Westward Ho Between the
California Gold Rush and the
Civil War, Americans, in growing numbers filled the
Mississippi River Valley, the southwest territories, and the new states of
Kansas and
Nebraska. During the war, gold and silver discoveries drew prospectors—and later settlers—into
Oregon,
Colorado,
Nevada,
Idaho, and
Montana. But, the most rapid migration occurred after the
Civil War.
One factor in encouraging settlers to move west was the
Homestead Act, passed in 1862, which allowed settlers to claim 160 acres of land for free. Another important factor was completion of the first transcontinental railroad in 1869 which led to much more rapid Western migration.
Westward expansion had serious consequences for
Native Americans since continental expansion implicitly meant the occupation and annexation of their lands. The United States continued the European practice of recognizing only limited land rights of indigenous peoples and sought to expand into the west through the nominally legal purchase of
Native American land in treaties. In many cases, these treaties were negotiated and signed by tribal members who didn't have the authority to do so, and in some cases, by signers who lacked knowledge of what they were signing. Despite the legality of a treaty, once one was signed, the government often used force to move the
Indians from their homelands.
