ShmoopTube

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[ musical flourish ]

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And here's your Shmoop du jour.

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Over time, what had the biggest impact on

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the environmental transformation and division of

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the larger Western territories shown on the map?

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Right here. Larger Western ones. Bigger ones. Yeah.

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And here are your potential answers.

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[ mumbles ]

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Okay, we think we got this one.

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Though the eastern half of the map looks relatively close

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to the shape of our modern day states, much of the western portion

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looks slightly bloated.

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Let's see how these states managed to get in shape.

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Were the Western territories most impacted by the

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A - relocation of international immigrants to the area?

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Well, actually, a large portion of the people moving west

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were individuals relocating from another part of the United States.

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It wasn't just international immigrants.

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Were the Western territories most affected by

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B - conflicts between Americans and American Indians over land?

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Well, by passing legislation that encouraged

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westward migration, the U.S. government

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found itself in perpetual conflict with the American Indian

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over territory.

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In terms of transforming the West as a whole, though,

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this was only a small piece of the greater

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puzzle, which means that both B and D don't fit.

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So the factor with the biggest impact on the American West

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must have been C -

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the search for natural resources unique to the region.

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Well, thousands of people moved west searching for

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natural resources that could only be found in these newly acquired territories.

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That was what led to the eventual development and division of the land.

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So C is the correct answer.

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It's no wonder that so many people head west.

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It was a gold mine of natural resources.

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