USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Answer and Explanation: A major natural barrier to settling in the west of America was access to water. Most of the west was a semi-arid climate, which meant that rainfall was limited and farms would have to be irrigated in order to grow crops. Another natural barrier was the weather.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Proclamation Line of 1763 was a British-produced boundary marked in the Appalachian Mountains at the Eastern Continental Divide. Decreed on October 7, 1763, the Proclamation Line prohibited Anglo-American colonists from settling on lands acquired from the French following the French and Indian War.

Detailed explanation-3: -Gold rush and mining opportunities (silver in Nevada) The opportunity to work in the cattle industry; to be a “cowboy” Faster travel to the West by railroad; availability of supplies due to the railroad. The opportunity to own land cheaply under the Homestead Act.

Detailed explanation-4: -“Emigrants Crossing the Rocky Mountains.” The Rocky Mountains stretch like a jagged spine between Alaska and Mexico, splitting North America into East and West.