Westward expansion brought about negative change in America. From economic troubles to harsh stereotypes, expansion has brought more harm than good. Expansion began with the unfair treatment of Native Americans in the 1800s, and lead to economic hardships such as the contamination of groundwater as a result of hydraulic fracturing. Westward Expansion affected the Native Americans’ freedom, safety, and their economy. This is important because although new settlers were gifted with new land and resources, Westward Expansion resulted in controversial disagreements and even more hardships.
As a result of European settlement, many populations of Native Americans were brought to near extinction. The hunger for a new and free word had blinded Europeans’ humanity towards the Native Americans that had lived in these lands for hundreds of years from the Atlantic to the Pacific in harmony and respect of their lands. The discovery of gold was of the most important factors that promoted violence against the Native Americans. When gold was discovered in California in 1848 it initiated a large amount of migrant traffic across the North American continent. This large influx of Americans brought more diseases to the Native Americans that devastated their tribes with great number of deaths.
Many Americans believed the plains Indians to be savages because of their life style. They have many different views on their land, religion, law and order and society. The harsh conditions of the Great Plains meant that both the new settlers and the Native Americans had to struggle to survive, and they fought hard against anyone who threatened their way of life. There was certainly little understanding between the various sides in the conflict. The conflict was seen as a 'clash of cultures'.
The Native Americans became angered and after the Massachusetts Bay Colony was founded in 1630, they also began to commit bad acts. For example, they killed Anne Hutchinson and her entire family. The relationship of the American Indians and Europeans was negatively impacted by the actions of both parties. The road for more settlement of New England and more conflict with American Indians was set as Europeans still wanted to expand their land and American Indians still wanted to protect their ground. In1606, the Virginia Company of London receives a charter from King James I of England for a settlement of the New World.
This allowed Americans to inhabit much more land. With the Indian Removal Act came a new enemy—the Indians. They thought they had done nothing wrong and Jackson was treating them unjustly. This hostile attitude led to many rebellions on the Indians behalf. Another reason was when Texas declared its independence in 1836.
In 1838, the US army forced the Cherokees from their homelands in the Trail of Tears into Indian Territory. As people moved west and Western Movement pushed on, more and more Indians were removed and eventually they were nearly annihilated from America. Western Movement is often given the stereotype by Americans as a glorious expansion of our brilliant country into the lands of the setting sun. But, this vision is not true. American expansion caused more harm than good.
The whites wanted the land for themselves so they more often times than not killed, beat and burned down the Native American's homes in order to show who was more superior. They fought back and forth constantly, but eventually the whites
This led to conflicts and therefore partially led to the destruction of the Native American way of life. The white Americans quickly claimed land and would move the Plains Indians around as they saw fit, usually affected by where gold had recently been discovered. This culminated in putting the Native Americans on reservations. In many of the agreements and treaties signed over land the settlers would claim never to go back on their promises “as long as grass grew” and “the mountains stood”. Breaking the promises would have shown the Native Americans that the settlers thought little of their intelligence, and also would instil a lack of trust in the settlers, as now every apparently solemn vow to not attack certain areas or to treat the Plains Indians better etc.
These unwanted intrusions into the lives of the Plains Indians spoiled their buffalo hunting lifestyles, damaged their social and cultural lives, and hurt their overall living conditions. The government intervention and technological developments in the 1850’s were detrimental to the entire Plains Indians society from which they could never recover. The development of the transcontinental railroad was the most harmful technological advancement to the Plains Indians, as it destroyed their buffalo hunting lifestyle. Although the railroad was extremely powerful and helpful to the white expansionists, it was powerful in a negative way for the Plains Indians. The transcontinental railroad was the means of transportation that motivated white expansionism.
The Europeans looked down on the Native Americans and referred to them as “savages” because their society did not match their own. The many different Native American tribes had their disagreements; however they all could agree that the arrival of the Europeans lead to the destruction of their people and cultures. In this essay, I will discuss the arrival of the three major European powers (England, France, and Spain), their different ways in colonizing, and how the conquering of the Americas destroyed Native American societies. I will use evidence from the textbooks, Indians in American History edited by Frederick Hoxie and The World Turned Upside Down edited by Colin Calloway to support my argument. The Natives in America possessed all of the aspects that human beings all over the world incorporated into their societies.