Westward Expansion By Smitchell Jan 1, 1845 Manifest Destiny As the U.S. got more land an ideology arose. This ideology was that the Americans' destiny was to settle the west. Often times Period: Jan 1, 1845 to Jan 1, 1861 Westward Expansion Dec 29, 1845 Texas Added to the Union Jun 18, 1846 49th Parallel for Oregon Nov 1, 1846 Donner Party Feb 2, 1848 Treaty Of Guadalupe Hidalgo Jan 1, 1849 Gold Rush Sep 9, 1850 California is Added the the Union Jan 1, 1854 Kansas-Nebraska Act Jan 1, 1855 "Bleeding Kansas" Jan 1, 1857 Dred Scott v. Stanford