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Primary
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: Gilded and Gritty: Empire: Manifest Destiny and Beyond

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of primary resources, timeline, questions for discussion, and links to supplementary materials on America's westward expansion and the response to shifting roles and policies at home and abroad.
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Article
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Teacher Serve: The Religious Origins of Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
Essay discussing Manifest Destiny and divine providence in westward expansion. Questions for student writing and discussion, scholars debate and links to related resources.
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Website
PBS

Pbs: Prelude to War: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
An introduction to Manifest Destiny - the period in American history covering continental expansion. In sharp contrast is Mexico's struggle to recover after gaining its freedom from the Spanish. Links and drop down menus provide detailed...
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Unit Plan
Other

Humboldt Univ.: Political, Economic and Social Consequences of Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
An extensive look at the consequences of manifest destiny, with emphasis on six different topics for student discussions. These include the growth of a national market economy, the impact of drastic economic changes on American society,...
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Lesson Plan
Stanford University

Sheg: Document Based History: Reading Like a Historian: Manifest Destiny

For Teachers 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Learners use primary source documents to investigate central historical questions. In this investigation students use nineteenth-century maps and art, and consider the roots of American exceptionalism.
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Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source Set: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
This collection uses primary sources to explore the idea of Manifest Destiny and its influence.
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Article
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Manifest Destiny: Philosophy That Created a Nation

For Students 9th - 10th
A discussion of how Manifest Destiny became a philosophy that justified and fueled Americans' ideas about expansion and annexation of new territories.
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Article
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Manifest Destiny: Components of Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
A discussion of the ideas that fueled Americans' belief in Manifest Destiny, including religious conviction and a sense of mission that they needed to dominate the land from coast to coast. This led to the drive to displace Native...
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Article
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Manifest Destiny: Many Shades of Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
A discussion of the other guises of Manifest Destiny, including imperialism, yellow journalism, the idea of the white man's burden, the Monroe Doctrine, and the Roosevelt Corollary.
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Article
US Department of State

U.s. Department of State: Office of the Historian: Milestones: 1830 1860

For Students 9th - 10th
Concisely written accounts of three important events in the history and shaping of Texas: the Annexation of Texas, the Mexican-American War, and the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo.
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Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Manifest Destiny

For Students 5th - 8th
A look at the reasons for westward expansion, known as Manifest Destiny. Economic, religious, and cultural reasons pushed Americans from sea to shining sea.
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Study Guide
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
This Khan Academy resource provides notes for American History. "Manifest Destiny" is explained on this resource, along with the implications associated with expansion of the North American continent.
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Primary
History Tools

History Tools: John O'sullivan Coins the Phrase Manifest Destiny 1845 [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
What was "manifest destiny"? In this excerpt, learn the role race played in American expansionism and the proposed addition of Texas to the United States.
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Handout
Museum of the City of San Francisco

Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco: William Walker

For Students 9th - 10th
This is an in-depth site from the Museum of San Francisco covering the adventures of William Walker, including his conquering of Nicaragua.
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Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex: Manifest Destiny and Westward Expansion

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars engage in a discussion of "Manifest Destiny" using a timeline of events from 1830 - 1860, and a biographical sketch of a real person who lived during that time period. During the discussion, students will use the biography...
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Article
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Us History: 1844 1877: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
In the mid-nineteenth century, newspaper editor John O'Sullivan coined the term 'manifest destiny' to describe the belief that God intended for the United States to occupy North America from Atlantic to Pacific.
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Unknown Type
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Us History: 1844 1877: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
A quick comprehension check over the Manifest Destiny.
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Primary
Digital Public Library of America

Dpla: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
From twentieth-century posters, monuments, and letters to nineteenth-century maps, biographies, and paintings, this set allows students to gain a greater understanding of how perceptions of manifest destiny have changed over time.
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Lesson Plan
iCivics

I Civics: Manifest Destiny

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students will learn about the ideology of Manifest Destiny and how it affected different populations and demographics of the U.S. during its expansion.
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Lesson Plan
Ohio State University

Osu History Teaching Institute: Manifest Destiny and Westward Expansion

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This lesson looks at ways that the ideology of Manifest Destiny expressed both national political objectives and the goals of ordinary men and women who settled the west.
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Lesson Plan
Cyberbee

Manifest Destiny: Clash of Cultures

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
A unit plan about the Manifest Destiny that includes an explanation of the term as well as additional resources.
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Article
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Manifest Destiny: The New Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
While many thought that the doctrine of Manifest Destiny had spent itself when Americans reached the Pacific Ocean, it could also be seen to extend beyond the shores of the United States. For example, Hawaii and Alaska were acquired later.
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Handout
University of Groningen

American History: Essays: Manifest Destiny: To the End of Time

For Students 9th - 10th
Explains what the term 'Manifest Destiny' meant during the expansion of the frontier as the United States grew and consolidated its borders.
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Website
Digital History

Digital History: Manifest Destiny

For Students 9th - 10th
A brief explanation of where the term "manifest destiny" came from, and a look at how the term meant different things to different segments of American society.