🏆The California Gold Rush of 1848 attracted approximately 80,000 fortune seekers from around the world and led to the rapid growth of San Francisco.
💰The Nevada Silver Rush of 1859, centered around the Comstock Lode, made the United States the largest silver producer in the world in the 19th century.
🚂The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 reduced travel time from the East Coast to the West Coast to just two weeks, further promoting westward expansion.
🌾The destruction of the bison herds by American hunters for sport and profit had a devastating impact on the Plains Indians, who relied on the bison for food and clothing.
🏞️The US government's policies, such as the Dawes Act and the division of tribal lands, led to the displacement and marginalization of Native Americans in the 19th century.