Chapter 10 Growth and Expansion (1790-1825)

Section 2 Westward Bound

Moving West

•  The first census in the US took place in 1790

•  It revealed a population of almost 4 million

•  Most lived a few hundred miles from the Atlantic coast

•  Within a few decades this changed settlers moved farther west

•  1820 census- population of about 10 million people (2 million west of the Appalachians)

•  The trip west was not easy, the trip from New York City to Buffalo could take as long as 3 weeks

Roads and Turnpikes

•  The nation needed good roads for trade

•  Private companies built turnpikes (toll roads)

•  Most roads had a crushed stone base

•  The land was muddy in some areas, so companies built “corduroy roads”

•  Ohio asked the federal government to create a road to connect it with the east

•  1806- Congress approved funds for a national road

•  Went from Baltimore, MD to Vandalia, Illinois (Through Columbus, Ohio)

River Travel

•  Had advantages over travel by wagon and horse

•  More comfortable

•  Boats could carry more

•  River travel had two problems

•  1. Most major rivers in the region flowed in a north-south direction

•  2. Traveling upstream by barge against the current was extremely difficult and slow

Steam Engines

•  Were used in the 1780s and 1790s to power boats in quiet waters

•  Early boats could not go against currents

•  Robert Fulton developed a powerful steamboat to carry cargo and passengers up the Hudson River

•  1807- Fulton’s steamboat, the Clermont, made the 150 mile trip from New York City to Albany

•  In 32 hours

•  With sails it would have taken 4 days

Steamboats

•  Started a new age in river travel

•  Shipping goods became cheaper and faster

•  Regular steamboat service started along the Mississippi River

•  Steamboats contributed to the growth of river cities like Cincinnati and St. Louis

•  By 1850 there were some 700 steamboats carrying cargo and passengers in the US

Canals

•  Steamboat routes depended on existing rivers

•  Steamboats could not tie together the eastern and western parts of the country

•  De Witt Clinton developed a plan to link New York City with the Great Lakes region

•  The plan was to built a canal across New York state

•  Would connect Albany on the Hudson River with Buffalo on Lake Erie

Building the Erie Canal

•  Thousands of laborers (Many Irish immigrants) worked on the construction of the 363 mile Erie Canal

•  A series of locks were built

•  Could raise and lower boats at places canal levels changed

•  Many dangers were involved in building the canals

•  After more than two years, the Erie Canal open on October 26, 1825

•  Clinton boarded a barge in Buffalo and traveled to Albany

•  Then down the Hudson to New York City

Improving Canal Travel

•  Steamboats could not travel on the Erie Canal in the early years

•  The powerful engines could damage the earthen embankments

•  Instead, teams of mules or horses hauled the boats and barges

•  This was still faster than wagon

•  1840s- The canal banks were reinforced to accommodate steam tugboats that could pull the barges

•  More canals were then built

•  By 1850- there were more than 3,600 miles of canals

•  Canals lowered the cost of shipping and linked the regions of the growing country

Western Settlement

•  Between 1816 and 1821, 5 new western states were created

•  Indiana, Illinois, Mississippi, Alabama, and Missouri

•  There was a rapid growth of population west of the Appalachian Mountains

•  Families settled in communities near rivers

•  Families gathered together for social events

•  Men wrestled, women quilted

•  Families gathered for cornhusking

•  American population continued to spread westward

Essential Question

•  How did land and water transportation affect westward expansion

•  1. Better roads allowed easier travel and cheaper shipping

•  2. Steamboats brought cheaper and faster shipping and spurred the growth of river cities

•  3. The Erie Canal and other canals made shipping cheaper, encouraged the growth of towns, and united the country