St Louis and New Orleans were the furthest points in the West in 1860. San Francisco was not in existence, and the whole of the population was composed of native tribes that were cut out from active participation in the national economy. There was no transport system, and the farthest point of the railroad was in St Louis while the area between Chicago and San Francisco was largely untapped for economic activities like mining and agricultural production. There were more than forty native tribes, but their population did not cross the 100,000 mark.
The population grew very fast between 1870 and 1880, with Chicago crossed the one million mark in the number of people who lived in the city. With the increasing population came a new push towards the west, with agricultural production gaining popularity. The railroad network expanded at an exponential rate, connecting the small towns of Chicago, New Orleans, and St Louis. New cities like Louisville were expanding, and concentration of economic activities in the East led to an increased the pressure for the people to consider moving westward in search for opportunities (Eisenstein).
In 1890, the railroad network was highly reached all parts of the west, and there was a new dawn on trade and exchange. The railroad was the most important infrastructural development in that era because it provided avenues for the transportation of agricultural produce and raw materials. Mining companies and industrial corporations began to exploit the natural resources. The new possibilities created by the railroad encouraged migration of people to the west, and the establishment of new industries increased the many people to settle near the new industries and factories to provide labor and other services to the workers.
Railroad network development was a manifestation man’s ability to improve geographical connection and tap into new opportunities in areas that had not been inhabited. In modern terms, railroad network compares to the internet, a resource that has reduced the world to a global village where communication between different continents can be done with a click of a button. The role played by the railroad expansion is comparable to the benefits that people have derived from the use of internet in the 21st century and innovations that have arisen from this new wake of technological advancement. As expected, the disruption caused by the railroad expansion and new invasion by businesspeople and politicians led to conflict between the native tribes and the capitalists who were searching for new ways to build industries and use the land for farming.
The need for labor fueled the growth of slave trade, as companies needed people to work in the agricultural fields and the mining projects. The capturing of the New Mexico in the far West was characterized by bloodshed and war, a common showing in situations where change comes into direct conflict with the status quo. Nevertheless, improved agricultural farming fields were on the increase, and a new city developed between San Francisco and Chicago, and it was named Denver. Denver was a result of increased interaction between the East and the West, and it acted as a transit town that kept fueling trade and expansion of economic activity in the Westside.
While railroad acts as the single most significant driver of the huge interest in the West, by politicians and businesspeople, the availability of large pieces of land for agricultural cultivation provided the motivation for the westward movement. The industrialists and government leaders thought of the native tribes as uncivilized, and feuds arose when they tried to push them away from their land. By 1890, the areas were intensely improved for agriculture and San Francisco was an emerging power capital, helped by the growth of agricultural industry and increased level of human settlement.
The second half of the 19th century was an important moment in the history of America’s economic progress. The economic meltdown of 1870-1875 led to a concentration of power to few players in the country like the Carnegie Corporation as small companies got swallowed by big ones. The growth of steel industry fueled the rapid expansion of the railroad, as companies sought to outcompete each other in expanding networks to reach new areas in the continent (Lankester). The upshot was an increased mobility of labor that got companies hiring people from as places like Pennsylvania and Boston to work in the companies. New agricultural practices and mechanization played a key role in boosting production and managing input costs.
In conclusion, the westward expansion had all the characteristics of urbanization vis-à-vis economic development. Auxiliary sectors like transport infrastructure development enhanced the urbanization of rural areas and movement of people to major towns. Factories and industries attracted workers, and in a period of thirty years, the improved areas for agriculture tripled, leading to the growth of new cities like Denver. The conflicts with native tribes were a natural reaction to the enforcement of change and the attack on their traditional lifestyle.
Works Cited
Eisenstein, Michael. “Westward Expansion.” Nature Methods 2.10 (2005): 796–796. Web.
LANKESTER, E. RAY. “Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie.” Nature 107.2679 (1921): 2–4. Web.
