Unit 51790s – 1860s
Westward Expansion
Chronology and visuals
Timeline / Visual Review
1793Change & Tension
Cotton Gin Invented
Eli Whitney’s machine speeds cotton cleaning and expands slavery in the South.
1794A Stronger Young Nation
Whiskey Rebellion
Washington sends troops; the new federal government proves it can enforce its laws.
1803Expansion to the Pacific
Louisiana Purchase
Jefferson buys territory from France for $15 million, doubling the size of the U.S.
1811Change & Tension
National Road Begun
Federally funded highway begins linking East to the western frontier.
1812–15A Stronger Young Nation
War of 1812
Second war with Britain; the Treaty of Ghent ends it and U.S. confidence grows.
1819Conflict & Compromise
Adams-Onís Treaty / Florida Cession
Spain cedes Florida to the U.S. and western boundaries are set.
1820Change & Tension
Missouri Compromise
Missouri enters as a slave state, Maine as a free state; slavery banned north of 36°30′.
1823A Stronger Young Nation
Monroe Doctrine
Monroe warns Europe to stay out of the Americas.
1825Change & Tension
Erie Canal Completed
Connects the Great Lakes to the Hudson River, transforming trade.
1830Conflict & Compromise
Indian Removal Act
Forces Native nations in the Southeast to move west of the Mississippi.
1836Expansion to the Pacific
Texas Independence
Texas breaks away from Mexico and becomes an independent republic.
1838–39Conflict & Compromise
Trail of Tears
About 4,000 Cherokee die during the forced march to present-day Oklahoma.
1844Change & Tension
Telegraph & Morse Code
Samuel Morse sends “What hath God wrought” from Washington to Baltimore, launching long-distance electric communication.
1844Conflict & Compromise
‘54°40′ or Fight’
Polk’s campaign slogan demands all of Oregon for the United States.
1845Expansion to the Pacific
Texas Annexation
The U.S. adds Texas as the 28th state, raising tensions with Mexico.
1846Opportunity & Harm
Oregon Treaty / Donner Party
Oregon split with Britain at the 49th parallel; settlers trapped in the Sierra Nevada.
1846–48Conflict & Compromise
Mexican-American War
War over Texas’s southern border; the U.S. occupies Mexico’s capital.
1848Opportunity & Harm
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo / Gold Rush
Treaty grants the Mexican Cession; gold is found at Sutter’s Mill.
1849Opportunity & Harm
Forty-Niners
Over 300,000 people rush to California hoping to strike gold.
1850Change & Tension
Compromise of 1850
California enters free; Fugitive Slave Law is strengthened.
1853Expansion to the Pacific
Gadsden Purchase
A $10 million land buy from Mexico finalizes the southern border.
1854Change & Tension
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Popular sovereignty replaces the Missouri Compromise line, sparking “Bleeding Kansas.”
1861Change & Tension
Civil War Begins
Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter, opening the war that growing sectional tensions over slavery and expansion had been building toward.
1869Change & Tension
Transcontinental Railroad
Coast-to-coast railroad completed at Promontory Summit, Utah.