482,526 views
4 votes
4 votes
Why did James K. Polk want
California, and Oregon

User Nklauza
by
2.6k points

2 Answers

22 votes
22 votes

Answer: Gold had not been discovered there yet, but Polk wanted California and its magnificent San Francisco Bay as the American gateway to trade with China and other Asian nations. Polk was worried that other nations, such as England or France, might take California if the United States did not act. The Oregon Treaty was one of the first successes of Manifest Destiny. The Oregon Territory, was valuable to both the U.S. and Britain. Polk made it his goal to enforce manifest destiny, no matter what the cost. He told the British the Oregon Territory would not be shared and this ultimately led to the Pig War (U.S.).

Step-by-step explanation:

User Topgun
by
2.6k points
15 votes
15 votes

Gold had not been discovered there yet, but Polk wanted California and its magnificent San Francisco Bay as the American gateway to trade with China and other Asian nations. Polk was worried that other nations, such as England or France, might take California if the United States did not act.

Drawn by the Willamette Valley and its vast resources, settlers moved west to the Oregon territory (U.S.). President James K. Polk made it his goal to enforce manifest destiny, no matter what the cost. He told the British the Oregon Territory would not be shared and this ultimately led to the Pig War (U.S.).

User Ali Shahbaz
by
2.9k points