The Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion Overview

The Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion: Overview

• The Oregon Trail was a 2,000-mile route across the western frontier of North America, used from 1836 to 1869.
• The first organized wagon party traversed the trail from Independence, Missouri to the Willamette Valley, Oregon in 1836.
• Westward expansion encouraged people to explore the American frontier and establish lives in the west.
• People imagined the west as a land of possibilities, with wide-open spaces, freedom to roam, and new opportunities.

American Expansion and Manifest Destiny

• Americans had craved expansion since they first set foot on North American soil.
• Thomas Jefferson completed the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, laying the foundation for westward expansion.
• President John Quincy Adams paved the way for growth of the United States, focusing on expanding toward the entire continent.
• President James Polk accomplished a massive territorial expansion of the United States, annexing Texas from Mexico and winning the Mexican-American War in 1848.
• The idea of Manifest Destiny became popular, believing the United States was destined to expand its dominion and capitalism across the entire North American continent.

Notable Figures

• John O'Sullivan promoted the concept of Manifest Destiny through his newspaper, The United States Magazine and Democratic Review.
• William Walker attempted to invade parts of Mexico and Nicaragua, believing in the idea of Manifest Destiny.

Westward Expansion Trails

• Three main westward expansion trails existed: the Oregon Trail, the Mormon Trail, and the California Trail.
• The Oregon Trail, California Trail, and Mormon Trail traveled along the same general route but split in what is now Wyoming and Idaho, respectively.
• The Santa Fe Trail cut across the states of Kansas and New Mexico, eventually ending in Santa Fe.

The Oregon Trail and the Lewis and Clark Expedition

• The Oregon Trail was established early in the nineteenth century, primarily used by fur trappers after the Rush-Bagot treaty of 1817.
• Rudimentary trails were used by fur traders like John Jacob Astor, who bought land in the Oregon Territory and named it Astoria.
• The Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 paved the way for the Oregon Trail.

Life on the Oregon Trail

• People traveled the Oregon Trail for various reasons, including economic opportunity, the Second Great Awakening, and romantic stories of emerald green lands in the Oregon Country.
• The United States government offered free land in the Willamette Valley under the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850.
• Travelers often did not experience the adventure they had hoped for, facing long and arduous journeys, harsh weather, and diseases.
• Emigrants brought with them all they could carry from home, including provisions like flour, sugar, and rice.

Challenges and Dangers on the Oregon Trail

• Dangers encountered along the way included starvation, dehydration, gunshot wounds, accidents, drownings at river crossings, weather, and altercations with Native Americans.
• Disease was the single most prominent killer on the Oregon Trail, with illnesses like cholera, dysentery, mountain fever, measles, food poisoning, scurvy, smallpox, and pneumonia.
• The National Parks Service estimates that 10% of all emigrants on the trails died from an illness.

The End of the Oregon Trail

• If emigrants survived the long and arduous journey west, they typically arrived in Oregon City, Oregon, in late fall.
• Land grants were given to areas in the Willamette Valley, Idaho, or Wyoming.

Importance of the Oregon Trail

• The Oregon Trail remains one of the most important overland trails in the development of the United States.
• The trail established routes of trade from the East to the West, explored land undeveloped by Europeans, and provided new land for American settlers, expanding the United States' influence.
• However, expansion came with consequences, including the displacement of Native American tribes, who were forced onto reservations and denied the right to leave without permission.

The Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion: Overview

• The Oregon Trail was a 2,000-mile route across the western frontier of North America, used from 1836 to 1869.
• The first organized wagon party traversed the trail from Independence, Missouri to the Willamette Valley, Oregon in 1836.
• Westward expansion encouraged people to explore the American frontier and establish lives in the west.
• People imagined the west as a land of possibilities, with wide-open spaces, freedom to roam, and new opportunities.

American Expansion and Manifest Destiny

• Americans had craved expansion since they first set foot on North American soil.
• Thomas Jefferson completed the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, laying the foundation for westward expansion.
• President John Quincy Adams paved the way for growth of the United States, focusing on expanding toward the entire continent.
• President James Polk accomplished a massive territorial expansion of the United States, annexing Texas from Mexico and winning the Mexican-American War in 1848.
• The idea of Manifest Destiny became popular, believing the United States was destined to expand its dominion and capitalism across the entire North American continent.

Notable Figures

• John O'Sullivan promoted the concept of Manifest Destiny through his newspaper, The United States Magazine and Democratic Review.
• William Walker attempted to invade parts of Mexico and Nicaragua, believing in the idea of Manifest Destiny.

Westward Expansion Trails

• Three main westward expansion trails existed: the Oregon Trail, the Mormon Trail, and the California Trail.
• The Oregon Trail, California Trail, and Mormon Trail traveled along the same general route but split in what is now Wyoming and Idaho, respectively.
• The Santa Fe Trail cut across the states of Kansas and New Mexico, eventually ending in Santa Fe.

The Oregon Trail and the Lewis and Clark Expedition

• The Oregon Trail was established early in the nineteenth century, primarily used by fur trappers after the Rush-Bagot treaty of 1817.
• Rudimentary trails were used by fur traders like John Jacob Astor, who bought land in the Oregon Territory and named it Astoria.
• The Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 paved the way for the Oregon Trail.

Life on the Oregon Trail

• People traveled the Oregon Trail for various reasons, including economic opportunity, the Second Great Awakening, and romantic stories of emerald green lands in the Oregon Country.
• The United States government offered free land in the Willamette Valley under the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850.
• Travelers often did not experience the adventure they had hoped for, facing long and arduous journeys, harsh weather, and diseases.
• Emigrants brought with them all they could carry from home, including provisions like flour, sugar, and rice.

Challenges and Dangers on the Oregon Trail

• Dangers encountered along the way included starvation, dehydration, gunshot wounds, accidents, drownings at river crossings, weather, and altercations with Native Americans.
• Disease was the single most prominent killer on the Oregon Trail, with illnesses like cholera, dysentery, mountain fever, measles, food poisoning, scurvy, smallpox, and pneumonia.
• The National Parks Service estimates that 10% of all emigrants on the trails died from an illness.

The End of the Oregon Trail

• If emigrants survived the long and arduous journey west, they typically arrived in Oregon City, Oregon, in late fall.
• Land grants were given to areas in the Willamette Valley, Idaho, or Wyoming.

Importance of the Oregon Trail

• The Oregon Trail remains one of the most important overland trails in the development of the United States.
• The trail established routes of trade from the East to the West, explored land undeveloped by Europeans, and provided new land for American settlers, expanding the United States' influence.
• However, expansion came with consequences, including the displacement of Native American tribes, who were forced onto reservations and denied the right to leave without permission.