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