The Jacksonian Era Essay -- American History, Politics

Three specific ways in which American expansion shaped the Jacksonian period was through the advancement of technology, by way of slavery, and the Indian Removal Act. Jackson used any political and economic means necessary in order to see American frontier regions expand across the nation. Jackson’s Indian Removal policy had some of the most important consequences and paved the way toward American expansion. In the beginning of the Jacksonian era, colonial Americans’ settlements had not yet extended far beyond the Atlantic seaboard, partly because bad roads and primitive technology limited their ability to expand, and because both hostile Indians and British imperial policy discouraged migration beyond Appalachian Mountains. However, all of this changed after Jackson was in office and American expansion was well underway. One of the ways in which American expansion shaped the Jacksonian period was through technology. The economic and political growth as well as American settlement can only be described in detail as a side effect of the advancement in technology. First the rising dominance of trade, commerce, and growth would not have been possible without the development of the first canals and then the railroads. (C-108) For example, Western New York had not yet been settled by white Americans. It was not until the impact of the Erie Canal that things began to change. The Erie Canal was one of the most significant and largest transportation projects of the era. Even before the project was completed, production of wheat began to take off and was shipped to eastern customers. Toll revenues on the canal grew so large that the project became self-financing. The expansion of westward trade turned New York into an urban powerhouse. ... ...The Indian Removal Act was all a part of Jackson’s expansion process, and he would stop at nothing until America made the most of its land. American expansion shaped the Jacksonian period in a number of ways which included the advancement of technology, by way of slavery, and most importantly through the Indian Removal Act. Although, very diverse, these three aspects are similar in that they all made their mark during the Jacksonian period. Technology and new developments had connected this vast expansion of land being acquired. Slavery had helped acquire these lands because of the labor needed for production. And most importantly, the Indian Removal Act had made a clear statement that American’s were taking over what was rightfully theirs. American expansion would not have been possible if not for these three ideas which greatly affected the Jacksonian period.