Chapter Menu Chapter Introduction Westward to the Pacific Independence for Texas War With Mexico Chapter Assessment New Settlers in California and Utah

Chapter Menu

Chapter Introduction

Westward to the Pacific

Independence for Texas

War With Mexico

Chapter Assessment

New Settlers in California and Utah

Chapter Introduction 2

Westward to the Pacific

Geography influences the divergent paths of people resulting in physical, economic, and political challenges and rewards. Manifest Destiny is the idea that it was inevitable that the United States would extend its borders from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.


Independence for Texas

Immigration influences a nation’s or region’s economy and society. American settlers began moving into the part of Mexico called Texas in the 1820s. Conflict forced Mexico to grant Texas its independence.


War With Mexico

Conflict often brings about great change. Through war with Mexico and diplomatic negotiations with Great Britain, the United States acquired Texas, Oregon, California, Utah, and the remainder of the Southwest.


New Settlers in California and Utah

Immigration influences a nation’s or region’s economy and society. By 1850, thousands of American settlers had crossed the Great Plains for new homes.

Section 1-Guide to Reading 1

• Many Americans wanted control of the Oregon Country to gain access to the Pacific Ocean.(page 471)

• Increased American settlement led the United States and Britain to divide Oregon. (page 473)

Americans had begun moving to Texas in the 1820s. By the 1830s and 1840s, they were making their way to Oregon.

A. The Oregon Country was the huge area between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains north of California. Four nations, Great Britain, Spain, Russia, and the United States, claimed the land.

Section 1-Daily Lesson Notes 2

I. Rivalry in the Northwest (pages 471–472)

B. The United States wanted to control the Oregon Country so Americans could have access to the Pacific Ocean to build trade. The U.S. based its claim on Robert Gray’s exploration of the Columbia River in 1792 and on Lewis and Clark’s explorations.


C. Secretary of State John Quincy Adams negotiated a treaty with Spain’s foreign minister, Louis de Onís. In the Adams-Onís Treaty, Spain agreed to set the limits of their territory at what is now California’s northern border and gave up their claim to Oregon. In 1824 Russia gave up its claim.

D. Adams worked out a deal with Britain for joint occupation of the area, which meant that people from both Britain and the United States could settle in Oregon.



E. When Adams became president in 1825, he proposed that the two nations divide the area, but Britain refused.

F. The first Americans to reach Oregon Country were fur traders called mountain men. They came to trap beaver, whose skins were in great demand. Mountain men traveled in the mountains in the spring and summer, collecting beaver pelts, and they met for a rendezvous, or meeting, in the late summer.



G. John Jacob Astor established the American Fur Company, which became the largest fur company in America.

H. Jim Beckwourth, an African American mountain man, explored Wyoming’s Green River. Robert Stuart and Jedediah Smith found the South Pass, a broad break through the Rockies that later became the main route to Oregon.



I. Mountain men had to be skillful and resourceful to survive in the wilderness.

J. In time the mountain men killed off most of the beaver.



What happened at an annual rendezvous?

Mountain men gathered to exchange beaver skins for traps, guns, coffee, and other goods. They also shared news and stories with old friends.



A. Missionaries were among the first settlers in Oregon Country. They wanted to bring Christianity to the Native Americans.

B. Dr. Marcus Whitman and his wife, Narcissa, built a mission among the Cayuse people near the present site of Walla Walla, Washington. New settlers unknowingly brought sickness to the Cayuse, and the Cayuse retaliated by attacking the mission. The Whitmans and 11 others were killed.

II. Settling Oregon (pages 473–475)


C. In the early 1840s, a desire to go to Oregon swept across the people of the Mississippi Valley. People banded together to make the trip to Oregon. These pioneers, called emigrants because they left the United States to go to Oregon, traveled the 2,000-mile journey in covered wagons following the Oregon Trail.

D. Between 1840 and 1845 the American population in the fertile Willamette Valley rose from 500 to 5,000. The British population remained at about 700. The United States began to question ownership of the area again.


Section 1-Daily Lesson Notes

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E. Many Americans believed their mission was to expand the boundaries of the United States to the Pacific Ocean. This idea was called Manifest Destiny.

F. Pressure mounted for the United States to take ownership of the Oregon Country.

G. James K. Polk represented the Democratic Party in the presidential election of 1844. He believed in the United States’s sole ownership of Oregon.



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H. Henry Clay, the Whig Party candidate, did not take a strong position on the Oregon issue. He lost the election to Polk.

I. In 1846 Britain and the United States compromised, setting the boundary of Oregon at latitude 49°N.



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What was the meaning of the slogan “Fifty-four Forty or Fight”?

The slogan refers to the line of latitude that Democrats believed should be the border in Oregon.


Section 1-Section Review

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• Oregon Country was the key element to the United States gaining access to the Pacific Ocean, and the government negotiated agreements with other nations toward accomplishing that goal.

• Many Americans made plans to settle in Oregon Territory, while ownership of the land drove political decisions.


• Texas was settled by people from Mexico and the United States, creating cultural tension. (page 481)

• Texans wanted to be a nation separate from Mexico. (page 483)

In the last section, you read about new settlements in Oregon Country and the annexation of that land to the United States. In this section, you will learn about settlement in Texas.


The city of Dallas, Texas, was named after a mystery man. John Neely Bryan, an early Texas pioneer, named the town for “his friend, Dallas,” but Bryan never gave a last name for the friend.

A. Davy Crockett, a three-term state representative for Tennessee, lost his seat in Congress in 1835. He then left Tennessee for Texas.


I. A Clash of Cultures (pages 481–482)

B. In 1803, the United States claimed Texas, despite Spain’s protests. The United States dropped its claim to Texas in 1819.

C. Most of Texas’s residents were Tejanos, or Mexicans who claimed Texas as their home.


D. Spain offered tracts of land to people who would settle in Texas. The people who obtained grants and recruited settlers were called empresarios.

E. Moses Austin received the first land grant in 1821, but before he could set up his colony Mexico declared independence from Spain. Austin died soon afterward, and the land passed to his son, Stephen F. Austin. Stephen F. Austin recruited 300 American families to settle in Texas.



F. By 1830 Americans far outnumbered Mexicans in Texas. Mexico issued a decree, or official order, that stopped all immigration from the United States and taxed all American goods entering Texas. These policies enraged Texans.

G. In 1833 Mexican president General Antonio López de Santa Anna agreed to remove the ban on American settlers, but he refused to change Texas’s political status.

H. Santa Anna became a dictator and overthrew Mexico’s constitution.



Who was Stephen F. Austin?

Stephen F. Austin, the son of Moses Austin, was a leader among the Texas settlers because he successfully brought 300 American families to settle in Texas.



A. During 1835 conflicts occurred between Texans and Mexican troops. In October, Mexican troops tried to take a cannon held by Texans in the town of Gonzales, but they were driven back by the Texans.

B. Texans called on volunteers to join their fight against Mexico, offering free land to anyone who would help. Davy Crockett was one who volunteered.

II. The Struggle for Independence (pages 483–487)


C. In December 1835 the Texans liberated the town of San Antonio from Mexican forces. Many Texans left San Antonio after the liberation, thinking the war was won.

D. Santa Anna, furious over the loss of San Antonio, marched north, reaching San Antonio in February 1836. A small force of Texans was barricaded inside the Alamo, a nearby mission.



E. For 13 days, the small group of Texans, including Davy Crockett, William B. Travis, and Jim Bowie, kept the Alamo from Mexican forces. On March 6, 1836, Mexican forces broke through the Alamo and killed all the Texas forces. Only a few women and children and some servants survived.



F. American settlers and Tejanos declared independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836, while defenders fought at the Alamo. The Texas Declaration of Independence was similar to the national Declaration. Texas leaders set up a temporary government until elections could be held.

G. The government named Sam Houston commander in chief of Texas forces. Houston ordered troops at Goliad to abandon their positions, but they intercepted Mexican forces after retreating. Santa Anna ordered the Texans executed.



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H. Houston gathered about 900 troops at San Jacinto, near present-day Houston. Santa Anna was camped nearby with an army of about 1,300. On April 21, 1836, Texans attacked the Mexican camp, capturing Santa Anna.

I. Santa Anna signed a treaty recognizing the independence of Texas on May 14, 1836.

J. Texans elected Sam Houston president in September 1836.



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K. Houston asked the United States to annex—take control of—Texas. Southerners favored the annexation, but Northerners objected.

L. Fighting continued between Texas and Mexico because the Mexican government refused to honor Santa Anna’s recognition of Texas independence.



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M. John Tyler, who became president in 1841, supported the Texas annexation, but the Senate did not.


N. James K. Polk, elected president in 1844, supported the annexation of Texas and pressed Congress to agree. In 1845 Texas was granted statehood.


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What happened at the Battle of San Jacinto?

Houston assembled about 900 troops to launch a surprise attack on Mexican forces. The Texans invaded the Mexican camp, shouting, “Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!” They killed more than 600 Mexican soldiers and captured about 700 more, including Santa Anna.



You read about the Texans’ brave struggle for independence. This section will focus on the war with Mexico over the California and New Mexico provinces.


• The Santa Fe Trail was a busy trade route through New Mexico, a large region governed by Mexico. (page 491)

• California was settled and populated by diverse cultures. (page 492)

• Strained relations between the United States and Mexico resulted in war. (page 495)


Today California is the third largest state, after Alaska and Texas. By 1970 it had become the state with the largest population. In addition it has the largest population of Spanish speakers, Native Americans, Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese, Koreans, and Vietnamese.

A. New Mexico was the name of the vast region between the Texas and California territories.


I. The New Mexico Territory (page 491)

B. New Mexico had been part of Spain’s colony of Mexico. In 1610 Spain founded the settlement of Santa Fe. Mexico inherited New Mexico when it won independence from Spain in 1821.


C. William Becknell traveled to New Mexico and was the first American trader to reach Santa Fe. The route he traveled became known as the Santa Fe Trail. Other traders followed Becknell, and the trail became a busy trade route.

D. As trade increased with Mexico, more Americans began settling in the region. As the idea of Manifest Destiny became popular, Americans began thinking that New Mexico should belong to the United States.



How was Mexico’s attitude toward American traders different from that of Spain?

Mexico welcomed traders because they wanted trade to boost the economy of New Mexico. Spain had not welcomed traders because they feared Americans would want to take over the territory.



A. The first Europeans to settle in California were Spanish explorers and Mexican missionaries. The first settlement at San Francisco was founded in 1776, and seven years earlier a mission system had been built along a route known as El Camino Real.

B. Jedediah Smith was an American mountain man who visited the San Gabriel mission and reported on life there.

II. California’s Spanish Culture (pages 492–494)


C. California became a state of Mexico after Mexico won its independence from Spain in 1821. People from Mexico began settling in California.

D. In 1833 the Mexican government passed a law abolishing the Spanish missions in California. The government gave some of the mission land to Native Americans. Rancheros—ranch owners—bought the remainder of the land and built huge properties called ranchos.



E. Mexico granted land to John Sutter in 1839, and he built a trading post that became one of the first stopping points for Americans traveling to California.

F. In the 1840s, American families began to arrive in California, making the journey on the Oregon Trail.

G. John C. Frémont traveled several times through California and wrote about the region.



H. Americans began to talk about making California part of the United States.

I. President James Polk twice offered to buy California and New Mexico from Mexico, but Mexico refused.



What happened to the Spanish missions?

Mexico passed a law abolishing the missions and then gave some of the land to Native Americans. Mexican settlers called rancheros bought the rest of the land and built ranchos.



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A. After the annexation of Texas, relations between Mexico and the United States were strained. The two countries also disagreed on the Texas-Mexico border. The United States insisted the Rio Grande formed the border; Mexico claimed that the border lay along the Nueces River, about 150 miles farther north.

B. President James K. Polk was determined to annex California and New Mexico. After Mexico refused to sell the territories, Polk plotted to provoke Mexico into a war.

III. War With Mexico (pages 495–497)


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C. Polk ordered General Zachary Taylor to march his soldiers across the Nueces River into the disputed territory. Taylor followed orders and built a fort there. Mexican soldiers attacked Taylor’s soldiers, and Congress passed a declaration of war.

D. Democrats backed the war, but Whigs believed the war was unjust.



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E. Abraham Lincoln, an Illinois congressman, claimed that Polk had no reason for blaming Mexico for the attack.

F. President Polk planned for U.S. forces to drive Mexico out of the disputed area in Texas, then move the forces into California and New Mexico before taking Mexico City.

G. Taylor succeeded in defeating the Mexicans to secure the Texas border.



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H. General Stephen Kearney led troops to California and New Mexico.

I. In 1846 a small group of Americans had seized the town of Sonoma and proclaimed California independent. They called the new country the Bear Flag Republic.

J. John C. Frémont declared he would seize California, which enraged the Californios, the Mexicans who lived in California.



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K. U.S. naval forces captured San Francisco and Monterey in July 1846, and Commodore John Sloat declared California annexed. The Americans then captured San Diego and Los Angeles.

L. By 1847 California was under U.S. control.

M. American forces then marched to take Mexico City, succeeding in September 1847.



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N. In the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico gave up all claims to Texas and agreed to the Rio Grande as the border between Texas and Mexico. Mexico also ceded—gave—California and New Mexico to the United States.



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Why were the Californios enraged by John C. Frémont and the other American rebels in Sonoma?

The Californios felt that Americans were attempting to seize land, and they did not support the Americans taking over California for U.S. purposes.



• The discovery of gold in California had a significant impact on the settlement and economy of the region. (page 501)

• Utah was settled by Mormons, a religious group looking for safe haven. (page 505)

California and the New Mexico provinces became part of the United States in 1846. Many American settlers were eager to move there for a variety of reasons.


The lake for which Salt Lake City, Utah, is named actually contains salt. In fact there are 4.5 to 4.9 billion tons of salt in the water. The water not only tastes salty, but it is sufficiently saline for the average person to very easily float.

A. James Marshall discovered gold while building a sawmill on the South Fork of the American River in California.


I. California Gold Rush (pages 501–505)

B. The prospect of gold brought thousands of people from all over the world to California in 1848 and 1849. Those who arrived in 1849 were called forty-niners.


C. Some gold seekers sailed to California. Most who came by sea traveled around the southern tip of South America. The greatest number of people came overland on the Oregon Trail or Santa Fe Trail.

D. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo that ended the war with Mexico made Californios citizens of the United States and guaranteed them the right to their lands. However, the Land Law of 1851 established a group of people to review the Californios’ land claims. The Californios were unable to prove what land they owned, and many lost their land.



E. As people rushed to California, boomtowns, new communities, sprang up almost overnight. Cities in California also flourished.

F. Most forty-niners had no experience in mining, and very few of them achieved lasting wealth.

G. Merchants made large profits since they could charge whatever they liked for goods because miners had nowhere else to buy them.



H. Very few women lived in mining towns, and men spent their free time drinking, gambling, and fighting. Crime was a problem, and vigilantes took the law into their own hands, acting as police, judge, and jury.

I. The Gold Rush had lasting effects on California’s economy. Many people who came looking for gold settled in California.

J. California became a state in 1850.



How did merchants gain from the Gold Rush?

The merchants made huge profits because there were only a few of them to sell products to miners. Because miners could not buy goods elsewhere, merchants could charge more for their goods, making more profits.



A. Joseph Smith had visions that led him to found the Mormon church, or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

B. Smith founded a community in New York, but neighbors who disapproved of the religion drove them out. The Mormons traveled to Ohio, Missouri, and then Illinois.

C. In 1844 a mob in Illinois killed Smith, and Brigham Young took over as leader of the Mormons.

II. A Religious Refuge in Utah (pages 505–506)


D. About 12,000 Mormons settled in Utah near the Great Salt Lake to live a life of religious freedom.

E. In 1848 the United States acquired the Great Salt Lake area from Mexico. Two years later, Congress set up the Utah Territory, and Brigham Young became governor.

F. Utah did not become a state until 1896.



What ideas of Joseph Smith did people disagree with?

Joseph Smith believed that property should be held in common by all in a community. He also believed in polygamy, the idea that a man could have more than one wife.


Documents

Chapter Menu Chapter Introduction Westward to the Pacific Independence for Texas War With Mexico Chapter Assessment New Settlers in California and Utah