Experiencing U.S. Expansion: Southern Arizona - Part II

6. What two threats did Mexico face in its northern frontier in the mid-nineteenth century?

a. The people in northern Mexico faced renewed conflicts and fights with the Apache and O’odham people.

b. These people also faced the U.S.A., which was eager to expand into their territory.

7. Why did the Gadsden Purchase have such a great impact on northern Mexicans?

When the U.S. bought the piece of land in northern Mexico in the Gadsden Purchase, they were buying the land where many major northern Mexican cities and towns were on. This led the people living in these cities to feel very betrayed by their own government. Although not immediate, in the next few decades they had to learn to adapt to life in the U.S..

8. List two ways that cultural misunderstanding contributed to a growing conflict between U.S. settlers
and Apache groups.

a. When U.S. settlers began to move into the land acquired in the Gadsden Purchase, they were quick to make peace agreements with Apache groups. However, when they made an agreement, they assumed it was with all the Apache groups in the area. So, when other groups raided them, they got angry at the group with whom they had made peace agreements.

b. The second misunderstanding has to do with raiding as well. When the Apache raided the U.S., they assumed it was a malicious attack. In fact, it did not become malicious until the U.S. started retaliating. Before that, raiding was a key source of supplies for the Apache, and the U.S. did not understand this.


9. How did the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase spark a civil war in...

a. Mexico- Many Mexicans were disgraced by the territory losses in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase.  Most of these Mexicans blamed the losses on Mexico’s government and bad leadership, and argued that this and the economy and society needed a complete overhaul. At the end of a brutal Civil War, this goal was achieved.

b. the United States- The U.S.A. on the other hand, was gaining territory very quickly. However, this created an argument in the congress about whether or not these new states should be admitted into the Union as free or slave states. This bitter argument finally exploded in the form of a Civil War.


10. a. What did many U.S. settlers want U.S. policy towards the Apache to be?

Many U.S. settlers wanted the Apache to be punished for their deeds against America. They thought the most suitable method to punish them was through very violent means, such as war with all Apache. Some settlers even advocated extermination.

b. In what ways did this clash with the federal government’s Peace Policy?

The Peace Policy gave support and assistance to the Apache in exchange for them moving onto a set reservation called Fort Apache. The settlers in the area argued that they were not being punished enough for their actions, rather it seemed like they were being rewarded.

11. Why were the Apache hesitant to move onto reservations?

By nature, the Apache were migrant people. They moved according to the seasons and where the good hunting was. Putting them on a reservation did not fit their lifestyle. Many Apache also believed that this was just more U.S. treachery. They had heard stories of brutal wars with the Navajo people in New Mexico as the U.S. attempted to move them onto reservations, and thought that the Peace Policy might just be another excuse to kill many Apache that did not move onto the reservation.