| Term Paper Title |
Effect Of The Environment On Western Settlers |
| # of Words |
594 |
| # of Pages (250 words per page double spaced) |
2.38 |
Effect of the Environment on Western Settlers
As the country grew and expanded, the American people where always one
to push their bounds. In 1763, we proudly, defied England's proclamation of the
year, and settled west of the Appalachian mountains. A little later, the
westward people pushed Indians, animals, and society to a place where no
American person had gone before. But all the while, one important factor
determined where they transported themselves, where they settled, and what they
did when they got there. This factor, the environment, profoundly affected the
settlers way of life, and other factors, such as the Indians and the railroad,
only aggravated a pre-existing condition.
The settlers of the late 1800's had only one way to get to the west-
along the pre-existing routes established by the courier-de-bois, Spanish
settlers, and the Indians of the past. These routes, which flowed through the
only passable areas of the Rockies, naturally led to Oregon and California,
which caused an increase in the population of these regions at the time. These
trails, such as the Oregon Trail to the north, the Mormon and Spanish Trail to
the south, and the California and Overland trails in between were very rough and
bumpy, making the trek no easy task.
On the home front, the environment played an important role on the
family life as well.. Women had a more prominent role in society as we shifted
from the urbanized east to the more agrarian west. They were expected to do more
than they did in the past, such as make the clothing everyone in the family wore,
while the man was off toiling in the desert in search for food. With an
increased sense of independence, women had gained rights to vote and
proprietorship. But with this increased sense of independence came the added
responsibility of being the family doctor, chef, and provider of family comfort
and support. W...Read entire document
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