American Advance: Westward from the French & Indian War

The French and Indian War is said to be the first true world war, where world powers, Britain and France, collided over the tempting prosperity of North America. Much of the war was fought over the control of an extremely sought after, strategic piece of ground, known as the Forks, where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers meet to form the mighty Ohio. Now the City of Pittsburgh, this location was the portal to the west, and control of it would garner possibilities and riches beyond imagination. No other piece of ground on American soil has ever been so coveted. Britain was the ultimate victor, and with it came the opportunities for their American colonists to move westward, and establish communities. Virginia colonists were the first to take advantage. The westward movement began with the construction of a settlers fort, named Fort Vance, which was established ten miles down the Ohio River from Pittsburgh, in what is today Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. This is where the west began.