Manifest Disaster: Climate and the Making of America

Climate had a key role in shaping the settlement and development of
the West in the United States, according to Carson Fellow Lawrence
Culver. By using historical sources, including government land
surveys and travel accounts from settlers, Culver demonstrates the
important role climate played for both survival and profit in the
westward expansion process. Lawrence Culver is an associate
professor in the Department of History at Utah State University,
where his areas of research and teaching include the cultural,
environmental, and urban history of the USA.