Chapter 14, Westward Expansion and War (1790-1860)

Earning Mexican IndependenceLed by Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla [me-GEL hee-DOLL-go e cos-

STEEL-ya], an army of Indians and mestizos [mess-TEA-sos] rebelledagainst New Spain in September 1810. Hidalgo and his follwers hopedthat independence would lead to better living conditions forthe poor. In addition, Father Hidalgo wanted to abolish slavery andend unfair taxes on Indians. It was not until 1821 that the peoplefinally defeated the Spanish and declared Mexico independent fromSpain.

After Mexican independence, Texas became part of the territory ofCoahuila [koh-ah-WEE-lah] y Texas. At that point, few people lived inTexas. In the late 1700s Comanche and Apache Indian attacks hadforced many Tejanos [tay-HAN-o], or Spanish settlers, to leave theregion.

Why did Mexico rebel against Spain?

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a) Father Miguel Hidalgo Y Costilla wanted to control the Mexican people and expel Spain.

b) Father Miguel Hidalgo Y Costilla wanted to gain independence and take over the United States.

c) Father Miguel Hidalgo Y Costilla wanted better living conditions for the poor, abolish slavery, and remove unfair taxes.

d) Father Miguel Hidalgo Y Costilla hoped to make profits off Mexican people.

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Mexican leaders worried that there were not enough Tejanos todefend the land. They hired empresarios, agents who agreed to bringsettlers to Texas. However, U.S. settlers in Texas often ignoredMexican laws. Mexican leaders began to worry that there were moreAmerican settlers living in Texas than Tejanos.

General Antonio López de Santa Anna, the new Mexican leader,sent soldiers to Texas to enforce the laws. Stephen F. Austin called onall Texans to fight against Mexico. The Texans took the town of SanAntonio, occupying the Alamo, an old Spanish mission. TheMexicans defeated them on March 6, 1836. Texas troops sufferedanother defeat at the Battle of Goliad.

Texas delegates had declared independence from Mexico during the attack of the Alamo. Sam Houston’s men attacked Mexican troops at their camp, defeating them at the Battle of San Jacinto [ha-sin-TOE] on April 21, 1836. Santa Anna was forced to recognize Texas’s independence.

After what battle was General Santa Anna forced to recognize Texas Independence?

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1. Battle of Goliad2. Battle of San Jacinto3. Battle of Bunker Hill4. Battle of New Orleans

The new nation was called the Republic of Texas. PresidentJackson had to decide whether to annex, or take control of, Texas.Jackson worried that annexing Texas as a slave state would upset thebalance of free and slave states. In 1837 Jackson decided to recognizeTexas as an independent nation.

Most of the first non-Indians who journeyed to the Rocky Mountainsand beyond were fur traders and trappers. They were known asmountain men. Once a year mountain men gathered at arendezvous, where they would socialize and sell their furs tocompany agents.

By the 1840s the demand for fur decreased as fashions changed.Over-trapping had also reduced the supply of beaver and otheranimals. Some mountain men began guiding farmers, miners, andranchers to the West.

Many settlers moving to the West followed the Oregon Trail. Thistrail stretched more than 2,000 miles across the northern Great Plainsand the Rocky Mountains and into Oregon Country. Life on the trailwas hard. The journey lasted six to eight months, and there wereoften shortages of food, water, and supplies.

Travelers faced harsh weather and sometimes found it difficult tocross rivers and mountains. At the end of the long day’s journey, menoften hunted, while women cooked and cared for the children.The Oregon Trail split after reaching the Snake River in present dayIdaho. Some settlers took the south route leading to California.This became known as the California Trail.

Settlers tried to not travel during the winter. The Donner party, agroup of families traveling west, got lost and were snowed in. Fortypeople died before the group was rescued in 1847.Despite the increased traffic along the California Trail, fewAmericans actually settled in California. The population thereincluded a small number of Californios, or Spanish colonists inCalifornia. However, the population remained primarily Mexicanand American Indian.

Why was Jackson worried about annexing Texas as a slave state?

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a) Jackson thought southerners would be angry.b) Jackson believed annexing Texas would start a war with

Spain.c) Jackson didn’t want to upset the balance between free and

slave states.d) Jackson wanted to add Texas as a free state.

What group of families traveling west go lost during the winter, resulting in the death of forty people until their rescue in 1847?

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33%1. The Donner Party

2. The Jackson Party

3. The Jefferson Party

4. The Santa Anna Party

In 1839 Swiss immigrant John Sutter started a colony in northernCalifornia. He built Sutter’s Fort near the Sacramento River. Thisbecame a popular destination for U.S. immigrants.After Mexico achieved its independence from Spain in 1821, U.S.merchants could enter New Mexico. These traders started the SantaFe Trail, which ran from Independence, Missouri, to Santa Fe, NewMexico. Americans traded cloth and other goods for Mexican horsesand silver.

By the 1840s many Americans believed in manifest destiny. This wasthe belief that the United States should expand across the continent tothe Pacific Ocean. Thus, many people began to move into Texas,Oregon, and California.

When President Polk took office in March 1845, Congress hadalready approved annexation of Texas. Texas voters approvedannexation in June. Texas became a U.S. state in December 1845.However, Mexico still claimed Texas. Mexico and the UnitedStates also disagreed on where Texas’s border was. Mexico cut off alldiplomatic relations with the United States. Mexican officials refusedto talk with U.S. diplomat John Slidell [SLY-dell]. After Mexicansoldiers killed 11 U.S. soldiers, Congress declared war on Mexico.General Taylor’s troops won battles as far south as Monterrey[mon-TA-rey], Mexico. General Kearney [KERR-nee] marched intoSanta Fe, New Mexico. He took the city without a fight.

Around the same time, a small group of Americans near Sutter’sFarm in northern California revolted against Mexican rule. Thisbecame known as the Bear Flag Revolt. Farther south, U.S. navalforces captured Los Angeles, California. In August 1846 the UnitedStates annexed California.

In Mexico General Taylor won another victory at Buena Vista.General Scott captured the port city of Veracruz, then moved towardMexico City. U.S. troops captured the Mexican capital on September14, 1847. The Mexican War was over.The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was negotiated with Mexico in1848. The treaty gave the United States much of Mexico’s northernterritory. This land became known as the Mexican Cession. Inexchange for this land, the United States agreed to pay Mexico $15million.

After the war, the U.S. government agreed to pay Mexico $10million for the Gadsden Purchase. This was a strip of land thatincluded the southern parts of present-day Arizona and New Mexico. In 1848 gold was discovered at Sutter’s Fort in California. Wordspread across the nation quickly, and people rushed to California insearch of gold. By 1849 the California Gold Rush had begun. Thegold-seekers were known as forty-niners. They were named for theyear in which the gold rush began.

What is the concept that the United States should expand west to the Pacific Ocean?

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1. Westernization 2. Expansionism3. Manifest Destiny4. Imperialism

What is the name of the treaty that ended the Mexican War?

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a) Treaty of Ghentb) Treaty of Parisc) Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgod) Treaty of Versailles

Many forty-niners made long, dangerous journeys to get toCalifornia. Once they arrived, miners would prospect, or search forgold. Mining camps sprang up wherever a lot of people were lookingfor gold. Because there was little law and order, camps could bedangerous places. Most miners were men. Few women and childrenlived in the camps. Women, however, found that they could makegood money cooking meals and washing clothes for the miners.

California also attracted immigrants who heard about the goldrush. Chinese miners faced discrimination. They were not allowed tobecome U.S. citizens and were forced to pay a tax. As a result, manyChinese chose to work as domestic servants, weavers, or shoemakers.Because of the gold rush, California’s population grew very quickly.Like California, Utah also grew quickly during the 1840s.

However, most of the people who moved to Utah came for religious freedom. In 1830 Joseph Smith founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The members of this church became known as Mormons. Many people criticized what the Mormons believed. In the early 1830s, Smith led his people to Ohio and then to Missouri to start new communities. Smith was killed in 1844. Mormons built a successful community. They irrigated their farms so that they could grow crops. Young also established a new code regulating water rights.