Writing Resources
The Beginning of the Westward Expansion In 1803 President Thomas Jefferson purchased the territory of Louisiana from the French The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the United States stretching out from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to New Orleans Jefferson believed a republic depended on an Independent virtuous citizenry for its survival he also believed that Independence and virtue go hand in hand with land ownership In order to provide enough land for his idea population the United States would have to continue expanding The westward expansion defined the 19th century American history By 1840 40 of the nation's population 7 million Americans lived in the trans Appalachian west Most people left their homes in the East in search of economic opportunity In 1845 John O'Sullivan a journalist put a name to the idea that helped pull many pioneers towards to western frontier According to O'Sullivan
