Westward migration

American westward movement, also known as the road of tears,

It refers to the activities of emigrating to the west and developing the west that began in the colonial period of North America, and it is also the development process of American cultural localization.

The early west refers to the area between the west of the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River, that is, the area between the long and narrow North American state 13 and the Atlantic coast east of the Mississippi River.

The area west of the Mississippi River is called "New West" and "Far West". In a sense, when western Europeans came to North America, there was a process of "westward advancement".

Strictly speaking, the "Westward Movement" began in the middle of18th century. Generally speaking, we can divide the westward movement into two stages.

The first stage, from the middle of18th century to the first half of19th world, basically involved crossing the Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River.

Then across the Mississippi River, villages and cities were established on the west side of the river, and one new state after another was established.

In the second stage, develop the "far west", that is, the Rocky Mountains and its west area. Developing this area is a long process.

However, judging from the specific historical development stage of "Westward Movement", this period is roughly from the middle of19th century to the end of19th century.

In this half century, the development of the far west can be subdivided into two smaller stages, bounded by civil war:

Before the civil war, the wave of immigrants to this area mainly began in the late 1940s.

After the civil war, the wave of "westward advancement", which was stagnant or slowed down by the civil war, surged more violently until the end of the century.

1830 In May, President andrew jackson passed the Indian Immigration Act to escort Indians out of the area east of the Mississippi River.

In the westward movement of the United States, a large number of Indians were slaughtered and others were forced to move to poor areas in the west. The second small-scale war happened in this way.

At the same time, the United States also expanded to the west of the Mississippi River and annexed large areas of France, Spain, British colonies and Mexico by means of purchase and war.

After the American Civil War broke out, in order to arouse the enthusiasm of the broad masses of the people to participate in the war against the southern rebellion,

President abraham lincoln signed the homestead act. This law is the most democratic land policy in the western development of the United States, which has enabled a large number of poor people to obtain land and greatly promoted the development of the western region.

The westward movement had a great influence on American political and economic life.

The vast western land is merged into the United States, making the United States a country with a vast territory and rich natural resources; The development of the western region,

Leading to large-scale railway construction and a large number of immigrants outflow, the United States has formed a broad domestic market.

By the end of 19, the United States had formed a unified railway network. At this point, the historical process of "Westward Movement" came to an end. Its symbol,

As the US Census Bureau announced at the end of 19: "Most undeveloped land has been occupied by independent settlers, so it cannot be said that there is a border zone."