Exploration

1. Exploration From Columbus to Hayes Gabby Cassidy & Alexis Meyers

2. Columbus Arrives in America (1492) • Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer who sailed for Spain to originally find a quicker route to Asia, however he accidentally found the Americas on his famous voyage in 1492 • The Vikings (Leif Erickson) were actually the first Europeans to discover America • Columbus never realized he had not found a route to Asia • Others after Columbus went in search of the land which Columbus spoke of • These other explorers realized Columbus had in fact found a new land, not a quicker route to Asia • The explorers killed off many of the Natives because the Natives were not immune to the “White Man’s Disease.” Also, the Natives’ culture was soon destroyed by intervening explorers who began to settle and inhabit the area

3. Cortez in the New World (1519) • Explored the interior of Mexico for the Spanish to colonize • Explored the northwestern territory of Mexico • Led a party of Spaniards into the Valley of Mexico where the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan was • Aztecs originally treated them hospitably but attacked after the Spanish came too attached to their gold • Cortez laid sieged on the city and brought it crashing down • Laid foundation for the crumble of the Aztec empire • Led way for other colonies and settlements to be created

4. Champlain Explores the North (1603) • Samuel de Champlain was a French explorer who sailed to the West Indies, Mexico, and Panama • Wrote books telling of his journeys and trips to Mexico City and Niagara Falls • Greatest Accomplishment-Exploration of the St. Lawrence River and settlement of Quebec • Explorations of “New France” led to further French occupation in New World

5. Lewis & Clark Expedition (1804) • Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were instructed to explore the Missouri basin by President Jefferson • Lewis and Clark set in place good relations with local Indian tribes as they headed west • They recorded contact with Indians • Recorded the shape of the land • Recorded animal and plant life • Clark drew up maps and named rivers that they crossed • Maps that Clark drew were used in later exploration and travels west • Information on Indian, animal, and plant life was used to help the people understand what the west was like

6. Zebulon Pike Explores the West (1806) • Zebulon Pike went on an exploration to discover the source of the Mississippi River • He documented his travels as he went through Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado • He met several Indian tribes along the way • He was stopped by Spanish officials in New Mexico, where he was forced to Santa Fe, Chihuahua, through Texas, and released at the border of the Louisiana Territory • Documented his travel through the South with the Spanish officials and published his writings • His documentation of the Southwest helped future explorers investigate the land further • His exploration led to wider interest in westward travel • His capture by the Spanish led to intrigue about the Spaniards living South of the United States

7. Manifest Destiny (1846) • Term first used by John L. O’Sullivan in his essay Annexation • Idea that settlers in the United States were destined to expand throughout the North American continent • Led to great pushes towards westward expansion • Led to settlers moving west to California and Oregon • Led to the California Gold Rush in 1849