US National Archives
National Archives: Exploring the Western Frontier With the Records of Congress
Students will analyze the impact of the frontier on American life and the role Congress played in settling the frontier. Included are worksheets, Turner's Thesis, and reflection questions. Primary sources provided are petitions for...
Christian Science Monitor
Christian Science Monitor: What Kids Did on the Western Frontier
An interesting article addressed to students discusses the life of children on the western frontier, about the time of the "Little House" stories of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Other
Texas Beyond History: Texas and the Western Frontier
Read about the expansion of the frontier in and around Texas during the middle of the nineteenth century as the Civil War was coming to an end.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: The Last Frontier
Describes the various forces and events that shaped the expansion of the western frontier in the mid- to late 1800s.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Transportation to the Western Frontier
There were several modes of transportation for early settlers to use when they moved to the west. Students will research and document four modes of transportation using the Internet and print resources in the library.
Other
19th Century Forts: Texas Frontier Clash of Cultures
Scattered across Texas are the remnants of a fierce defense system - forts. This site talks about the fort system as a whole. There are detailed links to information about specific forts in the state. An interactive student activity...
Curated OER
Etc: Maps Etc: Pioneer Settlements on the Western Frontier, 1700s
Pioneer settlements on the western frontier.
Other
Conner Prairie: Western Immigration
This Conner Prairie Museum site explores the western immigration throughout the Midwest during the 1800s. Content details the incentives for migration, when it happened, the primary routes followed, and more.
Blackdog Media
Classic Reader: "Forest & Frontiers: The Indian Parents" by Anonymous
This is the full text of the novel Forest & Frontiers by an Anonymous author. Captain William Wells was a noted hunter and ranger in the western country. He was captured by the Indians when but a child, and raised among them.
Scholastic
Scholastic: Our America: Western Expansion
Reviews of children's literature, student activities, and interactive games from Scholastic that enrich a student's understanding and appreciation of western expansion before the Civil War.
PBS
Pbs: The West: Frederick Jackson Turner (1861 1932)
This PBS website provides a brief biographical sketch of Frederick Jackson Turner, and an overview of his theory regarding the significance of the American western frontier as the defining experience in the development of the American...
New York Public Library
In Motion: African American Migration Experience: Western Migration: To Kansas
From the extensive site about African-American migrations, this part of the site focuses on Exodusters and African-Americans who moved to Kansas after the Civil War. Read first-person accounts and see photographs of these hardy...
Curated OER
Etc: Maps Etc: The Western Frontier and Pontiac's Rebellion, 1763
A map of eastern North America and the Northwest Territory in 1763 during Pontiac's Rebellion at the end of the French and Indian Wars. The map shows the general tribal lands east of the Mississippi River of the Ottawa, Potawatomi,...
US Geological Survey
Usgs: The Four Great Surveys of the West
This site provides historic images of the expanding frontier taken by military and private citizens from 1861-1912.
PBS
American Experience: Buffalo Bill
This 1-hour documentary presents a portrait of William Cody, also known as Buffalo Bill. A western frontier legend in the 1880s, his Wild West Show travelled the globe making the American West into the American story.
Library of Congress
Loc: African American Mosaic: Western Migration and Homesteading
Contains text and photos on the African-American exodus to the West. Includes primary source documents and maps from the era.
Other
University of Western Ontario: Early Writing in Canada: Catharine Parr Traill
Excerpts of letters written by Catharine Parr Traill, which she collected and published, along with her journals, in The Backwoods of Canada (1836). In these excerpts, she writes about her arrival in Newfoundland and a journey to Quebec.
Other
Western History Genealogy: Digital Images: Native American Women
A picture gallery with information about the roles that Native American women played in everyday life in the late 19th century in the West.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Utah History Encyclopedia: Outlaws in Utah
This site discusses the cultural icon of the western "outlaw" in the context of the state of Utah.
Nebraska Studies
Nebraska Studies: Pioneer Children: Games, Toys, and Recreation
Learn about the lives of pioneer children whose families moved to Nebraska during the period of Western Expansion. Topics include toys, games and other activities for enjoyment.
Library of Congress
Loc: Encountering the American West: Ohio River Valley 1750 1820
This is a PDF of the information from LOC of the exhibition of America's move to its first West, that of the Ohio River Valley. Discussion includes these topics: Contested Lands, Peoples and Migrations, Empires and Politics, Western Life...
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Homestead Act
The purpose of the Homestead Act of 1862 was to shape the future of the Western regions of the United States by taming the region by populating the area with farmers. This article provides an overview of this important political incident...
OpenStax
Open Stax: u.s. History: The Westward Spirit
From a chapter on America's expansion westward in a history textbook. This section looks at how Americans felt about westward expansion in the mid-1800s, and ways that the federal government promoted migration. Includes review questions.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Utah History Encyclopedia: Statehood for Utah
This site provides discussion of Utah statehood from the Encyclopedia of Utah History.
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