Western Expansion Review Guide:

1.Explain the main idea behind Manifest Destiny.

This was the divine belief that Americans had the right to take over all the
territory from East to West despite who lived there. As Americans, they
had the right to take all the land from whoever lived there. This led to
Native American people being displaced from their land. This led to wars
being fought on what became the United States.

2.The Homestead Act was passed by President Lincoln. What was it

designed to do?

The Homestead Act was passed during the civil war to encourage male
citizens who paid ten dollars to the government to move West and keep
160 acres of land they surveyed and agreed to work on for five years and
that land would become theirs. This law was passed by Lincoln to expand
the US territory. Only citizens who had never taken up guns against the
US could take advantage of this.

3.How did gold mining impact the movement of people out west to
California and the neighboring area?

There was a big rush to settle California. This led to violent clashes with
Native Americans and fueled the expansion of Manifest Destiny. People
came from all over: China, Latin America, and Europe to stake a claim to
land so they could find gold. California was settled and became a state
quickly after establishing a state Constitution.
4.How did the transcontinental railroad encourage people to move out
west?

The transcontinental railroad allowed people and goods to move more

easily from East to West which connected towns and settlements across all
of this part of North America. The states in the west applied to join the
Union and establish a larger United States of America.

5.Explain what life in the wild wild west and boomtowns were like.

Boomtowns were established quickly where there were resources like gold
and cattle that attracted people who wanted to make money. They were
towns that were established quickly and attracted lots of people. These
towns couldn’t establish needed services for health or school. They were
dirty and poorly run and once resources were gone, the towns would be
abandoned just as quickly as they were established.

6.Who invented the telegraph and what was it used for?

7.We talked about supply and demand. When there is a surplus of

something, what happens to the price?Shortage?
When there is a surplus of something and lots of people are buying it, and
the demand is high, the price is lower. When there’s not enough demand,
the price goes higer.

8.Why were the buffalo so important to the Native Americans?

They provided food, shelter (they made shelter out of their hides) and
clothing. They revered the buffalo and were grateful for having them.

9.Most people on the Great Plains lived in sod houses. Explain what they
were.
Sod houses were made by cutting the thick grass of the prairie and piling
them on each other to make a shelter or house. They were thick and also
had dried mud. These were used if there weren’t enough trees nearby to
build a log cabin.

10.What happened to the Native Americans during the “Trail of Tears?”

11.How did the first people (Native Americans) come to America?

It’s believed they came from Asia during the ice age when there was the
Bering land bridge. The waters were frozen and sea levels dropped and
revealed a land bridge early Native Americans probably crossed as they
followed herds of animals.

12.How were the Native Americans impacted by the Dawes Act? Describe
the goal the government had.

This took land from Native Americans and allowed their land to be settled
even by non-Native people. This act forced Native Americans to purchase
their land. It outlawed tribal ownership of land and land had to be owned
by heads of households. They got to keep 160 acres.

13.Describe how the Louisiana Purchase changed the United States.

It doubled the size of the United States.