Oregon Treaty (1846) Name:
The Coast-to-Coast Decade
From the earliest days, some Americans dreamed that one day the
United States would stretch across North America from the Atlantic
Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. In the 1840s, that dream finally came
true—starting with “Oregon Country.” This northwest section of the
continent was a beautiful and valuable resource, covered by forests
and laced with waterways and coastlines. There was money to be
made in fishing and shipping, harvesting timber and fur animals,
and mining for gold. It was no surprise that the United States wasn’t
the only country with a claim to the land.
War With Great Britain… Again??
Yep, it was another dispute with America’s former mother country.
Back then, Great Britain controlled the territory we know today as
Canada. Oregon Country stretched from the border between
modern-day Oregon and California all the way up into British
territory. Both Britain and America wanted this land, and they’d
been arguing over it for a while. But the 1840s was a time when
Americans got a passion for expanding. James Polk shared that
passion—and he won the 1844 presidential election promising to
add Oregon to the United States. He let the British believe America
would go to war to control all of Oregon Country.
What a Clever Guy
President Polk was bluffing. By that time, the U.S. and Britain had
already agreed that America’s northern border would run along the
49th parallel. (That’s where it is today.) The only section left
undecided was the part that ran through Oregon Country. Polk
wanted all he could get, but he knew he couldn’t get it all. What he
really hoped for was to extend the 49th parallel border all the way to
the Pacific Ocean. He pitched this idea to Great Britain, and they took
it. With the small matter of working around some very valuable
islands in the Pacific waters, the border was set. The United States
now stretched from coast to coast.
An Unsettling Pattern
By the time the deal was made in 1846, American settlers were
flooding Oregon Country. They risked their lives traveling by wagon
train on a long and dangerous route called the Oregon Trail. But
Oregon Country was already home to many Native American tribes
such as the Salish, Klamath, and Nez Perce. The U.S. tried to
convince each tribe to sign a treaty agreeing to move onto small,
restricted areas of land. Some tribes signed treaties only to have
settlers take over the very land that was reserved for the Native
Americans. The more settlers arrived, the more the conflict grew.
Tribes joined together to fight for their land, but ultimately, they
lost. Native American tribes were forced to sign treaties and move
onto small reservations to make way for settlers. The change made
it difficult or impossible to continue the traditional ways of life.
Reading
James K.
Polk
The changes forced many tribes away from
areas where they harvested traditional
foods such as these clams. In many cases,
their diet shifted quickly to low-quality
foods they could buy at U.S. forts.
