Others set out to become teachers to educate those that moved westward. Travel on the National Road was reliable, and many thousands of settlers going westward in heavily loaded wagons got their start by following its route. American Manifest Destiny began in 1783 when Great Britain gave the United states all land between Atlantic ocean and Mississippi River and between the Great Lakes and Florida. Start studying Westward Expansion. Travelers were inspired by … End of the Frontier In 1890, the US government announced that the west had been explored. The National Road played a major role in the westward expansion of the United States, and its importance was comparable to that of the Erie Canal. Many would think of the most important factor as the gold rush of 1848, but before mass droves of people could move westward, an easier way of traveling had to be constructed and railroads were the answer.Before railways, the … This doubled the size of the United states. In 1832, when the U.S. government tried to enforce the terms of a treaty that demanded removal of the Sac from their major village Saukenuk on the Illinois side of the river. 1872), the figure of Columbia, representing the United States and the spirit of democracy, makes her way westward, literally bringing light to … The States had previously maintained a shaky balance in the Senate with an equal number of representatives from both Slave and Free … By 1830 the state was supplying the nation with about half its sugar supply. Only Utah, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Arizona had not been admitted as states from today's contiguous 48 states. In 1803 President Thomas Jefferson bought a huge land known as The Louisiana Purchase. The country now had 44 states. Interesting Facts about Westward Expansion and the Old West. Chief Black Hawk … This is known as Westward Expansion. Now for the women that trekked across the west. Thousands of women were motivated to move west by the Homestead Act in 1862. First Steps Towards Controlling Slavery and Westward Expansion. Facts, information and articles about The Oregon Trail, a part of Westward Expansion from the Wild West. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Of course, American Indians were already occupying those western lands, setting up conflict situations. Columbia and Westward Expansion: In the first half of the 19th century, settlers began to move west of the Mississippi River in large numbers. Many victorian women that moved here, had to learn new … As the free society of the North and the slave society of the South spread westward, it seemed politically expedient to maintain a rough equality among the new states carved out of … Finally, tobacco growers moved westward, taking slavery with them. Politicians were forced to deal with the issue of slavery and its westward expansion as early as the Missouri Compromise of 1820. ...The most underrated factor of westward expansion would have to be the railroad. In John Gast’s American Progress (ca. Westward Expansion (1807-1912) quizzes about important details and events in every section of the book. The … This act gave single women the right to claim their own land. Oregon Trail summary: The 2,200-mile east-west trail served as a critical transportation route for emigrants traveling from Missouri to Oregon and other points west during the mid-1800s.