The History of Thirteen Colonies Foundation

While the U.S was trying fight to Great Britain and be their own country, they had many wars to fight and obstacles to overcome. There were many events that led the thirteen colonies from a newly independent country to a transcontinental nation. There was also many things that benefited to the formation of the United States. Some of those things were The War of 1812, Westward Expansion, the Mexican-American revolution, the annexation of Texas, and the Gold Rush. All of these things combined helped shape the U.S.

The War of 1812 was started because of the impressments by Great Britain. This meant that Great Britain was capturing American Naval men and making them fight against France during the Napoleonic Wars. This went on for many years and the U.S could do nothing about it, but after years of impressment by the British, the Treaty of Ghent was signed by both the British and the Americans on December 24, 1814. Both parties signed the Treaty, but not after multiple failed attempts and negotiations between the two.

What The Treaty of Ghent did was end the War of 1812. After it was signed Americans had believed they had won the war, but there was no real winner. The signing of the Treaty boosted the citizens confidence, but this wasn’t after the many losses by the British. “The United States suffered many costly defeats at the hands of British, Canadian and Native American troops over the course of the War of 1812, including the capture and burning of the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., in August 1814.”(War of 1812 1). Overall The War of 1812 was a hard fought war where many americans lost their lives. This war was meaningful because it gave the United States self-confidence and made them believe that they could defend their nation against all odds. After this “The Era of good feelings” happened because after the win Americans felt whole as a nation and were proud of themselves. The war helped the Americas growth because the States got the British to quit the impressments and also had peace with Britain for a while.

Westward Expansion is one of the most important things of the 19th century. First was The Louisiana Purchase, which was a purchase made by the U.S to the French government for land that doubled the size of the U.S. “In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson purchased the territory of Louisiana from the French government for $15 million. The Louisiana Purchase stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to New Orleans, and it doubled the size of the United States”(Westward Expansion 1). To Jefferson, Westward Expansion was the key to the nations health. He believed that for our nation to be successful, it depended on “virtuous citizenry for its survival, and that independence and virtue went hand in hand with land ownership, especially the ownership of small farms”(Westward Expansion 1).

Next is The Mexican American war which was started in 1846 by James Polk. Polk claimed that the Mexican army invaded US grounds, but the Mexican Army never actually did. The importance of this war is that the U.S gained what is modern day California and New Mexico. Another thing that is important to the United States is The Texas Revolution. Also known as the Texas War of Independence. After a battle between thousands of troops, Texas finally broke away from Mexico and became an independent state. “Texas sought annexation by the United States, but both Mexico and antislavery forces in the United States opposed its admission into the Union. For nearly a decade, Texas existed as an independent republic,”(Texas Declares Independence 1). Since both countries denied its admission to the union and Texas was in limbo, it became its own country momentarily. This lasted from 1836 until 1845 when Texas finally agreed to join the United States. It then became the 28th state on December 29, 1845. Many things contributed to the strength and independence of the United States. Because of these things the US had self-confidence and believed that they would become their own country and survive independently. Which they did.

The Gold Rush of the 1800s transformed the United States’ domestic economy as well as human migration. The Gold Rush was the biggest mass migration in United States history. Before the Gold Rush, California’s population was very low, and it was not an industrialized or modern place. It had just over seven thousand people living there in January of 1848. After Sutter’s discovery of gold in California, more than one hundred thousand people moved to the California Territory. Along with the population increase, many merchants also showed up. “more money was made by boomtown merchants than was generated through actual mining operations. Merchants had a captive audience who could pay exorbitant amounts for needed items”(Facts about the Gold Rush and Its Economic Effects 1).

As said above, the merchants were very successful and even made more money than some of the miners did. Since the Gold Rush caused a massive population increase in such little time, it got noticed by the U.S government and somewhat caused California’s entrance into the Union in 1850. Because of the financial boom and increase in population, it made the area look appealing to U.S. politicians. As California boomed, agriculture and transportation saw a serious increase thanks to the Gold Rush. New roads were being built, along with bridges and railways. Because of this California became a leading state in terms of agricultural production. The Gold Rush was very important to California’s development as a state.

On July 4th, 1776 the United States gained its independence and was no longer under anyone’s rule. Overall, there were many things that happened in the formation of the United States. These things made the U.S. what it is today. Through all the casualties and battles, the United States came out on the other side successful. They wanted to be independent and be their own country and they did.