The Louisiana Purchase

1. The Louisiana Purchase EQ: What was the importance of the purchase and exploration of the Louisiana Territory?

2. The Nation Looks West • Westward settlement increase after Revolutionary War • By 1800, more than 1 million settlers lived between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River • Most Westward settlers were farmers • They relied on the Mississippi River to ship crops to port of New Orleans • Spain threatened to close Port of New Orleans to American ships. • Americans made a treaty(Pinckney Treaty) with Spain in 1795. Treaty guaranteed the American’s right to ship good down the Mississippi River to New Orleans

3. The Nation Looks West • Spain secretly gives the Louisiana Territory back to France • 1801, Jefferson discovers the transfer of land between the two countries • Jefferson alarmed by development, new ruler of France: Napoleon Bonaparte gave him cause to be alarmed • Jefferson feared Napoleon would make France the dominant power in Europe as well as America • If Napoleon controlled Louisiana, Westward expansion of the United States would be blocked.

4. Buying Louisiana • In 1802, Spanish governor of Louisiana withdrew the right of Americans to ship their goods through New Orleans. • Westerners wanted to wage war after affair (port blockade) • Jefferson decided that the best approach would be to offer to purchase New Orleans from French • Sent James Monroe to make a deal; Monroe also had the help of Robert Livingston • Men were instructed to buy New Orleans and a territory to the east called West Florida

5. Buying Louisiana • In Paris, the Americans discovered that Toussaint L’Ouverture had been waging a revolution against France in Haiti (their Caribbean colony). • Without Haiti as a base, the French could not defend Louisiana in the event of an American War • At the same time, tension between France and Britain was on the rise and war was looming; Napoleon need money to support war effort. • France offer the US not only New Orleans, but the entire Louisiana Territory.

6. Buying Louisiana • Livingston and Monroe agreed to purchase territory stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada and from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. • Purchase an amazing bargain for the US • Cost 15 million ~ 4 cent an acre • Doubled the size of the country • Gave US millions of unexplored, fertile land • Gave US control of Mississippi

7. Jefferson’s Dilemma • The Constitution does not state that a President has the power to purchase land from a foreign country • Jefferson reasoned that the Constitution allowed the President to make treaties, in order for purchase Congress approved the sale as a treaty and land was quickly paid for.

8. Lewis and Clark Explore the West • Even before purchase of the Louisiana Territory, Jefferson convinced Congress to spend $2500 on western expedition • Jefferson chose Meriwether Lewis to lead expedition • Lewis chose William Clark as his co-leader • Goals of Exploration • Report on Geography, plants, animals, & other natural features of region • Make contact with Native American who lived in territory • Find out waterways existed between the Mississippi and the Pacific Ocean

9. Lewis and Clark Explore the West • Spring of 1804, Lewis and Clark left St. Louis and headed up the Missouri River • Expedition carried 40 men most Americans, several were French Canadians, also included an enslaved African American • Mid-July reached the mouth of the Platte river, powerful tributary that flows into the Missouri • Early-August- met Native Americans for the first time and reached the eastern edge of the Great Plains

10. Lewis and Clark • October 1804, Lewis and Clark meet Sacagawea, who would serve as a translator on their travels • Reach the Continental Divide (the Rocky Mountains) by 1805. • Reached Columbia River and had to cross a 55 mile stretch of rapids & rough river; after rapids crossing they saw the Pacific Ocean • Began return journey in March 1806, it took half a year to return to St. Louis.

11. Pike’s Expedition • 1806-1807- Zebulon Pike explored the southern part of the Louisiana Territory • Pike’s Peak in the Colorado Rocky Mountains was named after explorer • Pike’s route took him into Spanish New Mexico • Members of expedition group were arrested as spies by Spanish • Spanish feared Pike was gathering information for an American take over of the region • Men were held captive for months and were escorted back to United States • Pike’s report on Spanish borderlands created great American interest in the region

12. Section 1 Review Questions • What was the importance of the purchase and exploration of the Louisiana territory. Explain 3-5 sentences • Why was New Orleans important to the United States? • What important right did the united states gain with Pinckney Treaty of 1795? • What were some of the goals that Lewis and Clark had to achieve on their expedition? • How did Sacagawea contribute to the expedition? • What did Lewis and Clark encounter that impeded their travel to the Pacific ocean? • Define the following terms: expedition, Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, Continental Divide, Zebulon Pike • How did the Spanish react to Pike’s expeditions? What did they do?