Flashcards on U.S. Westward Expansion and Native American Removal
U.S. Westward Expansion & Native American Removal Summary
Tap to flip · Swipe to navigate
Westward Expansion and Native American Removal
12 cards
Card 1
Question: What was the significance of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase for U.S. territory?
Answer: It nearly doubled the size of the U.S., removed French and Spanish control of New Orleans and the Mississippi River, and opened vast interior land for
Card 2
Question: Why did Jefferson support exploration of the newly acquired western lands and which explorers did he commission?
Answer: Jefferson envisioned an agricultural America and wanted new farming land in the interior; he commissioned explorers including Lewis and Clark to map t
Card 3
Question: What was the Transcontinental Treaty of 1819 and what did it grant the United States?
Answer: Spain ceded Florida to the U.S., agreed to a southern border west of the Mississippi to the Pacific, boosted U.S. claims to the Oregon Territory, and
Card 4
Question: How did the new western territory intensify sectional tensions within the United States?
Answer: As new territories applied to join the Union, the question arose whether they would be slave or free states, raising fears in the South about losing c
Card 5
Question: What belief helped drive westward expansion and what conflicts did it produce?
Answer: The belief in Manifest Destiny—the idea that America was chosen to expand to the Pacific and spread Protestantism—drove expansion and led to conflicts
Card 6
Question: How did the U.S. secure the West and what treaty finalized this expansion to the Pacific?
Answer: The Mexican War expanded U.S. control across Texas, New Mexico, and California; the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (February 1848) secured the West for A
Card 7
Question: What was the 1846 compromise with Britain over the Oregon territory?
Answer: It divided the Oregon territory along the 49th parallel: land south became U.S. Oregon and land north remained British Washington territories.
Card 8
Question: When was Oregon admitted as a state and what major economic event attracted many settlers to California?
Answer: Oregon was admitted in 1859; the California Gold Rush (gold discovered in the Sierra Nevada) attracted about 100,000 immigrants in a single year.
Card 9
Question: What immediate governmental question did the influx of settlers to California raise?
Answer: Whether California should organise its own government independently or join the Union, which had significant political implications.
Card 10
Question: What policy did Andrew Jackson pursue regarding Native American lands?
Answer: Jackson sought to secure Native American lands for U.S. settlement and supported forced removal of Native Americans to western areas.