Westward Expansion

Santa Fe Trail

Before the Santa Fe Trail For centuries prior to the Santa Fe Trail, trade took place between the Great Plains Indians and early settlers of the Texas panhandle. As trade routes expanded along the Rio Grande, commerce inevitably reached the Spanish colonists of New Mexico—but Spain had declared trade with Native Americans illegal. Still, many […]

Buffalo Soldiers

Who Were the Buffalo Soldiers? No one knows for certain why, but the soldiers of the all‑Black 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments were dubbed “buffalo soldiers” by the Native Americans they encountered. One theory claims the nickname arose because the soldiers’ dark, curly hair resembled the fur of a buffalo. Another assumption is the soldiers […]

Oregon Trail

Missionaries Blaze the Oregon Trail By the 1840s, the Manifest Destiny had Americans in the East eager to expand their horizons. While Lewis and Clark had made their way west from 1804 to 1806, merchants, traders and trappers were also among the first people to forge a path across the Continental Divide. But it was […]

Manifest Destiny

Historian Matthew Pinsker gives a crash course on the concept of “manifest destiny” and the seeds of westward American expansion.

This Day in History: 05/10/1869 – Transcontinental Railroad

Sacagawea

In 1804, Jefferson sends a team to explore lands acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. The Corps of Discovery will travel nearly 8,000 miles over three years, reaching the Pacific Ocean and clearing the path for westward expansion.

The Buffalo Soldiers at San Juan Hill: What Really Happened?

Some later accounts of the battle, including Teddy Roosevelt’s, downplayed the Black troopers’ crucial role in the US victory.

The Harrowing Rescue Missions to Save the Donner Party Survivors

As the Donner Party fought to survive in the snowy Sierra Nevada mountains, four brave rescue missions ensured some traumatized members made it out alive.

The Transcontinental Railroad’s Dark Costs: Exploited Labor, Stolen Lands

Chinese immigrant workers and Indigenous tribes paid a particularly high price.