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.

New Settlers in the West

1. Read pages 10 - 18  List three reasons why people in the United States moved west.

a. The land in the east had very poor soil, and many people wanted to establish farms to make a living. These people moved out west for the farmland, as well as the forests for timber and mineral resources in the mountains. They were followed by doctors, lawyers, politicians, etc. to establish towns.

b. The population in the United States had more than doubled in forty years, from 7.25 million to 23 million. The crowding in cities led people to move west. Also, a lot of this growth was European immigrants looking to make a life for themselves in the Western frontier of America, so this contributed to the expansion as well. 

c. For some Americans, the West was a place where they could establish their own government, completely free of the discrimination of the Eastern policies. The Mormons migrated to Utah for religious freedom, whereas many former slaves moved west because at first it was a safe haven for blacks. This changed when more and more Anglo-Americans moved from the south, however. As part of this social freedom, Wyoming gave women the right to vote, which encouraged many women to move west as well.

2. How did westward expansion contribute to sectional tensions in the United States?

                 

             As more and more people moved west, groups in the Louisiana Territory began applying for statehood. This brought up the question of whether or not these new states would be slave states or not. By this time, most states in the north had emancipated slavery, while the south relied on slavery for their economy. There had always been a balance in the senate, an even number of slave and free states. States recognized that if these new states entered the union on their side of the argument, they could advance their agendas much more easily. The north and south fought often on the subject. In 1819, Missouri applied for statehood as a slave state. The north was worried, because this would upset the balance of eleven slave and free states in the senate. Eventually, with the help of Henry Clay, an act was passed admitting Missouri as a slave state at the same time as Maine being introduced as a free state. This was only a temporary fix however, as more people were moving west, so this argument would be brought up again and again, continuing to build tensions.

3. What was the Peace Policy?

                

                The Peace Policy was a policy introduced by Ulysses S. Grant reassessing the opinions of the U.S. towards Native Americans. The policy was responsible for putting Indians on reservations, where they would be instructed by religious leaders on English, U.S. farming methods, and Christianity. All Indians not in the reservations would be considered hostile by the U.S. government. Essentially, the Peace Policy was another attempt and at the pacification and assimilation of Indians.  

Indian Removal Act

1. Read pages 10 - 12 (Stop at "Settlers Move West"). Why did the United States fight or negotiate with dozens of Indian groups for the lands in the Louisiana Territory?

In the 19^th century United States, the population was growing so incredibly fast that there wasn’t enough land for everyone. The majority of this population was farmers that wanted to move into the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. However, there were many Indian tribes still living in this territory. The new American settlers considered themselves superior to the Indians; therefore they could force them out of their land.

2. In what ways did the Cherokees assimilate U.S. values and customs?                                                                   

The Cherokees responded very positively to the U.S. efforts of assimilation. The Cherokee decided to create a united nation with a constitution and government inspired by the United States. They participated in the farming economy of the south. They made plantations with African slaves to grow the very profitable crop, cotton. In 1827, they even declared themselves independent to the United States.