Author Question: How did the construction of the transcontinental railroad and the expansion of the highway system in ... (Read 104 times)

justinmsk · **on:** Aug 7, 2018

How did the construction of the transcontinental railroad and the expansion of the highway system in the United States influence the settlement of the West?

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

What were some of the tensions that existed between the British and French during the colonial era?

What will be an ideal response?

strudel15 · **Reply #1 on:** Aug 7, 2018

Answer to Question 1

The transcontinental railroad increased the pace of westward immigration in the United States by establishing links between culture hearths and settlements along its path. Railroad companies, in partnership with immigration bureaus, aggressively recruited settlers at county fairs, churches, and other social gatherings to move out west and fill land provided by the Homestead Act. Many of these settlers, after moving to the West, were then dependent on the railroad companies to move their agricultural product to market. Likewise, the interstate highway system, built in the 1950s, provided a transportation route that greatly reduced travel time for people, which allowed them to live away from the previous main transportation corridors, and for products moving to and from outlying regions.

Answer to Question 2

Some of the answers the student should mention are resource conflicts for primary resources such as furs, fish, and the control of territory. The 1763 Treaty of Paris, which gave the land north of Massachusetts up to Acadia to Great Britain, did not set exact boundaries, and so this caused tension between France and Britain along the borders, and forced the removal of French Acadians by the British. This subject is covered in greater detail in Chapter 6: Quebec.