History: American Old West, United States

The American frontier moved gradually westward decades after the settlement of the first immigrants on the Eastern seaboard in the 17th century. The "West" was always the area beyond that boundary. Scholars, however, sometimes refer to the Old West as the region of the Ohio and Tennessee valleys. Most often, however, the "American Old West," the "Old West," or "the Great West" is used to describe the area west of the Mississippi River during the 19th century.
Acquiring the Frontier