Manifest Destiny: A Divisive Dream

America's dream of expanding from coast to coast was the very thing that almost destroyed

it. In the early 1800s, Manifest Destiny was the big idea: push west and spread

freedom. The problem? Every new piece of land sparked a huge fight over

one question: would it be a free state or a slave state? The Missouri Compromise tried to keep the

peace by drawing a literal line across the country, but it was just a band-aid.

Debates over Texas and California made the North and South dig in, turning Congress

into a battleground for power. So, the quest for a bigger America didn't

unite people; it just drew the battle lines for the Civil War.