It eventually led to the Civil War. When slaveowners wanted to migrate west, they wanted to take their slaves with them but it became a politicial issue whether the state/territories would allow...
The land and plantations that people were in. The frontier moved westward so did those people/immigrants. The relocation and redefinition of the frontier moved westward over a period of time...same...
When you think it over you find it hard to find any people who moved eastward en masse; most migrations head westwards. Why? Perhaps people tend to follow the setting sun...