited the coast of Oregon in 1579.A member of Vancouver’s crew navigateda river part of the way through Oregon in1792. Fort Vancouver, the only permanent

British outpost in Oregon, took its namefrom this expedition.

The United States based its claim on thevoyages of Robert Gray. In 1792 this NewEngland sea captain gave the ColumbiaRiver its name. In 1805 the Lewis andClark expedition reached the mouth ofthis river and strengthened the UnitedStates’s claims to the area. By 1807 Amer-ican fur traders had set up scattered trad-ing posts along Lewis and Clark’s route.They had to compete with British traderswho pushed into Oregon from Canada.

American fur trader John Jacob Astorsent a shipload of supplies and workersaround the tip of South America in 1811.The workers built a trading post near themouth of the Columbia River. Here theyset up Astoria, the first American settle-ment on the Pacific coast. Although Asto-ria lasted only a short time, it gaveAmericans another claim to Oregon.

Agreement With Great BritainIn 1818 Great Britain and the United

States agreed to share the Oregon Countryfor 10 years. Under the agreement, Britishand American citizens would enjoy equalrights. With few settlers in the region, Spainand Russia gave up their claims in 1825.

★ The Mountain MenBoth British and American fur-trading

companies rushed to secure their claimsto the Oregon Country. In 1822 one Amer-ican company advertised for “ENTER-PRISING YOUNG MEN” to sign up forwork. More than 100 people—Scots, Ger-mans, Spaniards, New Englanders,Southerners, and African Americans—responded to the ad. Some hired on ascamp keepers, people who cooked andguarded the camp. Others took jobs astrappers. From their ranks came a rough-and-tumble group of explorers known asthe mountain men.


Life of a Mountain ManThe mountain man lived a tough, lone-

ly life. Aside from the clothes on his back,he traveled with little more than a “pos-sibles sack.” Inside this small leatherpouch, a mountain man carried all hemight possibly need—an awl for stitchingleather, a mold for making lead musketballs, and a surgeon’s lance for diggingout bullets.

During the spring trapping season, amountain man might haul 6 to 8 heavyiron traps on his back. To set the traps, hewaded into bone-chilling streams. Whengame was in short supply, he went to bedhungry. One band of trappers ate nothingbut roots for 10 days. Mountain menlearned many of their trapping skills andsurvival methods from Native Americans,especially from the Native Americanwomen they married.

In the summer, trappers’ spirits soaredas they headed to a meeting place calledthe rendezvous (RAHN•dih•VOO). Theymet traders from Missouri who boughttheir furs and charged high sums ofmoney for supplies. But most trappersshrugged off the high prices. They justwanted to have a good time. “These men

are chock full of brag and fight,” chuckledmountain man Joe Meek.

Because mountain streams frozebetween October and March, trappersgathered in winter camps of up to 60 men.During the day they hunted. In theevening, they huddled around fires inbuffalo-hide lodges “spinning long yarns[tales] until midnight. . . .”

Blazing a Path for OthersThe epic journeys of the mountain men

opened the door for settlement of the West.An African American mountain man,James Beckwourth, discovered a pass, oropening, through the Sierra Nevada moun-tains into California. Jim Bridger firststrode across the Great Divide—the namegiven to the Rocky Mountains. JedediahSmith brought back colorful accounts ofthe geysers and boiling springs of what isnow Yellowstone National Park. ManuelLisa, a Spanish American trapper, led a tripup the Missouri River in 1807. He foundedFort Manuel, the first outpost on the upperMissouri River.

“To explore unknown regions was . . .[their] chief delight,” wrote a clerk inone fur-trading company. By exploringunknown regions, the mountain mensurveyed paths for the pioneers whowould soon follow.

End of an EraThe mountain men recognized changes

were coming when covered wagonsbegan showing up in their camps. In 1836two missionary couples—Marcus andNarcissa Whitman and Henry and ElizaSpalding—arrived at the annual ren-dezvous. Narcissa and Eliza became thefirst non-Native American women tocross the Rocky Mountains.

The two couples came to set up mis-sions among the Cayuses. The Whitmanschose to build their settlement at a sitewhere the Snake and Columbia Rivers

� THE WHITE TRAPPER by Frederic RemingtonMountain men depended on trapping and thefur trade in order to survive. Where did trap-pers meet to sell their furs and buy supplies?

History

A R TAND


meet. In letters to friends and family, theWhitmans encouraged others to emigrate,or move, to Oregon.

Troubles with Native Americans,though, cost the Whitmans their lives. In1847 measles spread to Cayuse children atthe mission. The epidemic claimed the livesof both non-Native American and Cayusechildren. The Cayuses blamed the intrudersfor the disease. They attacked and killed theWhitmans and 12 others. News of the Whit-mans’ deaths, however, did not stop settlersfrom pouring into the region.

As settlers arrived, a change in fashionended a way of life for the mountain men.In the late 1830s and 1840s, peoplestopped wearing beaver hats. Within afew years the mountain men found them-selves out of work. Some turned to farm-ing in the rich valleys of the PacificNorthwest. Others became guides forwagon trains. The route they knew best—the Oregon Trail—soon became a majorhighway across the continent. The OregonTrail extended from Independence, Mis-souri, to the Columbia River in Oregon.

★ Oregon FeverEmigrants only trickled into Oregon

until reports made their way back east andstories grew into tall tales. One rumorclaimed that pigs “roamed about pre-cooked . . . [for] anyone who might behungry.” Other rumors described turnips5 feet in diameter and wheat 6 feet tall.Stories like these sparked an outbreak of“Oregon fever.” Between 1840 and 1860,more than 60,000 people traveled the Ore-gon Trail. Even today, the ruts carved bytheir wagons scar parts of the Great Plains.

Traveling the Oregon TrailThe journey west began at jumping-off

places like Independence, Missouri. Herefamilies stocked their lightweight coveredwagons, known as prairie schooners, andhitched them to teams of oxen. Several

families then formed a wagon train. Eachwagon train elected a leader to make deci-sions on the trail.

Most wagon trains left Independence inMay. By then, enough spring grass coveredthe plains to feed the oxen. The emigrantshad five months to cross the Rockies. Ifthey arrived later, they might freeze todeath in blinding blizzards.

Once on the trail, the wagons rolled eachday at dawn. As the oxen crawled along at2 miles an hour, the leader cried out,“Catch up! Catch up!” Near dusk the menbegan scouting for water and grass. Whenthey found both, they drew the wagonsinto a circle. While the livestock grazedand the men stood guard, the women friedbacon and baked biscuits over fires fueledwith buffalo chips (dried manure).

When the wagons hit deep rivers orsteep mountains, families had to lightentheir loads. So they dumped barrels,ploughs, clothing, trunks, spades, andanything else that slowed them down.Other emigrants helped themselves tothe discards. One man “camped besidean old stove and baked some bread.”Others picked up books, read them, and

� PRAIRIE SCHOONERS Traveling west was longand difficult. Families in wagon trains relied oneach other to survive the journey. Why didwagon trains leave Independence, Missouri,in May?

istoryPicturingH


tossed them back on the ground, into the“prairie library.”

The travelers helped one another byusing the “roadside telegraph,” messagesleft on boards, rocks, tree trunks, andeven animal skulls beside the trail. Manyemigrants owed their lives to these warn-ings about dead-end shortcuts or poisonwater holes.

Hardships and HeartachesHundreds of travelers never reached

Oregon. Some turned back or settled on theplains. Many died of diseases such ascholera and smallpox. Still others drownedin swollen rivers or died in accidents.Graves and the carcasses of dead animalslined the trail. Wrote one weary traveler:

It is a hardship withoutglory, to be sick without ahome, to die and be buried like a dog on the Plains.

Native AmericansFor the most part, Native Americans

traded with the travelers and tried to lessentheir misery. Native Americans providedtravelers with horses, clothing, and freshfood. Some Native Americans fed hungrywagon trains or guided them over difficultstretches along the trail. Settlers had beenled to believe that Native American groupsposed a threat to those crossing the plains.In reality, there were few incidents of vio-lence between wagon trains and Native

”“

Lake Erie

PACIFICOCEAN

Great SaltLake

Gulf of Mexico

Columbia R.

Platte R.

SnakeR.

Color

ado R.

Missouri R.

Arkansas R.

Red R.

Mississippi R. Lake

Mic

higa

n

Lake Huron

BRITISH NORTH AMERICA

MEXICO

Portland

SacramentoSan

Francisco

Los Angeles

Denver

Santa Fe

ElPaso

Tucson

Council Bluffs

St. JosephIndependence

SaltLake City

St. Louis

Nauvoo

Fort Smith

CIMARRON

CUTOFF

Ft. Walla Walla

Ft. Boise

OLD SPANISH TRAIL

Ft. Bridger

Bent’s Fort

Ft. Laramie

Ft. Kearney

OREGONTRAIL

PONY EXPRESS

CALIF

ORNIA

TRAIL MORMON TRAIL

SANTA FE TRAIL

BUTTERFIELD OVERLAND MAIL

ROCKYM

OUNTAINS

SIERRANEVADA

CASC

ADE

RANG

E

DonnerPass

SouthPass

85° W105° W110° W115° W120° W125° W 90° W95° W100° W

45° N 50° N

40° N

35° N

30° N

25° N

Rio Grande

Lake Superior

Georgia

KentuckyMissouri

Miss.Alabama

Texas

Arkansas

Wis.

OhioIll.

Louisiana

Tennessee

Ind.

Iowa

UnorganizedTerr.

OregonTerr.

WashingtonTerr.

UtahTerr.

New MexicoTerritory

MinnesotaTerr. Michigan

California

Continental Divide

Passes

Forts0 400 miles200

400 kilometers2000

Trails West

Movement By the late 1840s, large amounts of new territory came under American control.Soon after, thousands of Americans moved to settle this land. What major mountainrange did travelers to the Pacific Coast have to cross?


Americans. But eventually relationssoured. Conflicts developed in the 1850s.Until then diseases such as cholera provedfar more dangerous to settlers.

Governing OregonDespite peaceful relations with the

British, American settlers wanted to annex,or add, Oregon to the United States. Manyother Americans felt the same way. In Congress Tennessee representative DavyCrockett compared joint occupancy—sharedownership—to the time he shared a treebranch with a panther. “The place war [was]big enough for us both,” said Crockett, “butwe couldn’t agree to stay there together.”

★ Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!

James K. Polk agreed with Americanswho wanted to annex Oregon. As a presi-dential candidate in 1844, Polk declaredthat all of Oregon should belong to theUnited States. This was dramatized by thecampaign slogan “Fifty-four forty or fight!”This meant he demanded that the UnitedStates expand its territory to the parallel54°40’, the southern boundary of Alaska.

Polk won the election by a slim marginand began negotiations with Great Britain.

In 1848 the two nations decided to extendthe boundary between Canada and theUnited States to the forty-ninth parallel.This line already formed much of the Unit-ed States-Canadian border.

Oregon became a territory in 1848 and astate in 1859. The transfer of territoryoccurred without bloodshed. The acquisi-tion of Texas, though, would not be aspeaceful.

Checking for Understanding1. Define rendezvous, pass, emigrate, prairie

schooner, annex.2. How did Great Britain and the United States

come to share Oregon jointly?3. What hardships did emigrants face on the

Oregon Trail?

Critical Thinking4. Determining Cause and Effect Re-create the

chart shown here to explain why mountain

men journeyed west and to describe whateffect these mountain men had on later migration.

� JAMES K. POLK

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ SECTION 1 ASSESSMENT ★

INTERDISCIPLINARY ACTIVITY

5. Geography Create an enlarged version of the map on page 448. Then add illustra-tions that show in pictures the story of the Oregon Trail.

Cause Effect

450

Analyzing a Primary Source

How do historians figure out what hap-pened in the past? They do some detectivework. They comb through bits of evidencefrom the past to reconstruct events. Thesebits of historical evidence—both writtenand illustrated—are called primary sources.

Learning the SkillPrimary sources are records of events by

the people who witnessed them. They includeletters, diaries, photographs and pictures,news articles, legal documents, and so on.

A primary source reflects only one per-spective on the past. For this reason, a histo-rian must examine as many perspectives aspossible before drawing any conclusionsabout the past.

The primary source on this page comesfrom the diary of a woman who traveled theOregon Trail in 1853.

Practicing the SkillRead the document and answer thequestions that follow.

“Tuesday, May 17th We had a dreadfulstorm of rain and hail last night andvery sharp lightning. It killed two oxenfor one man. We have just encamped ona large flat prairie, when the storm com-menced in all its fury. . . . I never sawsuch a storm. The wind was so high Ithought it would tear the wagons topieces. Nothing but the stoutest coverscould stand it. The rain beat into thewagons so that everything was wet. Aswe could have no tents pitched, all hadto crowd into the wagons and sleep inwet beds with their wet clothes on,without supper. The wind blew hard allnight and this morning presents a drea-ry prospect surrounded by water, andour saddles have been soaking in it allnight and are almost spoiled! . . .”

—Amelia Stewart Knight

1. Who wrote this document?

2. What event does the author describe?

3. What happened to the people andtheir equipment?

4. From this account, explain whyweather was so important to pioneersmoving west.

450

APPLYING THE SKILL5. Find a primary source from your past—

a photo, a report card, an old newspa-per clipping, your first baseball card,and so on. Bring this source to classand explain what it shows about thetime from which the item comes.

� SPIRIT OF THE FRONTIER BY JOHN GAST, 1872

Study and Writing SkillsBUILDING SKILLSBUILDING SKILLS

Glencoe’s Skillbuilder InteractiveWorkbook, Level 1 provides in-struction and practice in key socialstudies skills.

Texas Independence★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★


SECTION 2

GUIDE TO READING

Soon people all over the United Stateslearned about the desperate situation atthe Alamo. The road to the Alamo startedin the 1820s with the arrival of the firstUnited States settlers in a Spanish-ownedcolony called Texas.

★ Colonizing TexasIn 1820 Texas included a handful of

Americans and about 3,000 Tejanos.Tejanos are people of Mexican heritage whoconsider Texas their home. Most of theregion belonged to Native Americans—

ADVERTISEMENT FOR

TEXAS SETTLERS

�

Reading StrategySequencing Information As you read aboutthe establishment of Texas, create a time linelike the one shown here, and use it to list keyevents in Texans’ drive for independence. Usethe dates provided as a guide.

Read to Learn . . .★ how conflict developed between

Mexico and settlers in Texas.★ how Texas won its independence

from Mexico.

Terms to Know★ Tejanos★ empresario★ reform

Main IdeaLarge numbers of Americans settledin the Mexican territory of Texas.They eventually fought for and wonindependence from Mexico.

1830 March 1836 May 1836

April 18361835

Mexican cannons boomed outsidethe Alamo’s walls. Colonel William Travisput his face in his hands and tried tothink. His co-commander, Jim Bowie, laysick with pneumonia. His small forcewould not hold out for long. Travis pickedup a quill pen and wrote a plea for help.

To the people of Texas & allAmericans in the world. . . .I call on you in the name of liberty, of patriotism &everything dear to theAmerican character, to come to our aid. . . . ”

“


Comanche, Apache, and others—whofiercely resisted colonial settlement. Span-ish officials believed they might lose controlof Texas unless they lured more settlers intothe territory.

The First Texas EmpresariosIn the early 1800s, the Spaniards decid-

ed to offer large tracts of land to empre-sarios—people who agreed to recruitsettlers. News of the offer caught theattention of Missouri businessman MosesAustin. In 1821 Austin convinced theSpanish government to give him a hugetract of land along the Brazos River. Inexchange, Austin promised to bring 300families to his colony.

Moses Austin died before he couldorganize his colony. His son, Stephen F.Austin, carried out his plans. In 1821 heestablished the first settlements along theBrazos and Colorado Rivers. About thissame time, Mexico won its independencefrom Spain. Mexico soon issued new landgrants to Austin and extended the bound-aries of his colony.

American Colonists in TexasThe Mexican government granted each

settler in Texas large tracts of land. Inexchange, the colonists promised tobecome citizens of Mexico, obey Mexico’slaws, and accept the Roman Catholicfaith.

Austin chose the first group of settlerscarefully. He frowned on lying, using foullanguage, or drinking alcohol. He wantedonly “civilized and industrious” settlersfor his new colony. Austin issued landtitles to almost 300 families. These hand-picked pioneers later became known asthe Old Three Hundred.

Although other empresarios foundedother colonies, Austin’s settlement provedthe most successful. By 1831, about 5,665people lived in his colony.

Growing ConflictsThe Mexican government used the

empresario system to ensure loyalty.Meanwhile thousands of United Statessettlers moved into Texas without Mexi-co’s permission. Unlike Austin‘s colonists,they never promised to uphold Mexican

Footnotes to HistoryFather of Texas Stephen F. Austin earned the name “Father of Texas” becauseof his leadership in populating the Mexican Territory of Texas. By doing this,Austin fulfilled his father’s dying request to colonize Texas. After Texas won itsindependence, Austin lost the presidential election to Sam Houston. Houstonappointed him secretary of state.

� STEPHEN F. AUSTIN


laws or accept the Roman Catholic faith.Instead, they wanted to keep their ownculture, or ways of living.

Even the Old Three Hundred had scat-tered clashes with the government.Colonists on the Brazos were using slavesto grow cotton in 1829 when the Mexicangovernment prohibited slavery. The cot-ton growers protested so vigorously thatthe government decided to permit slaveryin Texas, at least temporarily. Slavehold-ers balked at the idea that the governmentmight deprive them of their human“property.”

Settlers from the United States alsohad quarrels with the form of govern-ment in Mexico. They wanted to have thesame voice in government that they hadenjoyed in the United States. Mexicanofficials, however, insisted on tight polit-ical control.

Mexican FearsBy 1830 more than five times as many

Anglos, or United States settlers, lived inTexas as Tejanos. Manuel Mier y Teran, aMexican general assigned to Texas,warned:

The North Americans have conquered whatever territory adjoins them. Inless than a half century, theyhave become masters ofextensive colonies whichformerly belonged to Spainand France and of . . . territories from which have disappeared the former owners, the Indian tribes.

Mexican officials heeded the warning.In 1830 the Mexican Congress banned fur-ther Anglo immigration. It also orderedconstruction of five new army posts inTexas to enforce Mexican laws.

These actions brought furious protestsfrom Anglo settlers. Many people talkedabout defending their rights. A few even

talked of splitting Texas off from the Mex-ican state to which it belonged.

In 1833 Stephen F. Austin traveled toMexico City with a petition. The petitionlisted reforms, or improvements, de-manded by both Anglos and Tejanos. Thereforms included repeal of the ban againstimmigration and creation of a separateTexas state.

★ The Fight for Independence

Austin waited for months to present hispetition to General Antonio López deSanta Anna, the new head of the Mexicangovernment. When they finally met, SantaAnna insisted that Texas remain part ofMexico. Austin wrote a letter urging Tex-ans to go ahead with statehood. When theletter fell into government hands, SantaAnna threw Austin in prison.

Austin secured his release eight monthslater. By this time, Santa Anna had sus-pended the Mexican constitution andassumed the powers of a dictator. ManyTexans believed the time had come tobreak away from Mexico.

“Come and Take It”News of unrest in Texas reached Santa

Anna. In October 1835, he ordered sol-diers to seize a cannon at the Texas town

”

“

Texas Republic, 1839For its first six years,this Lone Star flagsymbolized the inde-pendent nation of

the Republic of Texas. Texans kept theLone Star banner as their official stateflag after joining the Union in 1845.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

AMERICA’S FLAGS★★★ ★★★


of Gonzales. When Mexican troopsarrived, they faced dozens of Texas volun-teers. Over the cannon, the Texans haddefiantly hung a flag that read “Come andTake It.”

After a brief skirmish, the soldiers leftwithout the cannon. Today many Texansconsider the fight at Gonzales “the Lex-ington of Texas,” or the first battle in theTexas war for independence.

Santa Anna did not intend to surren-der Texas without a fight. He soonordered Mexican troops to occupy theTexas town of San Antonio. In earlyDecember hundreds of Texas volunteersattacked the city. After five days theydrove out the Mexicans. The Texas Revo-lution had begun.

Defense of the AlamoOn March 2, 1836, Texans met at Wash-

ington-on-the-Brazos. At this meeting,they announced the creation of theRepublic of Texas. They placed SamHouston, a former governor of Tennessee,in command of the army.

Meanwhile, in San Antonio, less than200 Texas soldiers took cover in anddefended an empty mission called theAlamo. The defenders, both Anglos andTejanos, included William Travis, JimBowie, and Davy Crockett.

For 12 days Santa Anna’s forces shelledthe mission. Defenders inside the Alamoheld out against overwhelming odds.Finally, on March 6, Santa Anna orderedan all-out attack. The first wave of Mexi-can soldiers faced the long rifles of DavyCrockett and his Tennessee sharpshooters.These riflemen picked off soldiers 200yards (183 m) away. For every Mexicansoldier that fell, however, another movedforward.

Mexican troops swarmed over thewalls of the Alamo. The defenders foughton in furious hand-to-hand combat. Abullet killed Travis. Bowie died fightingfrom his sickbed. Mexican soldiers cap-tured and executed Crockett. By 9 A.M.,all the Alamo defenders had died. Only ahandful of women, children, and slavessurvived.

The Goliad MassacreThe fight at the Alamo angered and

inspired Texans. To learn firsthand aboutthe Alamo, Sam Houston met with Susan-na Dickinson, one of the survivors, inGonzales. After hearing Dickinson’saccount of the final battle, Houstonvowed to prevent other Alamos. He sentword to James Fannin, the commander inGoliad, to abandon the fort there.

Fannin waited several days before obey-ing the order. When he finally led troopsfrom the town, they ran into a Mexican

� THE BATTLE OF THE ALAMO Outnumbered bythe Mexican army, the Texans fought heroicallyto defend the Alamo. Where is the Alamolocated?

istoryPicturingH


army on the Texas prairie. After a shortfight, Fannin surrendered his force. A weeklater, the Mexicans began to execute theprisoners. Many escaped, including Fan-nin, but some 350 others fell before Mexicanfiring squads.

The Battle of San JacintoNews of events at the Alamo and Goli-

ad spread like wildfire among Texans.About 1,400 volunteers rushed to joinSam Houston, who did not strike imme-diately. He took time to build an army.

He also stayed informed of the move-ments of the Mexican army with the helpof two spies—Deaf Smith and Smith’sAfrican American son-in-law HendrickArnold.

In April 1836, Sam Houston decided tostrike. He moved his troops onto theprairie just west of the San Jacinto River.On April 21, the Mexican soldiers settleddown for an afternoon siesta, or nap. Atthat moment, Houston ordered the attack.Texas volunteers raced into battle, scream-ing “Remember the Alamo” and “Remem-ber Goliad.”

Republic of Texas

Boundary claimed

by Mexico

Unorganized TerritoryArk.

La.

Gulf of Mexico

Brazos River

San Antonio

Colorado River

Red R.

HOUSTON1836

Béxar,Dec. 10, 1835

Goliad,March 20, 1836

San Patricio,Feb. 27, 1836

Refugio,March 14,

1836

San Jacinto,April 21, 1836

Gonzales,Oct. 2, 1835

Alamo,March 6, 1836

URREA

1836

Washington-on-the-Brazos

San Antonio

Brazoria

32° N

34° N

30° N

28° N

100° W 98° W 96° W 94° W

UNITED STATES

SANT

AAN

NA18

36

Nueces R.

RioGrande

Boundary claimed by Texas

MEXICO

Mexican forces

Mexican victory

Texan forcesTexan victoryAustin’s colony

0 100 miles50

100 kilometers500

Territory disputedbetween Texasand Mexico

Texas War for Independence,1835–1836

Location In 1836 General Santa Anna ledMexico’s main forces across the RioGrande and into Texas. At which placesdid Texans win victories?

� SAM HOUSTON


Biography ★★★★

Juan Seguin, A Texas HeroJuan Seguin grew up on his family’s

ranch along the San Antonio River. He dis-liked the arrogant Santa Anna. Like manyTejanos, Seguin believed Santa Anna woulduse the army to crush all opposition.

Seguin became one of the first volun-teers to join the Texas Revolution. Hecommanded a company of Tejanos in SanAntonio. He and eight members of hiscompany fought at the Alamo. Seguinrisked his life to slip through Mexicanlines to find reinforcements. When he

returned on March 6, he saw the Alamoin flames.

At the Battle of San Jacinto, Houstonwas not sure the Tejanos should partici-pate. He feared Anglos might mistakethem for the enemy. Seguin and his fol-lowers refused such protection, declaringthat they had joined the army and wantedto face the enemy. Houston admired thecourage of Seguin and the Tejanos andchanged his mind.

The battle of San Jacinto lasted only 18minutes. It became the most intense battleof the Texas Revolution. More than 600Mexican soldiers died. Hundreds morewere wounded or captured. Mexican sol-diers shot two horses from under Hous-ton before a musket ball finally shatteredhis ankle. When the battle ended, onlynine Texans had died.

Santa Anna had disappeared duringthe fighting. The next day Texas soldiersfound him hiding in tall grass and tookhim prisoner. ★★★

The Republic of TexasThe war had ended. On May 14 Texans

forced Santa Anna to sign a peace treaty.He also signed a secret treaty promisingto support Texas independence. In Sep-tember 1836, Texans elected Sam Hous-ton president of the new independentnation—the Republic of Texas.

Checking for Understanding1. Define Tejanos, empresario, reform.2. How did the Mexican government attempt

to control United States settlers in Texas?

Critical Thinking3. Making Predictions How do you think peo-

ple in the United States responded to newsof Texas’s independence?

4. Determining Causes Re-create the diagramshown here, and list the causes of the tensions

between settlers and the Mexican govern-ment that led to the Texas Revolution.

� JUAN SEGUIN


INTERDISCIPLINARY ACTIVITY5. The Arts Imagine you are Stephen F.

Austin. Draw an advertisement that would attract American colonists to Texas.

Cause Effect

Texas Revolution

War With Mexico★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ ★★★★★★★


SECTION 3

GUIDE TO READING

� OIL LAMP, 1840S

The United States officially recognizedthe Republic of Texas as an independentnation in 1837. However, Congress didnot immediately annex it. Because manypeople in the northern United Statesopposed entry of another slave state intothe Union, Texas continued to exist as anindependent country.

Peace between Texas and Mexicoremained uneasy from the start. Mexiconever recognized Texas’s independence.The two governments quarreled over bor-ders and territory. Twice in 1842 Mexicantroops seized San Antonio. Texansresponded by marching to Laredo, a bor-der town on the Rio Grande, and then into

Mexico. Tensions increased when Texaspassed a resolution claiming land all theway to present-day California. A show-down seemed inevitable.

★ From Sea to Shining SeaPeople in the United States who

favored expansion watched events inTexas intently. Texas already had signedseveral agreements with Great Britain. IfTexas went to war with Mexico, it mightform an alliance with the British. WithBritish help, Texas could expand its reachall the way to the Pacific.

Reading StrategyOrganizing Information As you read aboutthe war with Mexico, use a diagram like the one shown here to list the causes ofthe conflict.

Read to Learn . . .★ how the Mexican War

began and why some Americans opposed the war.

★ how the United States obtained New Mexico and California.

Terms to Know★ Bear Flag Republic★ cede

Main IdeaThe United States won new westernlands in a war with Mexico.

Causes ofMexican War


By the mid-1840s, a group of Americanswanted to see the United States claim thathonor for itself. They believed the nationhad a “manifest destiny.” Manifest meansclear or obvious. Destiny means some-thing that is sure to happen. Some Ameri-cans thought the nation was obviouslymeant to expand and spread across thecontinent. They gave little thought to theNative Americans and Mexicans whowould lose their lands in the process.

Annexation of TexasAfter gaining independence from Mexi-

co, Texans immediately voted to seekadmission to the United States. Most South-erners strongly supported extending thecotton-growing area by annexing Texas.Northern abolitionists, however, opposedadding another slave state to the Union.

Presidents Andrew Jackson and MartinVan Buren had refused to recommendannexation. The issue soon arose again.As the 1844 election approached, territori-al expansion took center stage. TheDemocrats nominated James K. Polk ofTennessee as their presidential candidate.As you read earlier in the chapter, Polkcampaigned with the slogan “Fifty-fourforty or fight!” and made manifest destinythe main issue in the campaign.

Polk won in a close election. OutgoingPresident John Tyler considered Polk’svictory a mandate for the annexation ofTexas. In February 1845, at Tyler’s urgingboth houses of Congress passed a jointresolution to annex Texas. In December1845, Texas became the twenty-eighthstate to enter the Union; however, someproblems still had to be resolved. Theboundary between Texas and Mexicoremained undetermined, and the Mexicangovernment threatened war.

President Polk responded by sendingagent John Slidell to resolve differences.Polk instructed Slidell to convince Mexicoto accept the Rio Grande as the southernborder of Texas. He also told Slidell to

offer Mexico $25 million for Californiaand $5 million for New Mexico.

Mexican officials exploded in outrage.They considered such a low sum ofmoney an insult and refused to evenspeak with Slidell.

★ The Brink of WarPresident Polk wanted to move against

Mexico. He knew most Americans backedexpansion but was not sure they wouldback it to the point of war.

Polk decided to press the question bysending troops into Texas. Soldiers underthe command of General Zachary Taylorcrossed the Nueces (nu•AY•suhs) Riverand set up posts just north of the RioGrande. Although Texas claimed this asits southern boundary, Mexico consid-ered it Mexican territory. Colonel EthanAllen Hitchcock, one of Taylor’s aides,observed:

We have not one particle ofright to be here. . . . It looksas if the government sent asmall force on purpose tobring on a war, so as to havea pretext for taking Califor-nia and as much of this country as it chooses.

In April 1846, Mexican soldiersattacked a United States cavalry patroland killed 11 Americans. Taylor quicklynotified Polk. On May 9 President Polkannounced that “Mexico has . . . shedAmerican blood on American soil.” Hethen asked Congress for an official decla-ration of war. On May 13 both houses ofCongress voted by a large majority todeclare war on Mexico.

Opposition to the WarFourteen antislavery representatives in

the House voted against the war. Ohiorepresentative Joshua Giddings called the

”

“


war “aggressive, unholy, and unjust.” Illi-nois representative Abraham Lincolnchallenged Polk to name the spot whereMexicans “shed American blood onAmerican soil.”

People outside of Congress also criti-cized “Mr. Polk’s War.” New Englandpoet John Greenleaf Whittier wrote, “[Iam] heartsick with this miserably wickedMexican War.” Abolitionists consideredthe war a Southern plot to add more slavestates to the Union. They called it ascheme to steal “bigger pens to cram in

slaves.” Most American newspapers,though, rallied behind the President.

Major BattlesEven before Congress declared war,

General Taylor’s soldiers fought north ofthe Rio Grande at Palo Alto and Resaca dela Palma. In May of 1846, Taylor and hisarmy crossed the Rio Grande into Mexico.By September they captured Monterrey.

In late 1846 Santa Anna rallied hisforces. He personally led an army

SanAntonio

SanFrancisco

LosAngeles

San Diego

Mazatlán

Veracruz

Ft.Leavenworth

CorpusChristi

ROCKY MOUNTAINS

FRÉM

ONT

STOCKTON

SLOAT

SLOAT

KEARNY

WOOL

DONI

PHAN

TAYLOR

SCOTTSANTAANNA

SANTAANNA

UNITEDSTATES

MEXICO

OregonTerritory

Texas

UnorganizedTerritory

Gulf ofMexico

PACIFICOCEAN

Arkansas R.

120° W 110° W 100° W

30° N

40° N

20° N

Bear Flag Revolt(June 1846)

Monterey(July 1846)

San Gabriel (Jan. 1847)

San Pasqual (Dec. 1846)Santa Fe

(Aug. 1846)

El Brazito(Dec. 1846)

Valverde(Dec. 1846)

Sacramento(Feb. 1847)

Monterrey(Sept. 1846)

Mexico City(Sept. 1847)

Buena Vista(Feb. 1847)

Matamoros(May 1846)

Tampico(Nov. 1846)

Cerro Gordo(April 1847)

Missouri R.

KEARNY

SCOTT

SCOTT

Rio Grande

Colorad

o R.

American troopsAmerican victoryMexican troopsMexican victory

U.S. naval blockadeDisputed area

0

0 400 miles200

400 kilometers200

The Mexican War, 1846–1848

Location War between the United States and Mexicobroke out in 1846 near the Rio Grande. The fighting soonspread over a wide area. Which battle occurredfarthest north?

� ANTONIO LÓPEZ

DE SANTA ANNA


against Taylor. In February 1847, howev-er, Taylor regained the upper hand afterdefeating Santa Anna at the Battle ofBuena Vista.

As armies clashed in Mexico, GeneralWinfield Scott landed troops on theGulf Coast near Veracruz. Scott’s armywon victory after victory as it marchedwest. In September 1847, after Mexicansmade a heroic last stand at Chapultepec(chuh•POOL•tuh•PEHK), Scott tookover Mexico City.

The Bear Flag RepublicSoon after the war began, General

Stephen Kearny marched his army toSanta Fe, the capital of present-day NewMexico. The Mexican governor, along

with Mexican troops, fled without firing ashot. From Santa Fe, Kearny led about 300soldiers to California.

In 1846 some 500 Americans lived inCalifornia. Captain John C. Frémont, anAmerican army officer and explorer,urged Americans to revolt against theirMexican rulers. In the summer of 1846,rebels hoisted a handmade flag embla-zoned with a grizzly bear. With this act,they announced the creation of the inde-pendent Bear Flag Republic.

When General Kearny arrived, therebels replaced the Bear Flag with theStars and Stripes. Frémont joined UnitedStates forces in fighting the Mexican War.In January 1847, Mexicans in Californiasurrendered, and the United States tookpossession of the territory.

ATLANTICOCEAN

PACIFICOCEAN

Gulf of Mexico

CANADA

MEXICO

OregonTerritory

1846

LouisianaPurchase

1803Mexican Cession

1848UnitedStates1783

FloridaCession

1819

GadsdenPurchase

1853

TexasAnnexation

1845

1810 1812Annexed by U.S.

Ceded by U.S.1818

Ceded bySpain 1819

Ceded byGreat Britain

1818 Ceded by Great BritainWebster-Ashburton Treaty 1842

70° W100° W 80° W90° W120° W 110° W50° N

40° N

30° NMis

siss

ippi

Rive

r

Rio Grande2000 400 miles

2000 400 kilometers

The United States, 1853

Location By 1853 the continental United States had reached its present nationalboundaries. How many complete states were later carved from the Oregon Territory?


Making PeaceOn February 2, 1848, the Mexicans

signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidal-go. Under its terms, Mexico ceded, orgave up, all of California and New Mex-ico. This territory has since becomeknown as the Mexican Cession. Itincluded the present-day states of Cali-fornia, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Ari-zona, Colorado, Wyoming, and NewMexico. The United States agreed to pay$15 million for these lands and agreed topay the claims of American citizensagainst Mexico up to $3.25 million. Mex-ico agreed to recognize Texas as part ofthe United States. The Mexican govern-ment also accepted the Rio Grande as theborder between Texas and Mexico.

★ Gadsden PurchaseAmericans, however, wanted still more

territory claimed by Mexico. Railroadowners envisioned a southern route to thePacific that ran over a strip of land justsouth of the Gila River. To fulfill thisdream, James Gadsden, the minister toMexico, arranged to buy this land for $10million. The Gadsden Purchase complet-ed the boundary between Mexico and theUnited States and the expansion of theUnited States across the continent.

★ New CitizensThe acquisition of Mexican land brought

thousands of Mexican citizens into theUnited States. The Mexican governmentworried about the fate of these people. Toprotect their rights, Mexican negotiatorsinsisted that the Treaty of GuadalupeHidalgo include provisions allowing Mex-icans to freely relocate to Mexico. For Mex-icans who remained on their land, thetreaty promised them “all the rights of citi-zens of the United States according to theprinciples of the Constitution.”

A difficult choice faced Mexicans.About 2,000 people headed south intoMexico. A far larger number, however,chose to stay in the United States. Mexi-cans who remained in the United Statescontributed to a rich culture that blendedSpanish and Native American traditions.When English-speaking settlers moved tothe Southwest, they brought their ownideas and culture with them. The settlers,though, learned much from the MexicanAmericans. Mexican Americans taughtthe newcomers how to irrigate the soiland mine minerals.

Many settlers, however, did not treatMexican Americans and Native Ameri-cans fairly. These two groups struggled toprotect their cultures and rights againstthe newcomers.

Checking for Understanding1. Define Bear Flag Republic, cede.2. Who urged Americans living in present-day

California to revolt against Mexican rule?

Critical Thinking3. Analyzing Information Why do you think

the Texas voters approved annexation to theUnited States by a great majority?

4. Summarizing Re-create the diagram shownhere, and list the terms of the Treaty of

Guadalupe Hidalgo that ended the war withMexico.


INTERDISCIPLINARY ACTIVITY5. The Arts Imagine you were a Mexican

living in the Mexican Cession. Write diary entries about your feelings on the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Terms of Treaty of

Guadalupe Hidalgo

GUIDE TO READING

their possessions behind them in two-wheeled carts. They came to the desert forthe same reason countless settlers had firsttraveled to North America—for religiousfreedom.

A New ChurchThe settlers of Utah belonged to the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-daySaints. They referred to themselves as“Saints.” Most people, though, knewthem as Mormons.

The Mormons owed their origins toJoseph Smith, a farmer in upstate New

Spanning a Continent★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★


SECTION 4

Reading StrategyOrganizing Information As you read aboutthe continuing settlement of the West, use adiagram like the one shown here to describethe discrimination Chinese and NativeAmerican peoples faced in California.

Read to Learn . . .★ why the Mormons settled in what is

now Utah.★ how California’s population boomed

in 1849.

Terms to Know★ forty-niner★ prospector★ vigilante

Main IdeaAmericans continued moving westwardacross the continent throughout the earlyand mid-1800s.

Chinese

Example Example

Native American

Example Example

Discrimination in California

In July 1847, Brigham Young stood on ahill overlooking Utah’s Salt Lake Valley.According to legend, Young saw a visionof a great city. He turned to the peoplewho had followed him into the desert.“This is the right place!” Young declaredconfidently.

★ The MormonsYoung’s view of Salt Lake Valley

marked the end of a 1,300-mile (2,092-km)journey from Iowa. Young and his follow-ers had walked the entire distance, hauling

� GOLD RUSH TRAVEL ADVERTISEMENT


York. In the 1820s Smith had a visionthat convinced him to found a newChristian sect, or religious group.Smith’s faith and enthusiasm won con-verts. Several of his beliefs, however,won even more enemies.

Smith believed that property should beheld in common. He also supportedpolygamy, the idea that a man could havemore than one wife. This angered a largenumber of people in the 1800s. Mormonseventually gave up this practice.

Journey Into the DesertHarassed by neighbors suspicious of

their beliefs, the Mormons moved fromNew York to Ohio to Missouri and then

to Illinois. In 1844 a mob attacked andkilled Smith. His successor, BrighamYoung, decided to lead the Mormons toshelter in the Far West.

In 1847 about 150 Mormons began theirlong trek. Eventually more than 15,000people made the difficult journey, follow-ing Young to Utah Territory. Over the nextdecade, the Mormons built 1,043 miles(1,678 km) of canals and irrigated 154,000acres (62,370 ha) of formerly arid, or dry,land. In 1850 Congress recognized Youngas the governor of the Utah Territory. By1860 about 30,000 Mormons lived in SaltLake City and more than 90 other townsin present-day Utah. Utah eventuallyentered the Union in 1896 as the forty-fifthstate.

� JOSEPH SMITH

� MORMONS MOVE WEST Using handcarts, oxen, and wagons, the Mormonstraveled west across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains to the Utah Territoryin search of religious freedom. Who led the Mormons to Utah?istory

PicturingH


★ Rushing to CaliforniaAs the Mormons built houses in the

desert, Swiss immigrant John Sutterordered a crew of workers to build asawmill along the American River innorthern California. On January 24,1848, a golden glint in the river caughtthe eye of John Marshall, the supervisorof the job. Marshall reached into thewater and pulled out a lump of ore. Asingle word slipped through Marshall’slips: “Gold.”

Marshall tried to keep his discovery asecret, but word spread quickly to nearbytowns. The mayor of Monterey, California,described the reaction of townspeople:

[T]he farmers have thrown aside their plows,the lawyers their briefs, the doctors their pills, thepriests their prayerbooks,and all are now digging for gold.

Forty-Niners by the ShiploadThe gold seekers who stampeded into

California became known as the forty-niners for the year, 1849, in which manyof them came. Thousands of forty-ninerssailed to San Francisco from New York,Boston, and Galveston. Most traveledaround the southern tip of South America.Some more adventurous—or impatient—travelers sailed to the Isthmus of Panama.They climbed on mules and rode throughthe steamy jungle to reach the Pacificcoast. At the coast, they caught shipsbound for California.

The people who departed from theships in San Francisco came from nearlyevery corner of the earth. During the firsthalf of 1849, 5,000 miners arrived fromChile alone. Others came from as far awayas China.

Traveling OverlandBy far the greatest number of gold seek-

ers traveled to California on overlandtrails. Guided by former mountain men,many traveled over a southern spur of theOregon Trail, called the California Trail.Still others headed over the Mormon Trail.In 1849 alone, more than 80,000 peoplepoured across the continent.

★ Life in the Mining TownsWhen the forty-niners reached Califor-

nia, they threw up temporary townsovernight with names such as ShinbonePeak and You Bet. Most townspeople livedin tents. The lucky ones owned cabins, mostof which lacked windows or chimneys.

Some women staked claims, but moremade money by opening boardinghousesor laundries. One laundress along theFeather River earned $1,000 a week—-more money than some miners.

Mining towns had no police or pris-ons, so robbers posed a real threat tobusiness owners and miners, also called

”

“

� GOLD MINING Thousands of people went toCalifornia during the Gold Rush searching forgreat wealth. What term did people use forgold seekers in California?

istoryPicturingH


prospectors. Townspeople took law intotheir own hands, forming vigilance com-mittees. The committee members, or vig-ilantes, drove petty thieves out of townand hanged murderers. Such hasty jus-tice became known as vigilante justice—law without judge or jury.

★ Dreams of FreedomIn 1849 California delegates drafted a

constitution that prohibited slavery. Thenext year California entered the Union asa free state. Hoping to find riches andfreedom, a number of African Americansheaded west.

By 1852 more than 2,000 African Ameri-cans lived in California. Some struck it rich

in the mines. Others succeeded at businessenterprises. Biddy Mason, for example,worked as a nurse. She then invested hersavings in real estate until she built up afortune.

As a group, African Americans in Cali-fornia boasted savings of more than $2.3million by 1855. The shadow of prejudice,however, still produced huge inequalities. The California legislature denied AfricanAmericans the right to vote. Black laws

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

JeansOne of the most enduring

made-in-the-USA fashionscame out of the mining campsof California.

ThenOnly for Gold Miners

Levi Strauss listened as min-ers complained about how fasttheir clothes wore out. Strausshad an idea. He stitched up apair of pants made from a tougheasy-to-care-for fabric calleddenim. To make sure the pantswere extra tough, Strauss folded

the seams and reinforced thecorners with small copper tackscalled rivets. The pants did nottear when miners hung theirtools or bags of gold from theirbelts or pockets, and the darkblue color did not show dirt!Strauss had a fashion hit. In1873 his company began pro-ducing the first Levi’s.

NowA World Favorite

Today people call Levi’s by avariety of names—dungarees,denims, blue jeans, jeans, or bythe name of the designer whomakes them. Regardless of thename, miner’s pants are the topsportswear choice of peoplearound the world. Imaginestanding in a market in the mid-dle of Nairobi, Kenya, or Kath-mandu, Nepal. Your blue jeans

may be a hotter trading itemthan your American dollars.How many pairs of jeans do youown?

Linking Past and Present

� TEENAGERS IN JEANS

� EARLY LEVI PANTS AD

Student Web ActivityVisit the American History: The Early Years to 1877 Website at ey.glencoe.com and click on Chapter 14—Stu-dent Web Activities for an activity about the Gold Rush.

HISTORY

http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/ushistory/ahey2001/chapter14/webact.html


barred African Americans from testifyingin court and prohibited integrated schools.

Led by African American journalistssuch as San Francisco newspaper ownerMifflin Gibbs, African Americans forcedthe repeal of the black laws. But they didnot win the vote until passage of the Fif-teenth Amendment in 1870.

Freedom LostFor Native Americans, the migration of

thousands of settlers to California proveddisastrous. Prospectors forced NativeAmericans to work. Native Americanmen toiled in the mines while NativeAmerican women worked in households.Disease and forced labor reduced theNative American population in Califor-nia from about 150,000 in 1848 to 35,000by 1860.

The national government had createdthe Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1824. Thebureau attempted to reduce NativeAmerican land claims. In the 1850s thegovernment advocated confining NativeAmericans on reservations, or lands setaside for Native Americans. DespiteNative Americans’ fierce resistance tothis policy, by 1858 the bureau had creat-ed eight reservations in California.

The Search for the Gold MountainImmigrants from China also felt the

heavy hand of prejudice. Lured by tales of

the American’s Gam San, or “Gold Moun-tain,” hundreds of Chinese peasantspoured into California from 1849 to 1851.By 1852 their numbers had swelled intothe thousands.

The rising tide of immigration fromAsia alarmed the miners in the UnitedStates. In 1852 they convinced state law-makers to tax foreign-born miners whodid not plan to become citizens. Federallaw limited citizenship to whites, so Chi-nese miners had to pay the tax or quitmining. Under the law, the governmenttook a total of $5 million from the pocketsof Chinese prospectors.

Forced out of mining, the Chineseopened other businesses. Chinese laun-dries, restaurants, and boardinghousesbecame familiar sights in the miningtowns. In San Francisco these shops madeup a city within a city called Chinatown.

The End of the Gold RushAlthough the Gold Rush continued into

the 1850s, latecomers found little gold leftin rivers and streams. After a few years,large companies took over most of themining in California. Many forty-ninerssettled down as farmers, shopkeepers, orcity workers in towns like San Francisco.When the mines ran dry, smaller townswent bust and people moved on. Manytowns became abandoned ghost towns.

Checking for Understanding1. Define forty-niner, prospector, vigilante.2. How did the Gold Rush affect California?

Critical Thinking3. Making Comparisons How was the

establishment of a settlement in Utah in the 1840s similar to the founding of theMassachusetts Bay Colony in the 1620s?

4. Examining Issues Re-create the diagramshown here, and list the reasons why the Mormons settled in the deserts of Utah.


INTERDISCIPLINARY ACTIVITY5. The Arts Draw or create a scene of a

California mining town.

Reasons

The first non-Native Americans to see thesoaring giant sequoias of California couldscarcely believe their eyes. The trees seemedto have no crowns, or tops. Their cinnamon-colored trunks just climbed up, up, and up.

Equally impressive were the trees’ circum-ferences. Circumference is the measurementaround the tree’s base, or trunk. The trunks ofsome trees are more than 100 feet (30 m) indiameter. In 1858 cattle herder Hale Tharp setup a temporary home in a giant sequoia hol-lowed out by a fire.

Many of the giant sequoias living todayare several thousand years old. It is estimatedthat the General Sherman Tree, in SequoiaNational Park, is between 2,200 and 2,500years old. It is the world’s largest tree in vol-ume of wood. The tree is 275 feet (83.8 m) talland its base has a circumference of 103 feet(31.4 m).

One of the oldest and largest of the treeswas cut down before laws were passed toprotect them. Scientists have determined thatthis tree had been growing since 1305 B.C.—when ancient Egypt was at the height of itspower.

Giant sequoias grow only on the westernslopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains inCalifornia. These evergreen trees are verydurable. Scientists do not believe any haveever died from old age, disease, or insectattack. Their extremely thick bark protectsthem from injury by fire. Lightning hasdestroyed or damaged the tops of many ofthe trees.

Making the Science Connection1. What are the giant sequoias?

2. Where do they grow?

467

ACTIVITY3. The General Sherman Tree is the largest

plant on Earth. Create an illustratedchart to explain just how large it is to ayounger student. Illustrate the GeneralSherman on your chart, labeling itsheight and circumference. Then add pic-tures or illustrations of familiar thingsthat are about the same height or sizefor comparison. For example, you mightpicture two school buses, one on top ofthe other, to represent the circumferenceof the huge sequoia.

The Giant Sequoia

G E O G R A P H Y E C O N O M I C S M A T H T H E A R T S

HistoryAND

S C I E N C E

� GIANT SEQUOIA TREE

CHAPTER 14 ★ ASSESSMENT


Using Key VocabularyUse the listed words to complete the following

sentences.

annex cede emigrate

1. In the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexicoagreed to _________ California to the UnitedStates.

2. Many settlers used the Oregon Trail to_________ to the Far West.

3. President Polk wanted to _________ Texas tothe United States.

Reviewing Facts1. Describe the life of mountain men in the Ore-

gon Country.

2. What role did the idea of manifest destinyplay in the presidential election of 1844?

Understanding ConceptsBeliefs and Ideas1. Re-create the diagram shown here, and

explain what role slavery played in both theTexas Revolution and the War with Mexico.

2. What belief fueled Americans’ desire to pushacross the Mississippi?

3. What desire brought Brigham Young and hisfollowers to Utah’s Salt Lake Valley?

Individual and Family Life4. Why were many American settlers attracted to

the Oregon Country and California?

History and GeographyThe Oregon and California Trails

Study the routes of the western trails shown onthe map. Then answer the following questions.

1. Region Which mountains did settlers haveto cross to reach Oregon’s Pacific coast? Toreach California’s Pacific coast?

2. Movement How did the use of these trailshelp settle the plains as well as the West?

PACIFICOCEAN

GreatSalt Lake

Texas

California

Oregon Terr.

Utah Territory

New MexicoTerritory

UnorganizedTerritory

MinnesotaTerritory

SanFrancisco

Sacramento

Portland

Independence

SaltLake City

CALIFORNIA

TRAIL

ROCKYM

OUNTAINS

SIERRANEVADA

CASC

ADES

OREGON TRAIL

0 200 400 miles

400 kilometers2000

The Oregon and California Trails

Self-Check QuizVisit the American History: The Early Years to1877 Web site at ey.glencoe.com and click onChapter 14—Self-Check Quizzes to prepare forthe chapter test.

HISTORY

Texas Revolution Mexican-AmericanWar

Slavery

http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/ushistory/ahey2001/quiz.shtml?BOOK=002&CHAPTER=14&TITLE=Manifest+Destiny

CHAPTER 14 ★ ASSESSMENT

Critical Thinking1. Comparing and Contrasting In what sense

did the mountain men and missionaries of theearly 1800s play a similar role to that of theEuropean explorers of the 1500s?

2. Drawing Conclusions Why do you thinkforty-niners risked their lives and savings totravel to California and search for gold?

Interdisciplinary Activity:Geography

With three classmates, find out more aboutmountain men at the library. Choose a name for amountain man and select a route for him to followthrough the West. Then organize your group intotwo pairs. Have one pair write a diary in whichyour mountain man describes his experiences.Have the other pair make a poster-size, illustratedmap of the route your mountain man travels. (Fora twist, make one of the mountain men a woman.)

Practicing SkillsAnalyzing a Primary Source

The primary source on this page is part of a letter to Senator Henry Clay in 1837. Read thedocument and then answer the questions.

“. . . I proceed now to a consideration of whatis to me the strongest argument against annex-ing Texas to the United States. This measurewill extend and perpetuate slavery. . . .

By this act, slavery will be perpetuated in theold states as well as spread over new. It is wellknown that the soil of some of the old states hasbecome exhausted by slave cultivation. . . . Theynow adhere to slavery, not on account of thewealth which it extracts from the soil, butbecause it furnishes men and women to be soldin newly settled and more southern districts. Itis by slave breeding and slave selling that thesestates subsist. Take away from them a foreign

market, and slavery would die. . . . By annexingTexas, we shall not only create it where it doesnot exist, but breathe new life into it . . . .”

—Reverend William Ellery Channing

1. Who is the author of this letter?

2. What is the general topic of this letter?

3. Does the author support or reject the annexa-tion of Texas?

4. What is the author’s main reason for thisviewpoint?

5. According to this letter, why did the annexa-tion of Texas produce strong conflicts amongAmericans in the 1830s and 1840s?

Technology ActivityUsing the Internet

On the Internet, locate a map of the westerntrails of the early and mid-1800s. Make a print-out of what you locate. Then usethe Internet and other resources tofind out details about the trails.Create an infographic byincluding your informa-tion in a call-out formon the map.

Cooperative

Learning


Using Your JournalUse notes in your jour-nal to create a dialogue inwhich a Native Americanelder tells a grandchildabout the coming of thesettlers’ wagons.

History

WritingABOUT

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Cultural Kaleidoscope

IIn the early 1800s, Ameri-cans began to find new waysto relax and enjoy them-selves. Some popular sportsand games of today firstmade their appearance dur-ing this time. Of course,these sports looked muchdifferent then.

Sports andRecreation

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Batter Up!The game of baseball has been an Americanfavorite for many years. It developed from agame called “rounders” that New Englandcolonists played as early as the 1600s.Baseball as we know it today began with theKnickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York, formed in 1845. Thisbaseball (right) from 1839 is one of the first ever made. It is nowon display at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

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Strike?Americans everywhere took upbowling, a favorite sport of NewEnglanders since colonial days.

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From Bladderball to FootballColonists played the firstform of American footballby kicking around aninflated animal bladder. By themid-1800s, the game hadbecome much likesoccer, withteams of 30 ormore playerskicking a roundball across a goalline. Without kneepads or shin guards,players relied on padded pantsfor protection against injury.

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Gliding on Ice and WheelsIce skating tookon new life andgrace when E.W. Bushnell ofPhiladelphiamade the first all-steel ice skatesin 1850. His newskates made thesport more pop-ular and led tothe creation ofskating clubsthroughoutthe country.For warmerseasons,skaters could alsoenjoy roller skates.

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CHAPTER 14 Manifest Destiny - Davenport Schools 14 Manifest Destiny: 1820–1860 447 meet. In...

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Transcript of CHAPTER 14 Manifest Destiny - Davenport Schools 14 Manifest Destiny: 1820–1860 447 meet. In...