Exploring the West

Exploring The West
CHapter 11; Lesson 1

By Taytum Stutzman

Immigrants & Pioneers

- Many people came to the United States from Europe in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

- They came because life was hard in Europe or they wanted to make money and have their own land.

- The people wanted to start farms, but the Appalachian Mountains were in the way.

The CUmberland Gap

​People used to travel over the big mountains called the Appalachians. One way was on a path made by Native Americans. This path went through a special place called the Cumberland Gap. A gap is like a low spot between mountains. The Cumberland Gap is where the states of Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky all meet.

One of the most famous people who went over the Appalachians was Daniel Boone. He was a pioneer, which means he was one of the first people to live in a new place.

A group of people hired Daniel Boone and about thirty others to make the path through the Cumberland Gap wider. They built a road called the Wilderness Road, which became the main way to travel west. Lots of people started going to Kentucky. In 1792, Kentucky became the fifteenth state in the United States. It was the first state west of the Appalachians.

Multiple Choice

Why was the Wilderness Road important?

• It helped people cross the mountains.

• People could go for a run on the path.

• Danielle Boone made his home here.

• A private company paved the road.

Americans Continue West

The trip on the Wilderness Road was hard. People who went west had to bring everything they needed. There were no stores to buy things along the way. They brought clothes, chairs and tables, and tools in big wagons. Even though the trip was hard, more and more people went west.​

Sometimes, people argued about making new states. In the 1780s, some people in North Carolina wanted to make a new state called "Franklin." It would be made of three special areas in western North Carolina. John Sevier, a brave soldier from the American Revolution, was chosen to be the leader of Franklin in 1785. But North Carolina took back the land.

In 1796, John Sevier became the leader of a new place called Tennessee. This time, the area became a real state in the United States. Tennessee got its name from a Cherokee village called Tansai.

More states kept joining the United States after Kentucky and Tennessee. The Northwest Territory was getting bigger, too. People used the Ohio River and other rivers to travel. They built towns along the rivers. By 1800, over 45,000 people lived in Ohio. In 1803, Ohio became the 17th state in the United States.​

New States

Multiple Choice

What was an effect of more settlers moving west?

• New states were formed.

• Improved transportation infrastructure in the South.
• Expansion of trade routes to Europe.
• Increased conflicts with Native Americans.

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The Louisianna Purchase

In the year 1801, Thomas Jefferson became our country's third President. He wanted to make our country bigger! But there was a problem. Our country didn't have any special places called ports on the Gulf of Mexico. Farmers in the west had to send their food on boats down the Mississippi River. They had to go to New Orleans, which was owned by Spain, to send their food to other places. The farmers really wanted a port in America where they could send their food!​

​In the year 1801, Spain gave New Orleans and a big piece of land called Louisiana back to France. President Jefferson was worried. He thought France might build more houses and stop people from moving west.

President Jefferson sent some helpers to France to talk to the leader, Napoleon Bonaparte. They asked Napoleon to sell them New Orleans. They also wanted to buy a place called Florida. France was getting ready for a big fight with Britain, so Napoleon needed money. He said he would sell all of Louisiana, a really big place, for just $15 million!

On April 30, 1803, they made the deal. This was called the Louisiana Purchase. It made the United States twice as big! Then, in 1819, the United States got the rest of Florida. Now, the United States owned all the land in the southeast!

​A Very Big Purchase

Multiple Choice

Why did France agree to sell Louisiana to the United States?

• To expand French territory in North America
• To strengthen alliances with Native American tribes
• Napolean needed money to fight a war.

Lewis and Clark

The Louisiana Purchase was a big piece of land that the United States bought. But nobody knew much about it! President Jefferson wanted to find out what was there.

President Jefferson picked his friend, Meriwether Lewis, to lead a big trip to explore the land. Lewis was an army officer, so he knew how to lead people. He asked his friend William Clark to help. Clark was also an army officer, and he was good at writing things down and making maps.

THe Corp of Discovery

Lewis and Clark wanted to explore a new land. They needed help, so they made a team of about 40 people. Their team was called the Corps of Discovery. One of the people on the team was York. York was a very good hunter and fisherman. He was owned by William Clark.

The team started their journey from St. Louis, Missouri, in May of 1804. They traveled in a boat up the Missouri River. Lewis and Clark made maps of the land and collected plants and animals to bring back with them.

In October, the team stopped for the winter. They built a small camp near a village of Mandan Indians. They called their camp Fort Mandan. At Fort Mandan, Lewis and Clark met a French fur trader and his wife, Sacagawea. Sacagawea was from the Shoshone tribe. Lewis and Clark asked Sacagawea to help them travel through the Shoshone lands.

In the spring of 1805, the Corps of Discovery left Fort Mandan and continued their journey.

The Expedition Succeeds

Lewis and Clark were on a big adventure! They wanted to explore a new land. They traveled for a long time, over 3,000 miles! In November, they finally saw the big ocean! Clark was so happy, he wrote in his book, "We see the ocean! Yay!"

The explorers stayed in a place called Fort Clatsop for the winter. In March, they started their long journey back home. It took them a long time, but they finally got back in September.

Lewis and Clark were brave explorers. They faced many dangers, but almost everyone came back safe. They made maps of the mountains and rivers. They brought back seeds, plants, and even animals. President Jefferson was very proud of them! They helped us learn more about the land that became the West.

Multiple Choice

What was the goal of the Corps of Discovery?

• To explore and map the land of the Louisiana Purchase.

• To establish trade routes with Native American tribes.
• To map the eastern coastline of the United States.
• To create a military outpost in the Rocky Mountains.

Pike in the Southwest

In 1806, Captain Zebulon Pike led an expedition to explore the southwestern area of the Louisiana Purchase. In what is now Colorado, he saw a "blue mountain," now known as Pikes Peak.

Pike and his men unknowingly entered Spanish territory. They were arrested but released a few months later. When Pike got back, he reported that people in Spanish territories needed manufactured goods. Later more American traders traveled to the Southwest in order to sell goods to Spanish settlers.​

Multiple Choice

What were the results of Pike's expedition?

• Pike's expedition confirmed the boundaries of the Louisiana Purchase.
• American traders could travel to the southwest and sell goods.

• Pike's expedition focused solely on the northern territories of the United States.
• Pike's expedition resulted in the establishment of new trade routes in Canada.