What is Westward Expansion?

During the 19th Century, more than 1.6 million square kilometers (a million square miles) of land west of the Mississippi River was acquired by the United States federal government. This led to a widespread migration west, referred to as Westward Expansion. A variety of factors contributed to Westward Expansion, including population growth and economic opportunities on what was presented to be available land. Manifest Destiny … Continue reading What is Westward Expansion?

Mapping Monday: Time Travel is Real!

by Livia Mazur, National Geographic GIS Mapping Specialist The headline of this post isn’t an exaggeration. Check out this dynamic map from MapStory, a platform that allows “people of all kinds [to] turn into Storytellers.” This map is a geographic picture, but weaves in temporal (time-related) details so we see the story of westward expansion come alive. That’s the part that made time travel happen! MapStory … Continue reading Mapping Monday: Time Travel is Real!