Manifest Destiny

Manifest Destiny is the belief that the United States is destined to expand its boarders and become a supreme power. During the early nineteenth century, immediately after the war of 1812, the migration west was a representation of American ideals; geared to spread institutions, democracy, and create a new and better society. The rising tide of Westward migration shifted American interests and insinuated tensions between the North and South. With the admissions of new states into the Union each side feared a threat of inequality, especially when it centered on the struggle between pro-slavery and anti-slavery. As the country expanded westward the economic interests and policies within the country began to differ depending on location. There are many opinions and interpretations regarding Westward Expansion and as some historians who study this period considers it as an economical opportunity to increase the American empire. Conversely, it can also be seen as the growing division within the American political sphere. Therefore, the question that arises when studying this period is whether, the benefits outweigh a nation being divided. J Turner is the author of the book, Rise of the New West, Colonization of the West, and in his writing he investigates the period of Western migration and the economical and powerful ideals it furnished. Turner argues that this movement clearly marked a divide between the South and West by the close of the period. The Western lands were areas of great opportunity for people because of, “the existence of a great body of land offered at so low a price inevitably drew population toward the West” (Turner 306). After the Louisiana Purchase, the lands were apparently free which attracted settlers, especially those seeking a new beginning or even a better life. There were also those who were dealing with the distress from the War of 1812. Poor whites in the North East who could not compete in the growing market and poor Southern