Ms.$Furrey’s$5th$Grade$F$$

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Our$class$studied$various$nonfiction$texts,$multimedia$resources,$primary$

sources$and$experienced$a$Pioneer$simulation$while$learning$about$Westward$

Expansion.$$Students$worked$on$their$note$taking,$were$exposed$to$various$

perspectives$and$became$experts!$Our$class$learned$that,$after$extensive$

research,$narrowing$in$on$a$focus$topic$and$careful$planning,$writers$can$start$

to$draft$a$research$article$that$includes$a$headline,$background$information,$a$

possible$angle,$a$main$body$section,$a$conclusion,$pictures$with$captions,$

words$to$know$(a$glossary),$suggestions$for$further$research$and$of$course,$a$

byline.$We$worked$hard$to$integrate$social$studies$into$our$nonfiction$writing.$

In$our$articles$you$will$find$factual$information$about$the$Westward$

Movement.$$Some$students$challenged$themselves$and$included$their$own$

perspective$using$an$“angle.”$$Our$class$also$decided$to$incorporate$technology$

by$using$various$research$databases,$Microsoft$Word$and$Wobook!$

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Sit$back,$relax$and$enjoy$our$class$collection$of$research$articles!$

Westward Expansion Westward Expansion was the period of time in the early 1800s when many Americans moved west.

Background In the 1800s, many Americans decided that they

wanted some more elbow room as cities like New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore along the East Coast got overcrowded. They packed up their bags, said goodbye to their friends, their families, their common daily routine, and hitched a covered wagon to a better life in the West.

It didn’t matter who you were, where you came from, your job or age. Everyone started migrating to the Great Plains (Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska etc.), the Southwest, (Texas, Arizona, New Mexico etc.), and that “Golden Coast” past the Rocky Mountains (California, Oregon, Washington), especially when the California Gold Rush started.

Some people’s lives became better. Others took a turn for the worse due to bad planning or harsh weather. Many people died on the trail. The trip was hard, but most of the time, rewarding.

Everyone was moving west.

This is a map of the Indian Territory, where “removed” Native Americans were sent. It is now the

western part of the state of Oklahoma.

Words to Know Cherokee

Great Plains

agriculture

sovereign

The Cherokee were a Native American tribe that lived in southwest Georgia.

The central area of the U.S, like Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Prone to tornadoes.

Farming, specifically growing crops. A huge American industry in the 1800s.

Independent, or your own, country/state separate from the others.

Adam

2

The Trail of Tears In 1785, even before the Constitution was signed, President George Washington signed the Treaty of Hopewell, signifying that the Cherokee people of the Southeast could continue living in the land of their birth.

The treaty founded a sovereign entity much like a state inside the other states like Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama. The Cherokee Nation was originally led by small village councils like the old Cherokee land was, but soon Cherokees gone wealthy from agriculture started a “National Council”, completely removing any power of village councils, headquartered in the city of New Echota.

At the same time, President

Thomas Jefferson made a promise to the Georgian government stating that he would remove the Cherokee and other Native nations from the state, a promise not wholly legal due to the Treaty of Hopewell. That was a promise never kept as he left his second term in 1809, the Cherokee people were still there. But the danger of “removal” was still real.

When Andrew Jackson was elected President in 1828, gold was discovered in Georgia on Native land. Jackson, in his quest for wealth and hatred, passed a federal law stating that any state government may revoke the right of sovereignty to the Native nations, making them follow state law instead of their own. This made not just the Cherokee, but also the Chickasaw and the Creek and the Choctaw and the Seminole, angry. Soon, though it was

election time, and just as things were starting to look a little bit better for the Natives, Jackson was reelected, passed the Indian Removal Act, and sent tens of thousands of Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole to Indian Territory, or to their death.

Suddenly, a rally started in the Cherokee Nation, overthrowing the National Council with the Treaty Party, who wanted to leave and go to Indian Territory. While the National Council went to whine in Washington, the Treaty Party signed the Treaty of New Echota with John Schermerhorn of Congress. In 1836, the removal started. Many died on what would be known as The Trail of Tears.” America harming it’s own people.

For European immigrants looking for a better life, the Westward Expansion was a great thing. For the Native Americans living in the West or Southeast, it wasn’t and many of them died and/or had to leave their homes. The Trail of Tears got its name after all the tears on the ground after Native family members mourned the leaving

of their home or the loved ones that passed along the way.

For more information on the Trail of Tears, go to:

*http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/

*http://wak.infobaselearning.com/recordurl.aspx?wid=104448&nid=14852

Native Americans

&

Westward Expansion

This map is the basic map of the trails pioneers followed during

Westward Expansion. It includes the Oregon Trail.

Westward Expansion In the 1800’s many people traveled west in covered

wagons. They left their homes and packed their bags and headed out west on the Oregon Trail. This trail started from the east coast to the west coast. They traveled west because they wanted a better life than they had. On the trail there were many dangers. For example, there were sometimes Native American raids and there were many diseases like cholera that killed pioneers on the way, and there were also tough terrains that were extremely hard to get over. This trail became more popular when the word got out that there was gold in California. This became known as the California Gold Rush. People also traveled to California by boat, but that way was

longer. They went all the way down to South America and came back up.

Pioneers making a temporary shelter.

Words to Know

Pioneer

Temporary

Reservation

a person who is among the first to explore or settle a new country or area

lasting for only a limited period of time; not permanent

the place Native Americans were forced onto

Albert

2

Native Americans Native American tribes were deeply impacted when the settlers moved west. Native Americans got forced out of their homes and they were forced onto reservations.

The Apache tribes were once good friends with the U.S but that relation soon fell apart when gold miners captured an Apache chief and tied him to a tree and beat him. This relation also fell apart when the U.S forced the Apache tribe onto reservations. This made the Apache tribe and the U.S go to war and they killed each other.

A famous person in the Apache tribe was Apache Chief Geronimo. He was a mysterious man because it is said that he ran into a cave and

U.S. soldiers surrounded the outside of the cave and Geronimo got out unharmed and the U.S soldiers still were waiting outside of the cave. He is also said to be cornered on the edge of a 310ft. cliff and he jumped off and he still survived. When Chief Geronimo was in battle, he attacked people like their weapons were nothing. He was also known to walk in muddy areas without leaving footsteps.

The trail of tears was a dangerous and sad time. The Cherokee, and other tribes, were forced out of their homelands and onto reservations by President Jackson. They were given the choice to move peacefully, but some tribes did not move so the U.S

soldiers forced them out. There were 2000 people sick and feeble, many were near death, and the Native Americans usually buried 14 or 15 at every stopping place.

Many people think that the Iroquois influenced many parts of the constitution. Many people think this because the Iroquois were separate, but united. This is just like the United States. The states are separate but they are united. In the Iroquois tribe men and women shared power. There was also the Iroquois League where Iroquois leaders met to make rules that affected everyone. This is like the Constitutional Convention and like when the president meets with the

leaders of other countries.

As you can see, when many people moved west they wanted to get a better life and also start a new life, fresh and clean. When Pioneers moved west they impacted a lot of Native American tribes like the Cherokee and the Apache. There were ups and downs about moving west. For more information on

Native Americans please feel free to visit TrueFlix at:

http://tfx.grolier.com/cb/node-33086

and also for the Trail of Tears please visit FreedomFlix at:

http://freedomflix.digital.scholastic.com/unitPage/node-34834/10014103/.

What do you think about moving west?

This is a Cherokee Native American.

Westward Expansion This picture is a map of the route of the Oregon Trail. Many pioneers used this

route.

Westward Expansion There were many reasons people moved West. You

could be a farmer wanting to explore the better landscapes with all the rich soil that makes it easy for you and your future farmers. You could be an explorer who is looking for a new land nobody has heard of. You could be a slave who is looking for freedom. You could be a miner looking into the Gold Rush. Or, you could be a family who wants to solve all the hardships you have been through.

There were many events going on while pioneers were moving west. During 1803, the Louisiana Purchase started, during that time Lewis and Clark were sent by Thomas Jefferson to explore the Louisiana Territory. 43 years later more settlers began traveling in their covered wagons to move West! Oregon Territory was no longer owned by the British because the U.S and Great Britain made an Oregon Treaty. 2 years later U.S and Mexico signed another treaty to add 1.2 million sq. miles to the U.S to expand it even more! Then, the California Gold Rush started! A lot of chaos just for gold!

This is people traveling in covered wagons through the Oregon Trail.

Words To Know

pioneer

James Marshall

cholera

A person who moves west

He discovered gold in California

Infectious intestinal disorder

Audrey

2

The California Gold Rush The beginning of the Gold Rush

started all from a discovery that changed U.S history. James

Marshall was checking out the canal while he was working.

There was something that struck his mind. Marshall found golden

rocks.

He then scooped some up with

his hat. He found out it was gold. Marshall tried to keep it a

secret, before he knew it thousands of foreigners and

Americans raced to California for the search of gold - the gold

rush!

The Gold Rush started.

Newspapers from all around the U.S quickly got word. Men took

off into the gold fields and wanted to strike rich.

Now a new occupation opened up, being a forty-niner. Back

then, meals were expensive so if you were a forty-niner you

would work to dig up gold and in return you would have a nice

meal. You could also buy clothes for you and your family.

But when gold mining it can be dangerous, choosing routes to

mine at. You could get attacked

by Native Americans or catch a

deadly disease like cholera. Not only did Americans mine,

different people had mined too. The Native Americans started

mining. Chinese miners started coming. The population of

Chinese miners was up to 20,000! Slave owners would

force slaves to dig up gold. The California Gold Rush played a

big part in Westward Expansion.

Westward Expansion during the

1800s was hard for pioneers. With all the reasons for moving

West, including the Gold Rush, sometimes things didn’t always

go well. The dangers of animals or predators can cause someone

hurt. Diseases and the harsh weather can cause hardships.

You could die of starvation and

dehydration or get hurt by

Native American attacks. However, once you got

through all the hardships, some felt it was worth it!

To find more information you can go onto these following sites.

http://tfx.grolier.com/

http://freedomflix.digital.scholastic.com/

A Journey Full of Tears

Westward Expansion was a great time for Americans. However, controversial decisions by President Andrew Jackson led to

sorrow for Native Americans.

Westward Expansion Westward Expansion was a chaotic time during the

1800’s. The U.S was acquiring territories like crazy, and people were moving to them. In 1805, Thomas Jefferson hired Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the newly acquired territories in the West and bring back plant and animal specimens. Most people moved west: teachers, lawyers, criminals, jobless people, immigrants and miners, just to name a few. They moved west because of the rolling hills, fertile farmland, empty land, animals to hunt, and basically, a new life. There were many hardships along the way, just like there were hardships before they expanded west. People went there by covered wagon or by the Transcontinental Railroad, which was completed in 1869.

Territories the U.S acquired to complete Westward Expansion.

Words to Know Infamous

Implored

Fertile

Notorious, well-known

Pleaded

Land or region

Rich land for growing crops

Brenner

Territories

2

The Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was when a Native American tribe, the Cherokee was forced out of their territory in Northwest Georgia. This started in 1829, when white settlers discovered gold on Cherokee lands, became greedy and decided that they HAD to have the Cherokee’s land and that they couldn’t share. They implored for the removal of the Cherokee tribe. Andrew Jackson, [in]famous for fighting Native Americans, like the Seminoles, didn’t think that whites and Native Americans could {and should}live together peacefully, and agreed, and passed the ‘Indian Removal

Act of 1830.’ This evil act called for the removal of every single Native American in the southeastern United States to the territory west of the Mississippi River. Native Americans had to either walk {which is ridiculous] or take a water route to Oklahoma. The walking or horseback-riding route took Native Americans through Tennessee, Kentucky, southern Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas. The water route took them on the Tennessee and Ohio rivers, then down the Mississippi river and finally up the Arkansas river. Things started to look up

for Native Americans. Cherokee leader John Ross argued against the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and won. But this was [rudely] ignored by the governor of Georgia and Andrew Jackson. Starting in May of 1838, the U.S. Army forced Cherokees into stockades for preparation for their harsh dismissal. The army sent soldiers to ‘Indian Territory’ starting on June 6 of 1838. The last party arrived on March 24, 1839. The Native Americans traveled almost 1,000 miles. Many Cherokee became sick during the journey and thousands of Cherokee died.

At the same time others started to move west by choice. Some ways Pioneers moved were by wagon train, [on the Oregon Trail], by taking a ship around Panama and through the Panama Canal, or by the Transcontinental Railroad. What way would YOU take?

For information on the Trail of

Tears and Westward Expansion go to:

http://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion http://www.history.com/topics/trail-of-tears

!

!

Westward)Expansion)

This%is%a%picture%of%the%Oregon%Trail.%

Background)Westward)expansion!was!when!people!were!traveling!

west!in!the!1800’s.!One!reason!people!moved!west!was!because!they!wanted!to!start!over!and!make!a!new!living.!Some!people!didn’t!like!their!jobs!because!they!weren’t!making!money.!Other!people!weren’t!needed,!so!they!hoped!people!would!need!them!in!the!west.!Some!people!wanted!to!make!bigger!homes,!so!they!moved!west!and!found!open!land!and!started!to!build.!Building!homes!was!hard.!They!used!wood!from!trees,!some!people!didn’t!have!floors!because!they!couldn’t!find!enough!wood,!and!it!was!hard!to!build!a!floor.!Also,!they!had!dirt,!so!they!didn’t!want!to!waste!natural!recourses.!Pioneers!traveled!west!to!build!these!homes!in!covered)wagons.!Most!people!had!to!walk!next!to!the!wagon!because!they!couldn’t!sit!everybody!in!the!wagon.!Some!people!got!very!sick!or!died!because!they!didn’t!have!doctors!or!medicine.!Water!was!very!precious!because!it!was!hard!to!find!along!the!trail.!Moving!west!was!difficult,!but!for!many!they!felt!it!was!worth!it!!

California,*to*the*west*of*Nevada,*is*where*the*Gold*Rush*happened.*

Words)to)Know)

Miners!!

Westward!Expansion!

Gold!Rush!

Covered!Wagons!!

People!who!dig!tunnels!under!ground!!to!look!for!gold!

When!people!started!moving!west.!

When!people!were!rushing!to!California!for!gold!

Wagons!that!were!covered!

Coby!

!

2!

!

Gold)Rush))On)a)topic.))During!this!time!period!the!

California!gold)rush!was!when!James!W.!Marshall!discovered!gold.!At!first,!when!Marshall!discovered!gold,!he!didn’t!want!a!lot!of!people!to!know,!he!wanted!all!the!gold!for!himself.!!However,!people!did!find!out!!It!caused!chaos!because!the!word!spread!everywhere!and!people!rushed!to!get!gold.!!

Life!was!hard!for!miners!because!miners!had!to!dig!tunnels!and!holes!all!day!and!it!was!hard!because!they!sometimes!got!sick!from!the!

rocks!and!dirt.!A!lot!of!people!where!miners!because!they!got!paid!for!digging!and!a!lot!of!people!could!do!that.!Miners!also!had!a!hard!life!because!some!miners!only!saw!daylight!one!or!two!times!a!day!once!they!started!to!dig.!!

The!gold!rush!went!from!1799!to!1885.!The!gold!rush!made!a!lot!of!people!move!to!California!for!jobs!and!for!gold.!Some!people!were!rich!in!California!because!they!were!the!first!people!to!find!the!gold!!However,!miners!had!to!

experience!hot!weather.!They!only!had!candles,!so!fire!hade!to!light!the!whole!tunnel.!!

Gold!was!very!rare!and!it!usually!took!a!lot!of!time!to!mine!gold.!!Miners!hade!to!protect!gold!from!getting!stolen!because!a!lot!of!people!wanted!to!steal!gold!because!the!gold!was!worth!a!lot!back!in!the!1800s.!!!

Eventually,!miners!found!a!new!way!to!dig,!they!used!a!machine!called!a!crane!and!it!became!an!easier!job.!!

As!you!can!see!Westward)Expansion)was!a!major!event!in!the!1800’s!.The!gold!rush!was!a!big!part!of!Westward!Expansion.!It!made!people!move!west!for!gold!and!riches.!!

!

For!more!information!you!can!visit:!

http://auth.grolier.com/login/tfx/login.php!

http://auth.grolier.com/login/bookflix/login.php!

http://freedomflix.digital.scholastic.com/!

http://worldbookonline.com/wb/products?ed=all&gr=Welcome+Great+Neck+Union+Free+Sch+Dist!

!

This%is%a%map%of%people%digging%for%gold.%

Westward Expansion There was something called

Westward Expansion back in the 1800’s. The pioneers traveled

west to places such as Oregon.

Westward Expansion Back in the 1800’s there was something called

Westward Expansion. There were many pioneers moving west. There were many dangers, but still many fortunes. The pioneers traveled west on either the Oregon Trail, or the Hacker Trail or other trails. The most famous trail was the Oregon Trail. Many pioneers traveled in wagon trains or covered wagons. The wagon trains were very often hauled by their oxen or horse. Moving west was a big decision; you had to be prepared for any possible fates. You had to remember you were leaving civilization to get to a better place where you could be living with fresh land, better civilization, and a much better life living in the west. The west was waiting for Pioneers to arrive.

This is a map of how the Pioneers traveled to Oregon. This is the Oregon Trail. The trail in red

is a westward route.

Words to Know

Hauled

Pioneers

Wagon Train or Covered

Wagon

Civilization

To pull or drag

People that traveled west

A transportation system the pioneers used to get to Oregon

People living in a certain area

Daniella

2

Oregon Trail Back in the 1800’s many people were moving west. Many took the Oregon Trail. Now, this was a big decision so the pioneers had to prepare for everything, I mean everything. They had to prepare for even the most impossible things that could happen.

The pioneers never really knew when all of a sudden something could happen. Once the pioneers started to

travel west they were excited, but not too excited to not be cautious. There was some loss of lives, but the pioneers had to stay focused to keep going and moving west. The pioneers went through many hardships on the Oregon Trail. They could get diseases such as malaria, cholera, and mountain fever.

Still, there were some good things that happened such as, a trail helping lead the way to

Oregon, many good food and crops, and chances to buy or trade supplies found.

The Oregon Trail provided many crossings and that meant many tough decisions and many possible fates.

When pioneers finally got to Oregon and they were ready to start their new lives. They went through about five months on the trail with no civilization. The pioneers were going to start their new

lives but didn’t always have an exact plan! So, the pioneers had to make a plan and get to work. After the pioneers built their house and settled down, it was time for farming, growing crops, and cooking. The pioneers finally settled down and began their

new lives in the west.

For more information go to some of these websites to learn more:

http://worldbookonline.com/student/home

http://worldbookonline.com/student/kids

These are the pioneers moving along the Oregon Trail to Oregon.

Westward Expansion

People traveled on the Oregon Trail in covered wagons

Background In the 1800s America started Manifest Destiny, the policy that the expansion of the US was needed to gain more control. The US government encouraged settlers to settle the western land so the US could claim it as their own. It was a win-win situation because settlers from the east wanted to move west. Some were farmers who had heard of the luscious, fertile land west of the Rocky Mountains good for growing their cash crops. Some people got “gold fever” and thought they had a chance of finding gold and striking it rich. Some people were just looking for adventure, a fresh start or more space as the east was becoming crowded. Pioneers started their journeys west, traveling west in trains of covered wagons, thinking it safer to travel with others. The trip west though, was not an easy one. They could be raided by “Indians,” catch diseases like Cholera, get bitten by a rattlesnake, lose their supplies and lots more. For some, the trip was worth it and others, perhaps not.

Words to Know

Pioneer

Uncharted

Expedition

First person to explore territory

Unexplored

Journey

Danielle

2

Lewis and Clark’s Expedition President Thomas Jefferson made a deal with Napoleon, the ruler of France at the time, to buy the Louisiana Territory in 1803 for $500 per acre (about $15 million). After his purchase, Jefferson realized he had 800,000 square miles of uncharted land! He needed people to go and explore that land and so he called Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to the job. Lewis and Clark though, had individual jobs as well. Lewis would take animal, mineral and plant samples along the way to study. Clark would serve as a cartographer on the journey and would chart the land.

So Lewis and Clark gathered together a group of about 38 men and a few French boatmen. York, Clark’s slave came along too. The expedition left St. Louis in 1804. They arrived at the Hidatsa villages where they stayed at a fort they built which they called Fort Mandan from October of 1804 until April of 1805. The Mandan people, who lived nearby, were friendly with them and were good trading partners. When the expedition got ready to leave, the Mandan gave them advice. Tribes out west would think they were war parties and that they would need

horses to help them cross the mountain. They included that they would get the horses from the Shoshone people. Louis and Clark knew that in order to get the horses, they would need someone who could communicate with the Shoshone people. When Toussaint Charbonneau, a common visitor of the Hidatsa, heard of this, he immediately suggested that he and his wife Sacagawea, who spoke Shoshone, could accompany them. The translation process would go like this:

Sacagawea- Shoshone to Hidatsa

Charbonneau- Hidatsa to French

Libache (one of the men on the original expedition)- French to English

Another upside of having Sacagawea along was that with a woman, Native American tribes out west would know they weren’t a war party. On the way to the Shoshone villages and even after, when she decided to stay with the expedition, Sacagawea was also very helpful as she knew the land well and knew other useful things such as which plants were edible and which ones weren’t. The expedition finally reached the Pacific Ocean on November 8th, 1805, their final destination before returning.

Lewis Clark

Sacagawea

Westward Expansion

In the mid 1800s, people moved west for a better

life.

Background Imagine if you and your family traveled in a wagon for a couple of

months. How would you survive? In the 1800s, people would travel west for better farmland, to get gold, or just for a better life. First,

Thomas Jefferson bought land from France. Then, he sent explorers named Lewis and Clark to go explore the land. When they came

back, they told Jefferson that the land was good. When that news spread, people wanted to move west.

A covered wagon is a wagon with a white sheet over it. If you went west, you could not take too much with you, but this is how you

could travel. The most important thing that you would bring was food and water. And you had to bring a lot of that! There were

problems and hardships on the trail as pioneers traveled in covered wagons. One was Native American attacks, they were very rare

though. Another one could have been running out of food. If you did, you would hunt, fish, or try to find fruit. Water was hard to

find. Sometimes just taking water from lakes could make the pioneers sick.

This is map of the Oregon Trail which many people followed to go west.

Words to Know

Pioneers

Covered Wagon

Wagon Train

Gold Rush

The people who moved west

A wagon that pioneers traveled in that had a white sheet over it

A group of different

families who followed each other on the trail

When a lot of people move west to mine for

gold.

Halle

2

The California Gold Rush During this time period, there was something called the

California Gold Rush. This was one of the reasons why so many

people moved west!

It all started when someone

named James Marshall was building a sawmill for someone

else named John Sutter. They were in a business together.

When Marshall was checking the canal, he saw something

bright and shiny. Marshall thought it was gold! Marshall did some tests to see if it was

real gold. And it was real gold! Marshall went to Sutter to tell

him the big news. The two men did not want to spread the news.

They wanted to keep it a secret.

Soon after gold was found, some

more of Marshall’s workers also saw gold. Those other men

spread the news and it got around. Soon, it was in the

newspaper. The news spread pretty fast.

When so many people from so many places heard about this,

they started rushing west. They all hoped to strike it rich.

Millions of people came to try to find gold. Even people from all

over the world came! A lot of people did not find gold. But,

some got lucky! After so many different people came, the gold

became more and more rare. As time passed, the Gold Rush had

come to an end. Some people got rich and some did not. The

California Gold Rush was a major even during the westward movement.

Once people got west, they had to build a home out of trees,

sticks, dirt, and mud. The floors were made out of dirt. They also

had to make there own furniture. To make clothes, they

would have to sew or knit. For food, they would hunt and grow

crops. Natural resources were very important! Life could also

be very hard. Sometimes, winters could be harsh and

from that, you could get diseases and die. Some took the

risk and moved west, some did not.

To find out more about

Westward Expansion, visit

www.trueflix.com www.freedomflix.com www.worldbook.com

Westward Expansion Westward Expansion was an important part of American history. It took place in the 1800’s and people traveled

Westward Expansion WESTWARD EXPANSION was an important part in

American history. It all started when the US bought and claimed land from the West, since that land was owned by the US, many COLONISTS wanted to move west for new lives,

money, and farm the rich land. People who moved west were called PIONEERS. There were many ways for Pioneers to

move west, they could travel by ship, wagon, horse, train (late 1800’s) and other ways. Pioneers wanted to go to rich places like Oregon and California, so they took the famous Oregon Trail. They took wagons on the trail with animals to pull them. Also, the trail was very dangerous, there were diseases, NATIVE AMERICAN attacks, resource shortages, and wild

animal attacks. Wagons were used from the 1800’s to the 1900’s; trains were more popular after that.

These are pioneers traveling in wagons.

Words to Know

Pioneers

Colonist

Native Americans

Westward Expansion

People who traveled west in Westward Expansion

A person who settled in a place

The first people who lived in the US

Expanding the US by claiming/buying land from the West near the US

Andrew

2

The California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush was an important part of American history. It all started on January 24th, 1848.

One day, a man named Marshall James Wilson, who had the job to supervise the construction of John Sutter’s mill, found shiny specs near the river. At first he thought it was just the suns light, but then he picked up the shiny stuff and saw that it was gold! Marshall kept it a secret but then the workers at the construction site found out

and soon the word was spreading over the territory, country, and then the whole world!

Many people all over the world packed their belongings and traveled to California to strike it rich. Back then, in the 1800’s, gold was used as money or jewelry.

To get to California, people took trails and sea routes. There were 2 seas, Santa Fe Trail, Oregon Trail, and the California Trail.

There were many ways to mine or get gold. One way was panning, panning was getting a tray and holding it in the river, the river will collect specs of gold and the gold will fall in your pan. Also, there was another way of panning. People would collect dirt in their pan and dump water in it. The water would separate the dirt and gold. Another way to collect gold was to mine it. People used pickaxes or pipes that shoot out water to break dirt

or stone.

Westward Expansion played an important part in American history. People raced to the West to strike it rich, start a new life, and farm on good areas. It wasn’t that easy, there were diseases, food shortages, Native American attacks, dangerous

wild animals, and wagon or ship breakdowns. If you went back in time to travel west, where would you go?

For more information, go and copy this website and search “Westward Expansion”:

http://www.worldbookonline.com

Westward Movement The Westward expansion

happened in the 1800’s. Pioneers and people packed up for a better life in the west.

Westward Expansion In the 1800’s there were many reasons to move

west. In 1803, Lewis and Clark explored the Louisiana Territory. After that, people and pioneers packed up and headed to the west. Some people wanted to move west because they were facing problems at their east coast homes. A lot of people wanted to move west because they wanted better farming and more space to live. Some took the Oregon Trail to the West. Along the way to the West it was hard to cross-rivers and the wheels of wagons could fall off. Pioneers started their lives over again, had to build houses and grow crops again. In 1849 the gold rush began. It was important because it caused MANY more people to move west to try to find gold.

The Transcontinental Railroad.

Words to Know

Westward Expansion

Transcontinental Railroad

Immigrants

Moving west in the 1800’s

The

Transcontinental

Railroad is a

faster way to travel west

People who

traveled from

one place or

country to

another

Jenna

2

w

Transcontinental Railroad Lots of people liked to use

the Transcontinental Railroad to travel because it

was faster. Also, it was less

dangerous than a wagon.

Everyone from around the

world helped build the

Transcontinental Railroad. In

1865 Thomas Durant, an Irish

Immigrant, Chinese, and

slaves got hired to help build

the railroad. The

government gave the

railroad companies money.

Many southerners wanted

the railroad to have a

southern route because

slavery could be spread to

new territories and new

businesses and jobs.

Two companies would help

build the railroad across the

continent. The Central

Pacific Railroad would be

built east from Sacramento,

California. And the Union

Pacific Railroad would be

built west from Utah. After,

they would eventually meet

in Utah.

When they were building the

Transcontinental Railroad

they only had shovels,

wheelbarrows, picks, plows

and their bare hands. It was

hard being a worker building

the Transcontinental

Railroad. Some workers

could put 28 ft. of rails in

place every four minutes.

In conclusion, the Transcontinental Railroad was a safer, faster way to travel and less dangerous. It was hard building the Transcontinental Railroad and it took a long time, but it was worth it in the end.

Westward Expansion

This picture to the right is a map of the Oregon Trail.

Background Westward Expansion happened a really long time ago.

It’s when everyone packed up and left the eastern towns for the west. Most people left because they wanted to become wealthy, or for freedom. The settlers, or pioneers, who settled the west had traveled in covered wagons. They didn’t bring much with them. Pulling the wagons were horses, oxen, or any animal that could be strong enough to carry a lot of weight. The young children had to act like adults so that they wouldn’t get in anyone’s way. Along the way, gold was discovered, many people were in a rush to find gold, this is known as the Gold Rush. They were desperate! In some cases, when pioneers settled, they kicked the Native Americans out even though they were there first. Some Native American tribes were forced to leave, a famous event called The Trail of Tears. Packing up and leaving their home was the hardest for them.

This picture to the left is a map of the Louisiana Territory.

Words to Know

Settlers

Discovered

Desperate

People who stayed in a specific place

Found

To want or need very badly

Julia

2

Lewis and Clark Trail of Tears The Gold Rush Thomas Jefferson sent two people to try to find the “Northwest Passage.” One of the two men was William Clark, (1770-1838), and the other man was Meriwether Lewis, (1774-1809) also a skilled writer. The two men explored, discovered, and traveled for a long two-year journey. On the way they found new animals and kept a journal that kept track of where they traveled each day. They were to create maps of the west and report back what they found.

When the settlers finally arrived from their long journey, they made a change in other peoples’ lives. Andrew Jackson quickly made a decision to push out the Native Americans. At the time, it was 1838,in Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida. The Trail of Tears was when the Native Americans had to pack up and leave. Leaving their homes was hard! They couldn’t stand up for themselves. Andrew Jackson was too powerful. Native Americans died leaving their homes.

When gold was discovered, many people wanted to keep it a secret. They didn’t want to let other people steal their discovery. Soon the word got out, and the rush for gold began! This is known as the Gold Rush. People moved west in hopes of finding gold and striking it rich. New jobs were created; pioneers could be miners when they arrived in the West.

As you can see, Westward Expansion is a very important topic. It includes the Gold Rush, Lewis and Clark, Native Americans, The Trail of Tears, and more. To learn more about Westward Expansion, go to…

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