American pioneer
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- For early American pioneers to the Ohio Country and the Northwest Territory, see American Pioneers to the Northwest Territory
In American history, a pioneer is any of the people who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. This especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society.
It is important to note that the pioneer concept and ethos greatly predate the migration to parts of the United States now called Western, as many places now considered as East were also settled by pioneers from the coast. For example, Daniel Boone, a key figure in American pioneer history, settled in Kentucky, when that "Dark and Bloody Ground" was still undeveloped.
One important development in the Western settlement was the Homestead Act, which provided formal legislation which regulated the settlement process.
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[edit] Historic details and episodes
[edit] History of settlement efforts
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For more details on this topic, see Territorial evolution of the United States .
The first westward migrations occurred as representatives of the Thirteen Colonies sought to open up new lands for their respective colonies westward. Those whose original royal charters did not specify a western limit simply extended their lands directly and indefinitely westward.
After the United States was formed upon the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, federal coordination and legislation began to give settlement a more unified approach.
The Land Ordinance of 1785 was the first official action by the federal government in deciding how political organization of new territories would be handled. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 was a major step, declaring that states could not individually claim new lands, but exploration would be handled by the national U.S. government. In the Land Act of 1804, the federal government took its first steps towards legislating the manner in which pioneer lands would be individually claimed and distributed.
There were many other forms of this process, such as Land runs like the The Land Run of 1889, in Oklahoma, which occurred when parts of the territory of Oklahoma was first opened, allowing anyone to claim land on a first-come, first-serve basis.
[edit] Details of pioneer efforts and actions
As western settlement grew, certain common details began to emerge. Most pioneers traveled in wagon trains, groups of wagons containing settlers and their families. They banded together for common defense and to combine their efforts.
Pioneers in the East often had to clear the land, owing to lush forests there. In the Midwest, the task was to bring agricultural fertility to the Great Plains.
Some pioneers were drawn with the original intent of claiming lands and settling their families. Others were trappers, or others who went west for commercial reasons, and remained there as residents when their businesses proved to be profitable.
[edit] Popular culture and folklore
The figure of the pioneer has played a large role in American culture and literature. The pioneer is not the only iconic figure which figures in the settlement of the West. Much cultural note is given to other figures of a more transient nature, such as cowboys, trappers prospectors, miners etc. However, the pioneer alone represents those who went into unexplored territory in search of a new life, looking to establish permanent settlement.
Various figures in American folklore and literature typify the pioneer. The Deerslayer was the most successful of an early series, the Leatherstocking Tales, about pioneer life in New York. Little House on the Prarie, a century later, typified a later series of novels describing a pioneer family. Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett are two real-life icons of pioneer history.
