Landforms

The mountains and rivers of the United States greatly contributed

to the time and effort that was put in by the explorers to colonize this

great country. If the Sierra Nevada Central Valley and the great

basin were not there, the gold minors would have had a slightly better

chance in finding gold on the rolling hills instead of on the steep cliffs. Landforms also influenced the Lewis and Clark

expedition. urther but were contained by

an unwanted barrier called the Appalachian Mountains. With the landforms in there presence our effort to make

this land our home would have to be great, swift, and precise. The

colonization of the United States would have been easier without the

landforms.

If the Rocky Mountains, Mississippi River, and the Missouri

River had been slightly moved over, more land could of been owned in

the Louisiana Purchase, in a smaller amount of time.

Since the landforms were unexplored many people were injured in the

exploration for gold. While with Lewis and Clark having to go around the

Appalachians, over the Mississippi River, and around the Rocky

Mountains , it took three and half years to finally explore the Louisiana

Purchase, but could have been done sooner if they had not had to

overcome all of these obstacles. Many are

now protected and known as monuments and tourist attractions. The unexplored

landforms also caused a great bit of difficulty in the California Gold Rush. They

are no longer viewed as obstacles, but are now places for rest and

relaxation. While the

colonization was continued, it would of been done sooner if the mountains

had not been in the way.

They did not know where to look for the gold, so this was a very time

consuming process.