I. In 1775 the first shots were fired in Lexington by the British; the first fighting occurred at Concord. 1) , the American War of Independence began. 2) , for more than a year
the colonists showed themselves extremely unwilling to severe their links with the motherland.
In 1783 peace was made in Paris, and the Thirteen Colonies from Maine to Georgia became
a union of independent sovereign States. Canada, 3) , remained loyal to the British flag.
In the 19th and early 20th century, England’s population rose from 8 million to 40 million.
The country was 4) forced to export millions of people to its colonies — including Canada. 5) , Canada’s French speaking population had dropped to under 30%. 6) , by
the mid-20th century Quebec was becoming an ever smaller element in an ever growing Canadian state.
II. The opening of the West in the early and middle 1800’s was one of the most exciting
times in the United States history. It was 7) a period of great hardship and sufferingOne of America’s most brilliant explorers was Jedediah Smith, who found a trade route to
California. 8) , he had a remarkable sense of direction. Smith circled through the California interior, had come over the most inhospitable mountains and the wildest desert in America with no instruments, no guides, no trails to follow. 9) , he arrived at the exact spot he
had left the previous year — the south shore of the Great Salt Lake.
In 1837 the American nation suffered its first major financial collapse; the depression followed. 10) , farmers could not meet the mortgage payments on their land. These farmers headed for free land on the west coast.
Most emigrants used oxen as draft animals; they were relatively cheap: they cost only $55
to $65 per yoke (two oxen). 11) , mules might be as much as $100 each. 12) , oxen
could survive on little food.
After the American Civil War, thousands of people looked for an escape from their devastated homes. To all these people the West was, 13) , a means to achieve health, wealth
and happiness.