New forms of transportation were a factor in westward expansion. The Erie Canal was a big part of this. How did new forms of transportation help...

The United States was a growing country in the 1800s. We doubled the size of our country with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. We were building new roads and canals. Eventually, train transportation became common. These new forms of transportation help to encourage and to support our westward expansion.

With the expansion of the National Road from Maryland to Illinois, people found it easier to travel to the West. It was also easier to transport...

The United States was a growing country in the 1800s. We doubled the size of our country with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. We were building new roads and canals. Eventually, train transportation became common. These new forms of transportation help to encourage and to support our westward expansion.

With the expansion of the National Road from Maryland to Illinois, people found it easier to travel to the West. It was also easier to transport the products that were needed for people to live in the western regions. The Erie Canal connected Lake Erie with the Hudson River. Thus, it was possible to travel by water from the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Erie. This also made it easier for people to move westward and for products to be shipped. As the steam engine developed, train transportation grew. The growth of the railroads had the same impact as the expansion of our roads and the building of canals.

These improvements in transportation made it easier to settle in the western regions and eventually helped to accomplish the goal of Manifest Destiny, which was moving from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.