How Did America Respond To Global Expansion?

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Since the beginning of America, those who have settled here have always been interested in stretching their land and discovering new territories. The people in America were already populating the new Western territories, and they were content with the land that was in America. However, as time went on America grew the urge to spread Industrialist were looking for ways to get their products made cheaper, missionaries were interested in spreading their faith to more areas, some thought it would be strategic to place naval bases at other points around the world, and Americans were confident in their growing power. Alfred Thayer Mahan said that “those who controlled the seas, controlled the world”. So America decided to look towards expanding beyond their borders. However, expansion did not come easy. It wasn’t enough to simply decide to expand, America had to actually do it. However, this wasn’t as simple as it may …show more content…

The US acquiring territory in the region of Asia made the ties between them stronger. China had many goods that the US was interested in such as tea, silk, porcelain, etc. Trading ports that were set up in the Pacific allowed Americans to trade with Chinese merchants. The global expansion of the US also led to an Open Door policy for China which allowed for much more involvement in politics and trading. The 20th century was filled with years of expansion for the United States. There was an increase in production by industries, the demand for resources was growing rapidly, and the only option was to expand. Although the United States was late on deciding to expand, and most of the globe had already been claimed, the US acquired many territories along the road of expansion. The US annexed Hawaii in 1898, they purchased Alaska from Russia in 1876, and the Spanish-American war brought the US Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. These new territories made trade and contact with Asia

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