Never interfere with Europe was the cry of the founding fathers. Our very first president, George Washington warned us not to get involved with foreign powers. The spirit at the time of our nation’s birth was isolationism. The infant United States of America could not afford to get it’s hand caught in the cookie jar of world affairs. As children grow they get stronger, and the growth of the United States was no different. By the end of the Civil War the United States had muscles to flex. At the time the world was enthralled in the Age of Imperialism, in which a nation’s power was derived from it’s overseas holdings. The United States, who had just proved that it could beat itself up, was not going to be excluded from imperialistic contest the world arena provided. So, the United States was ushered into the Era of Imperialism. There are several reasons why the United States sought to found an empire. For theses reasons, American began it’s divine quest. Foremost were the economic prospects of empire. There were several commercial and business interests involved with the American imperialist movement. Overproduction in America caused economic depressions. In order to curve these slumps, America needed new markets. Also, as American business increased there was an ever-growing demand for raw materials. America glanced heavily at the potential of the Far East, especially China, and it’s southern neighbor Latin America as a new market, and a source of raw materials. These are the economic factors that contributed to the rise of American imperialism. For military and strategic reasons America needed to forge and empire. In 1890 Thomas Mahan published Influence of Sea Power upon History 1660 - 1783. In his book Mahan pointed out that Great Britain’s phenomenal growth as the world power was because of it’s unsurpassed naval power. America saw that in order to become a world ...
