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...
PBS
Pbs: Westward Expansion
Customize this 19th century map to show different cities, territories, and native lands in addition to the travel routes of the westward movement.
C3 Teachers
C3 Teachers: Inquiries: Westward Migration
A comprehensive learning module on the westward movement that took place prior to the Civil War. It includes three supporting questions accompanied by formative tasks and primary source materials, followed by a summative performance...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: America's History in the Making: Contested Territories
This site highlights the westward expansion of settlers in North America and the effects this expansion had on Native Americans between the Revolutionary and Civil Wars.
Other
California State Parks: Gold Rush
The California State Parks presents a brief unit on the California Gold Rush including three lessons which begin with the westward movement to California for gold, the actual process of mining for gold, then the effects of the rush on...
Other
Arabia Steamboat Story
The story of the Arabia is tragic; however, the adventure of the rediscovery of the steamboat is fascinating. Take a glimpse back in time at the cargo brought back to life: French perfume, guns, bottles, buttons, and bells; all items...
Library of Congress
Loc: Global Gateway: Meeting of Frontiers
From cossacks to cowboys, this Library of Congress special online collection looks at American westward exploration and expansion, and Russia's eastward reach into and conquest of Siberia. Includes historical information and timelines,...
Utah Education Network
Uen: Blast Through the Past: Transportation & Movement in Utah [Pdf]
Fourth graders will discuss the different types of transportation prior to the transcontinental railroad. They will also write an essay using the information discussed to present the pros and cons of transporting eggs to big cities by...
National Women’s History Museum
National Women's History Museum: Sacagawea
Sacagawea is best known for joining Louis and Clark on their expedition westward from the Mississippi to the Pacific Coast.
Digital History
Digital History: Explorations: Children and the Westward Movement
Read first-hand accounts to learn about the children who made the journey west to California, Utah, Oregon and other destinations in the mid-1800s.
Library of Congress
Loc: Billy the Kid: Perspectives on an Outlaw
This lesson relates to the westward movement in the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Students analyze the role that gunfighters played in the settlement of the West and distinguish between their factual...
Other
Smith D Ray: Earliest Settlement Routes to Tennessee
"A short history of the migration from the east coast to Tennessee highlighting the trails, paths, and roads used." A well-researched site.
Other
American Mountain Men: Mountain Men and the Fur Trade
On-line research center features numerous resources dedicated to the history of the Mountain Men in the American West. This project includes primary sources, images, maps, artwork, newspaper articles, artifacts, and links to related...
San Diego State University
Sdsu College of Education: Westward Movement
A group of organized lessons provides ideas for teachers when planning a unit on westward expansion in the US. Some activities include planning what to pack in your wagon, learning what obstacles were faced, mapping, and more.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: On the Oregon Trail
In this lesson plan, students will consider On the Oregon Trail. Worksheets and other supporting materials can be found under the Resources tab.
US National Archives
Docsteach: Indian Nations vs. Settlers on the American Frontier: 1786 1788
In this activity, students will compare and contrast two documents from the Revolutionary period written by 1) a combined group of Native American tribes and 2) an American territorial governor, Arthur St. Clair. Students will analyze...
Read Works
Read Works: Westward Expansion Westward Expansion Timeline
[Free Registration/Login Required] A timeline of westward expansion in the United States. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: Movement South and Westward
Following Eli Whitney's invention in 1793 of the cotton gin -- a machine that separated raw cotton from seeds and other waste -- the cotton market boomed. Planters in the South bought land from small farmers who frequently moved farther...
Other
Iowa Culture: American Indians and Westward Expansion
Learn the factors, forces or reasons people moved from one geographic area to another in early America.
Social Studies Help Center
The Social Studies Help Center: How and Why Did America Expand Westward?
Notes and maps that depict how and why America expanded westward?
Digital Public Library of America
Dpla: Mormon Migration
The sources in this set help place the Mormon migration in geographic, political, religious, and cultural contexts, including other westward movement motivated by Manifest Destiny.
Louisiana Department of Education
Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: Social Studies: Grade 4: Westward Expansion
This instructional task asks students to analyze the impact Westward Expansion had on the people and cultures of the American West.
Louisiana Department of Education
Louisiana Doe: Louisiana Believes: Social Studies: Grade 4: The Transcontinental Railroad
This sample task contains a set of primary and authentic source documents about the Transcontinental Railroad and the migration of settlers to the West.
National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art: Rolling on the River
Students will explore how westward expansion increased the number of jobs available in the nineteenth century, including being a flat boatman through a painting by George Caleb Bingham.