Answer :
Following the discovery of gold in California in 1848, tens of thousands of Americans started to emigrate to the west. They faced numerous difficulties while making their perilous land travels to start a new life.
Access to water was a significant natural barrier to settlements in America's west. The majority of the west had a semi-arid environment, which restricted rainfall and necessitated irrigating farmland in order to cultivate crops. The weather served as another natural barrier. Strong thunderstorms made settlement and cultivation more perilous.
Therefore, settlements never moved too far west due to the unfavorable environmental conditions that would hinder cultivation.
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