Contested Territories

Theme 2

This expansion affected many different groups of people in a variety of ways — offering opportunities to some, and causing dispossession, loss, and conflict for many others.

The movement of new peoples onto land that belonged to indigenous nations and Mexico created loss along with opportunity. Hundreds of thousands of Indians were dispossessed of their territories, livelihoods, and autonomy. Even groups like the Cherokee of the Deep South, who assimilated many elements of Anglo American culture, were forced from their lands, though not before ultimately challenging white encroachment in federal courts. Many Mexicans also lost their land, although the process of dispossession was more gradual and less complete. Hundreds of thousands of enslaved African Americans were taken west to Alabama, Mississippi, and beyond.

Many white men sought economic opportunity in the West, often through farming and mining. Many of them, however, did not find what they were looking for. Some groups of people—such as African Americans, Mexicans, Irish and eastern European immigrants, and women—faced steeper odds, for Western society was very race-conscious and male-dominated.