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Hey there! Ready to explore? Today we are going to travel back in time to see how the United States grew from coast to coast!
In the 1800s, the United States grew very quickly. Millions of people packed up their lives and moved toward the Pacific Ocean. They called this land the 'frontier' because it was new to them, even though Native Americans had lived there for thousands of years.
To move west, families traveled in wooden covered wagons. They joined together in long lines called wagon trains for safety. Let's look at how a wagon moves across a bumpy dirt trail to reach its new home.
Why did people leave their old homes? We can group their reasons into 'push' factors, which made them want to leave, and 'pull' factors, which attracted them to the West. For example, crowded eastern cities pushed people away, while free farming land pulled them in.
Imagine a family in 1850 living in a tiny, expensive apartment in Boston. They want to start a farm but have no money to buy land nearby. Let's break down their choice to move West using push and pull factors.
- Identify the family's problem. They are crowded in a city and cannot afford land. This is a PUSH factor because it makes them want to leave Boston.
- Look at what the West offers. The government is giving away cheap farmland in Oregon. This is a PULL factor because it attracts them to the West.
- Compare the two forces. The push factor makes staying hard, and the pull factor makes moving look exciting and helpful.
- Make the decision. The family decides the pull of free land is stronger than the fear of the long journey, so they pack their wagon and go!
