Laamima Faisal 4B

The Extensive Effect of Expansion

Throughout America’s early years, the belief that God gave the white settlers the right to

expand the Land of the Free was extremely prominent. This ideal of “Manifest Destiny” was

evident in the numerous policies and initiatives that the government put forth. They were also

strong supporters of the notion in which lighter complexions were superior to their darker

counterparts. These two perspectives became entwined within each other, and during the 1800s,

the settlers began to mass-settle the Western territories without regard to the brown-skinned

Native Americans living there. Expansion soon became a major priority in American society, so

much so that even single women were allowed to move westward on their own. This value of

broadening the United States’ borders was so deep-set into the American conscience that even

the government contributed to the cause by providing territorial and infrastructural support. With

help from the federal government, the U.S. was able to branch out westward and consequently

affect major groups such as Native Americans and women.

The U.S. government was a prime catalyst of westward expansion. Even at the federal

level, the belief of Manifest Destiny was remarkably prominent, which is why they participated

in the settlement efforts. The government provided an easier and cheaper alternative to buying

land with the establishment of the Homestead Act of 1862, which stated that one could gain over

100 acres of land just by living and improving on it (Doc. 5). By offering this opportunity to the

populous, the citizens became more inclined to move to the West, which furthered westward

expansion. The government also created the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862, which granted railroad

companies certain benefits, such as the right to build upon public land, to help them with
construction (Doc. 6). With more railroads being assembled, fast transportation became more

accessible to the public. This facilitated settlement as people moved to these western towns at

speeds quicker than usual. As more and more Americans travelled to the West, the populations

of the western territories grew, and soon they became eligible to apply for statehood. By giving

these opportunities to the public and to companies, the government directly accelerated

settlement, which would negatively impact the indigenous peoples already living there.

Native American populations suffered as a consequence of white American settlement in

the West. As the settlers expanded westwards, they encountered many tribes who they fought

endlessly with over the land. The American citizens believed that the differences between their

white, “proper” culture and the Native’s “savage” lifestyle was the keystone of their rivalries.

The Present Phase of the Indian Question​ described their solution in which schools would be

created in order to assimilate the Native Americans into their white culture (Doc. 4). These

schools started a cultural genocide targeted at the Natives, and by forcing them to speak English

and to learn Christianity, they erased the traditions of the indigenous people in the name of

Manifest Destiny. However, the settlers still had to clear out the land in order to make room for

moving Americans. As depicted in J. Weston Phippen’s article “Kill Every Buffalo You Can!

Every Buffalo Dead is an Indian Gone,” one tactic that they used was the mass-hunting of the

buffalo population (Doc. 8). These animals were a staple in the Plains Indian’s diet, so by killing

them off, the Native Americans were essentially forced to move to other areas in order to find a

sustainable food source. To prevent them from returning, the white Americans forced them into

relatively small reservations secured with barbed wire. These measures allowed the settlers to
move westward without trouble. Although settlement in the West devastated countless Native

Americans, it positively impacted another group of people.

Women gained more rights as a result of western settlement. In order to further advance

development in the West, there needed to be a wider pool of potential buyers. This need of

demand led to single women being allowed to buy land in the West and manage it on their own,

which James Foster discussed in the ​Outlines of History of the Territory of Dakota​ in 1870 (Doc.

7). If the woman was not partnered with a man, she held the right to buy land (as the man in a

married couple would have had the entitlement to own land). This was groundbreaking

considering how little power women had regarding property during the 19​th​ century. While

America’s borders grew, the number of women’s rights expanded right alongside it.

As the United States claimed the West, the lives of numerous people changed, for better

and for worse. Federal aid expedited western expansion by giving power and opportunities to the

people and to corporations, which in turn accelerated the effects that settlement had on the

inhabitants of the United States. Native Americans were destroyed as their culture became

whitewashed and their land stolen, whereas women benefited from U.S. expansion as they

gained the right to own property. These outcomes of white settlement in the West are important

artifacts of American history, and the changes that it brought onto these people will not be

forgotten.