When one considers the history of the west, they may recall one of the most popular media portrayals, "The Old West." This collection featured late-twentieth-century  films primarily about cowboys, and it presented a skewed perception of western history. It depicted the origins

of American characteristics, such as expanding land and spreading civilization. Which is what Fredrick Jackson Turner interpreted in his 1893 essay, "The Significance of the Frontier in American History," in which he claimed that the taming and expansion of the west played a key role in the development of American individualism. That, however, may not be the case. The western frontier was not responsible for America's characteristics and uniqueness, the west was not an uncivilized land that completely lacked culture.

First and foremost, prior to the western frontier, the west was a civilized land. The west was thought to be wild, untamed, and uninhabited land. That, however, was not the circumstance. Both men are dressed in "civilized" clothing, shirt and pants, as seen in Picture A, "Fur Trappers on the Missouri," which depicts a French fur trapper and another man of Indian descent. In Picture B, "Marguerite Wadin McKay McLaughlin (1780-1860)," a woman of French, Native, and American ancestry is dressed civilly. Finally, Picture C depicts "Pio Pico and Family," a family portrait of Alta California's former governor, all very sophisticated and civilized people.

These three images demonstrate that the west was civilized prior to western expansion, and that the land was not vacant.

In addition, Turner also believed that the expansion was responsible for America's

strength and power. The transcontinental railroad was thought to represent American strength and power. The majority of the people in the celebratory photograph of the two railroads meeting are White Americans. The image, however, does not depict the fifteen to twenty thousand Chinese laborers who also worked on the west railroads. The second image shows only Chinese laborers who worked on the west side of the railroad. It begs the question of why the Chinese were not visible in the first famous picture. Perhaps they did not fit into what American characteristics

were and what the railroad stood for, American strength, power, and ingenuity. In September 1885, twenty-eight Chinese immigrants were killed and fifteen were injured as a result of anti­ Chinese pessimism. Many Americans were prejudiced against Chinese immigrants after they arrived in the west in the mid-nineteenth century.

Finally, the west possessed culture and intelligence. Turner's depiction of the west in his essay described Indians who resided there as savage, uncultured, and uncivilized humans. They were, however, far from it. Source 3 depicts two photos, the first of which was taken by Edward Curtis in 1910. Little Plume and his son Yellow Kidney are surrounded by native culture and relics in this image. Meanwhile, the published image has been edited.  In the first photo, there was a clock between them; however, in the second photo, the clock has disappeared. The clock represented American ingenuity and intellect. A symbol of modernity, which contradicts Turner's theory about the west.

Overall, it is critical to revise Turner's theory because some key details appear to be invalid. The west was viewed as a wilderness, unoccupied, and uncultured land. Turner claimed that after the western frontier, White people were the ones who tamed and inhabited that once­ wild land. However, photos and factual Western history show that those claims are not entirely accurate. While the characteristics of America are true, it is important to note that they did not emerge as a result of the western frontier, rather, they were already present.