Chapter 11 Growth and Expansion (1790-1825)

Section 2 Westward Bound

Moving West

• The first census in the US took place in 1790
• population of almost 4 million
• Most lived on east coast
• 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)
• 1806- Congress approved funds for a national road
• Went from Baltimore, MD to Vandalia, Illinois (Through Columbus, Ohio)

River Travel

• More comfortable

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• could carry more

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• 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

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

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

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• 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

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Canals

• Steamboat routes depended on existing rivers

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• plan to link New York City with the Great Lakes region

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

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

Section 2

1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D

Why did pioneer families tend to setting in communities along major rivers?

A. To gain greater protection � from Native Americans

B. To make it easier for them � to travel east

C. Because they provided fresh � drinking water

D. So that they could more easily � ship their crops to market

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

How did land and water transportation affect westward expansion?

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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

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Chapter 10 Section 2 Quiz

Westward travelers paid tolls to private companies in order to use sections of roads that had been laid with crushed stone or logs.�

1. True
2. False

Though steamboats made the shipping of goods cheaper and faster, they also caused a loss of business to river cities such as Cincinnati and St. Louis.�

1. True
2. False

Canals lowered the cost of shipping goods, united the growing country across great distances, and brought prosperity to towns along their routes.

1. True
2. False

The National Road went as far west as

1. Mansfield, Ohio
2. Cincinnati, Ohio
3. Vandalia, Illinois
4. Indianapolis, Indiana

Pioneer families tended to settle in communities

1. Far from others
2. Near the sea
3. Along the rivers
4. On railroads

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