The Growing Nation (continued)
The opportunity to own land was a driving motivation for many in the fast growing population of the United States. Interestingly, this surge in population was not due to an influx in immigration -- that would not occur until the mid 1800s. Instead, what America was experiencing was actually a rise in the number of new babies being born.
Although the infant mortality rate, or the rate at which infants less than one year of age die, was high, the number of new babies being born each year was even higher. There was a sort of youthfulness or energy to the nation. It is also important to note that with so many new babies, there was a shift in the median age. We were truly a “young” nation.
The median age refers to what we consider today to be middle age. During the early 1800s, seventeen was considered middle age. The irony here is that at seventeen these young people were considered true adults and ready to take on the world. They left home, got married, and went on their quest to achieve their dreams out west.