When researching the topic of US Westward Expansion in the 1800s, one might emphasize the contribution of several specific historical events that were decisive for the overall entrance into the West of the continent. The strategy toward Western Expansion was implemented in the mid-1800s. Two significant events that were particularly important in that context were the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the California Gold Rush.
The former was one of the first steps toward expansion to the West. It was held between 1803 and 1806; during this time, the expeditors learned about the land, nature, and geography of the area (Petrelli, 2018). The California Gold Rush was a gold mining movement in the middle of the 1800s when many people traveled to the West for gold, which intensified Western Expansion (Conrad et al., 2021). The Lewis and Clark Expedition might be considered a more impactful event in terms of its contribution to Westward Expansion. It formed a solid background for future interventions; without the expedition, people would not have had enough information to start gold mining and other efforts to invade the West.
The validation for both of the discussed events was the American ideology that motivated Westward Expansion. Indeed, the ideology of Manifest Destiny was a prevalent justification for all the efforts that were made to encourage the settlement of the areas in the West. In particular, Manifest Destiny was an ideology that had a sacred meaning implying that the United States had an obligation before God to expand its democracy across the continent (Petrelli, 2018). Its impact on the Lewis and Clark Expedition was profound since this event was initiated by President Jefferson with the validation of serving God through the exploration of the West (Petrelli, 2018). In a similar manner, Manifest Destiny was a determining and encouraging ideology for the California Gold Rush, which was another tool for exploiting and populating the West.
References
Conrad, C., DeSilva, U., Bingham, B., Kemp, B. M., Gobalet, K. W., Bruner, K., & Pastron, A. G. (2021). Finny merchandise: The Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua) trade in Gold Rush-Era San Francisco, California. Journal of Anthropological Research, 77(4), 520-549.
Petrelli, M. (2018). Manifest Destiny: The American West as a map of the unconscious. Between, 8(15), 1-22.