Milestones: 1830–1860 - Office of the Historian
Milestones: 1830–1860
United States Maritime Expansion across the Pacific during the 19th                     Century
The westward expansion of the United States during the 19th century was not                     limited to North America, but rather included an ongoing push to establish a                     stronger U.S. presence in and across the Pacific Ocean. This maritime expansion,                     driven mostly by commerce, had important implications for U.S. foreign                     policy.
“Flying Cloud” (James E. Buttersworth, 1859–60)
The appeal of profits to be earned from the China trade served as the initial                     impetus to motivate U.S. citizens and officials to enter into the Pacific                     region. China was the source of some of the world’s most                     sought after commodities—tea, porcelain, and silk—and Western merchants had                     sought access to this highly lucrative trade since at least the 17th century.                     Following U.S. independence, U.S.-based merchants continued to seek opportunity                     in China. In February 1784 the Empress of China became the first ship to sail                     from the United States to China, and in its wake came a steady flow of merchants                     in search of wealth. During the first decades of the 19th century, U.S.                     merchants amassed sizable fortunes that they subsequently invested in the                     development of their homeland. As this trade grew, U.S. traders built a small                     outpost in China and their interactions with Chinese subjects became more                     complex and occasionally contentious. The U.S. Government realized that it had                     to establish formal diplomatic ties in order to protect the interests of its                     citizens. In the wake of war between Britain and China, and the subsequent                     opening of diplomatic relations between those two countries, the United States                     moved to negotiate its own treaty with the Chinese Government. The resulting                     agreement, the Treaty of                         Wangxia , was ratified in 1844, and soon thereafter U.S. ministers and                     consuls took up residence in China’s capital and port cities.
Making the journey to China and maintaining the U.S.                     presence there also required a network of ports extending across the Pacific                     Ocean, and as such, the China trade soon drove the United                     States to expand its presence throughout the Pacific region. Perhaps most                     significantly, when Commodore Matthew Perry sailed his ships to Japan in 1853,                     his primary motivation was to establish a foothold that would strengthen the                     U.S. position for trade and diplomacy in the region. In other words, the United                     States opened relations with Japan in large part to                     enhance its status in China. On a smaller scale, as U.S. merchants began to stop                     at many of the Pacific Islands to replenish supplies and acquire goods to trade                     with Chinese merchants, the U.S. Government appointed consuls to several of                     these places. For example, consulates were established in Fiji in 1844, Samoa in                     1856, and the Marshall Islands in 1881. The U.S. presence in Hawai’i grew out of                     the need for a substantial base of operations in the Pacific to support U.S.                     interests in China. Ultimately this need became so great,                     and the U.S. presence so large, that the United States annexed the islands in 1898.
Commodore Matthew Perry
The process of U.S. maritime expansion in the Pacific eventually became a goal in                     and of itself, culminating in the acquisition of the Philippines from Spain in                     1898. The                         Spanish-American War began with a dispute over Cuba, but a rising tide                     of interest in overseas empire among U.S. leaders, such as President William McKinley and future President Theodore Roosevelt, helped expand the conflict to                     Spanish possessions in Asia. After a swift victory over Spain, the United States                     set up a temporary military administration to govern the islands and promote                     their political, economic, and social development. The United                         States established full colonial rule over the Philippines in 1900 during                     the Philippine-American War .
U.S. expansion across the Pacific fundamentally changed the global position of                     the United States. In 1800, the United States held closely to George                         Washington’s advice to avoid “entangling alliances” while                     pursuing foreign relations based upon trade. By 1900, the United States was a                     recognized world power with substantial commercial, political, and military                     interests and territorial holdings throughout the Pacific region. Maritime                     expansion led to the proclamation of an Open Door policy for China in 1899­–1900, and set the stage for much greater involvement in local                     and regional politics and trade during the early 20th century.