Other
Iowa Culture: American Indians and Westward Expansion
Learn the factors, forces or reasons people moved from one geographic area to another in early America.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Manifest Destiny
A look at the reasons for westward expansion, known as Manifest Destiny. Economic, religious, and cultural reasons pushed Americans from sea to shining sea.
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Manifest Destiny
Provides interesting facts and important information about the idea of Manifest Destiny and details of Westward Expansion in the United States over a fifty-year time span in the 1800s.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Revolutionary Limits: Native Americans
A good description of the actions and fate of the Native Americans who allied with the British to fight against the Americans. Find out that while the Native Americans had treaties with the British, they were not represented at the talks...
US National Archives
Docsteach: The Settlement of the American West
Young scholars will analyze primary sources with an eye for cause-and-effect relationships.They will identify the roles of government policy and technological improvements in the settlement of the West, and explain their impact on Native...
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Westward Expansion
A comprehensive overview of the expansion across the North American continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific in the west from 1841-1850. Provides a summary, list of interesting facts and a timeline.
Other
Geni: American Abolitionist Movement
Looks at the history of the abolitionist movement in the United States, the key people involved, and important events.
Other
Collector's Guide: Indian Territory: Phoenix Rising From the Trail of Tears
A discussion of the art forms preserved by the Native Americans who were resettled by the U.S. government in the Indian Territory.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Treasures of Am. History: Western Expansion
Shown are images and descriptions of artifacts that express the challenges that the migrants, Mexicans, and Indians shared in their quest for westward expansion in the United States during the 1800s.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: A Divided Nation
This page from the American Revolution Project of the University of Groningen discusses how the 1850s were a time of conflicting ideas between North and South regarding the expansion of slavery. Scroll down to the third paragraph and...
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: The Last Frontier
Describes the various forces and events that shaped the expansion of the western frontier in the mid- to late 1800s.
Tom Richey
Tom Richey: Conquest of the American West
This PowerPoint presentation will thoroughly illustrate the significant role the transcontinental railroad played in the economic and cultural development of the nation as it expanded west. What did the political leadership of the nation...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian American Art Museum: Lure of the West
Beautiful artwork from the more famous artists who depicted the people, places and things of the American West.
University of Colorado
University of Colorado: Academic Integrity Seminar: Frontier and American Character
This website is the reproduction of Ray Allen Billington's essay, "How the Frontier Shaped the American Character," (published in "American Heritage, The Magazine of History" in 1958). Billington analyzes the Turner frontier thesis in...
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Whose Land Is This? Conflict Between Native Americans & Settlers [Pdf]
A lesson plan from the producers of the 16-episode PBS series "Freedom: A History of US" designed to provide insights into the causes of the conflict between Native Americans and new settlers pushing west. Students will examine official...
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Scientific American: Wild Places: Growing Prairie
Explore efforts to return parts of the American prairie using controlled cultivation and grazing. Compare and contrast the effects of various levels of ground shade on new seedlings.
Mount Holyoke College
Hippo Campus: Excerpt From "The Significance of the Frontier in American History"
Read an excerpt from "The Significance of the Frontier in American History" by Frederick Jackson Turner.
Library of Congress
Loc: American Treasures: A More Perfect Union: Gallery B
This is a large site from American Treasures covering primary source documents from the early 1800s through the Civil War and on to Western Expansion.
Digital Public Library of America
Dpla: Building the First Transcontinental Railroad
This exhibition explores the construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad and its impact on American westward expansion.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: The Frontier, "West" and the American Experience
Outline of the American frontier and pioneer experience during westward expanison in the 1800s.
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Gilded and Gritty: Empire: Manifest Destiny and Beyond
A collection of primary resources, timeline, questions for discussion, and links to supplementary materials on America's westward expansion and the response to shifting roles and policies at home and abroad.
Library of Congress
Loc: The First American West: Ohio River Valley, 1750 1820
This site describes the early history of the Ohio River Valley. Topics covered include: Contested Lands, Peoples and Migrations, Empires and Politics, Western Life and Culture, and Constructing a Western Past. Links to primary source...
Library of Congress
Loc: Teachers: Women P Ioneers in American Memory
This is an online resource from the Library of Congress discussing Women Pioneers. Includes some audio and internal links for more information.
US National Archives
Docsteach: Indian Nations vs. Settlers on the American Frontier: 1786 1788
In this activity, students will compare and contrast two documents from the Revolutionary period written by 1) a combined group of Native American tribes and 2) an American territorial governor, Arthur St. Clair. Students will analyze...