US Imperialism Begins

1. Name at least five factors that fueled American Imperialism.
Five factors that fueled American Imperialism were desire for military strength, thirst for new markets, beleif in cultural superiority, global competition and technological advances.

2. Choose two of the above five factors and describe them in your own words.
The factor for military strength was that the american people wanted more navel ports such as Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, and the thirst for new markets was brought about by investors who wanted the new things that other places in the world had to offer. For instance Alaska had many natural resources, which is the main reason we bought it. Also with the new forms of transportation these resources could be brought back to the states much easier and efficiently.

3. What was known as “Seward’s Folly” and why?
Alaska was known as "Seward's Folly" or "Sewards Icebox" because the American people did not beleive we could gain anything from it. It turned out that Alaska was an abundant source of natural resources.

4. What plantation-based product accounted for three-quarters of Hawaii’s wealth in the mid-19th century and who controlled this product?
The sugar product accounted for three-quarters of Hawaii's wealth in the mid-19th century, and it was American-Owned.

6. Using as much detail as possible, outline the sequence of events that led to America gaining possession of Hawaii? In other words, why was the United States interested in these Pacific islands?
The US was so intered in Hawaii because it is in the center of the Pacific Ocean, meaning that if we owned it we controlled the Pacific. It was also a coal station for our steam ships, and was also a good place for a military base. Mahan said that Hawaii was ripe for the picking and he wanted it because of its military importance, and because we could use Pearl Harbor.