Legendary Frontier, The: Unique Developments in Western Agriculture
Farm life on the Great Plains is different than farming in the Midwest or points east. Western farmers build sod houses, design steel plows uniquely shaped to cut through the sod, and develop barbed wire to keep grazing ..
Louisiana Purchase, The
Historian Peter Onuf explains that Thomas Jefferson's interest in the Louisiana territory was not driven by a desire to double the size of the United States. Knowing that France had an interest in New Orleans, Jefferson ..
Loyalty and Patriotism Following Both World Wars
Professor of history Gary Gerstle talks about the mood of the United States following World Wars I and II. In both instances, there was what Professor Gerstle calls an "...ideological intensity expressing itself in deman..
Madison's Dilemma
Historian Peter Onuf talks about the dilemma of James Madison, who was torn between following the Constitution as closely as possible, and yet recognizing the need to put financial resources towards what Professor Onuf c..
Manifest Destiny?: California Gold Rush, The
In January of 1848, gold is discovered in Northern California on land owned by Swiss immigrant John Sutter Before news spreads and the rush of people arrives in 1849, experienced miners--Californios, Native Americans, an..
Manifest Destiny?: Crimes Against Native Americans during California Gold Rush
Indian lands are confiscated by forty-niners in their rush to find gold. Tribal members who retaliate are killed or imprisoned, their children enslaved. By 1860 the Indian population is reduced from 100,000 to 30,000. Hi..
Manifest Destiny?: Factors Influencing the Outcome of the Mexican War
Initially, Mexican leaders think they have a good chance of defeating the Americans, but they have few troops to oppose United States advances into California and New Mexico. Mexico's defeat in Central Mexico where they ..
Manifest Destiny?: Geographic and Demographic Effects of the Mexican War
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo dramatically alters the geographic and demographic profile of the United States. Many of the Mexican negotiators work hard to assure citizenship rights for the Mexican afuera who live in t..
Manifest Destiny?: Lasting Impact of California's Brief Gold Boom
Despite its impact on California and life in the United States the gold rush lasts only a short period of time. As California's gold production tapers off other gold and silver discoveries begin to develop in Nevada, Col..
Manifest Destiny?: Manifest Destiny and the Colonization of Texas
During the 1840s, the United States gains more than a million square miles of new territory, the greatest wave of expansion since the Louisiana purchase. Much of the land is annexed in a struggle between the U..S. and it..