The westward expansion was one of the greatest expansion in the history of the United States. One of the factors that influenced the westward expansion was the purchase of Louisiana, which made it possible for American citizens to migrate to the west. The increasing population of the United States was also crucial in advancing to the Westside. America second census to be documented in 1800 established a total population of merely 5.3 million. By 1850, the population had increase to 23 million. It is estimated that within this period, approximately 4 million Americans moved west(Vandenbroucke, 2008).
The expansion beyond borders notion that was popular at the time played a key role in the westward expansion. Pacific expansion was also a major factor where the Americans sought to control all the continental lands west to the pacific. The war of 1812 secured the existing United States boundaries where native tribes of old northwest were defeated. The Indian removal act of 1830 forcibly moved all the Indians from the southeast to the present Arkansas(Zhou et al., 2009).
The important factors outlined which I think played a key role in westward expansion was the territorial acquisition, which created room for the American citizens to occupy. The Louisiana territory was acquired creating a critical environment where moving west was inevitable. These deals were being done by the American to expand its territory. Another key factor that I think was crucial in advancing west was the increasing American population. The population in America was increasing at a very high rate and thus search of new land at the time was inevitable and the movement to the west was considered a better option where more than 4 million Americans moved.
References
- Vandenbroucke, G. (2008). The U.S. westward Expansion. International Economic Review, 49(1), 81-110. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2354.2008.00474.x
- Zhou, T., Yu, R., Zhang, J., Drange, H., Cassou, C., Deser, C., … Okumura, Y. (2009). Why the Western Pacific subtropical high has extended westward since the late 1970s. Journal of Climate, 22(8), 2199-2215. https://doi.org/10.1175/2008JCL12527.1
