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Period: to
Westward Expansion
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Robert Fulton and Robert Livingston Demonstrate the Speed of the Clermont
Fulton and Livingston demonstrate the power of the steamboat by traveling from New York City up the Hudson River to Albany in 32 hours, a trip that would take a sailing sloop four days. -
Mexico independence
Mexico wins it's independence from Spain -
Erie Canal opens
When finally finished, it was the engineering marvel of its day. It included 18 aqueducts to carry the canal over ravines and rivers, and 83 locks, with a rise of 568 feet from the Hudson River to Lake Erie. -
Indian Removal Act is passed
In 1830 the Indian Removal Act was passed by the administration of President Andrew Jackson. It just passed through Congress by a single vote. President Andrew Jackson was convinced that the only solution to the Indian ‘problem’ was the complete removal of all natives beyond the Mississippi and now he had the law with which to accomplish it. No people would be more affected by this than the Cherokees. -
Texas Rebellion
when Mexican forces tried to take possession of the town cannon in Gonzales, east of San Antonio. The locals prevailed in this incident and, in other early encounters, the rebels pushed the paltry Mexican forces out of the area. -
Treaty of New Echota
A small group of Cherokee Chiefs signed the Treaty of New Echota. Although they claimed to represent the council and have its approval to make the treaty, this is a lie. The council had explicitly voted against this group having any authority. -
The Alamo is taken by Mexican Troops
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna's Mexican force of 4,000 troops lays siege to the town of San Antonio, where 200 Texans resist, retreating to an abandoned mission, the Alamo. After inflicting over 1,500 casualties on Santa Anna's men, the defenders of the Alamo are wiped out on March 6, 1836. The Alamo becomes a symbol of the Texans' determination to win independence. -
Santa Anna
Texans organized and took the Mexicans by surprise, capturing Santa Anna on April 21, 1836 at the Battle of San Jacinto -
Oregon Trail is opened
On May 22, 1843 nearly 1,000 settlersbegan an overland trip to the Pacific. The first group overcame numberous hazards. Despite being forced to abandon most of their pocessions, the group made it safely to Oregon, They opened the way to countless settlers to follow. -
Texas is admitted to the union
Texas is officially granted statehood and becomes the 28th state. -
Gold is found in california
An American carpenter finds gold at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, sparking a gold rush which brings tens of thousands of new settlers to California, establishing towns and cities, and accelerating the drive toward statehood. -
California is Admitted to the Union
Under the Compromise of 1850, engineered by Henry Clay, California is admitted to the Union as a free state. -
The First Transcontinental Railroad is Completed
The first transcontinental railroad is completed when the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads join their tracks at Promontory Point, Utah. The railroad rapidly affects the ease of western settlement, shortening the journey from coast to coast, which took six to eight months by wagon, to a mere one week's trip -
The Battle of Little Bighorn
George Armstrong Custer and his men are wiped out by Sioux forces while attempting to control the Great Plains and confine all Indians to reservations. The battle symbolizes the strength of the Sioux resistance, and the US Army is forced to pursue a long war of attrition, rather than go head to head with the Sioux forces -
The Dawes Severalty Act is Passed
The Dawes Act calls for the breakup of the reservations and the treatment of Indians as individuals rather than tribes. It provides for the distribution of 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land to any Indian who accepted the act's terms, who would then become a US citizen in 25 years.
