The Louisiana Purchase and Westward Expansion Week 17 GLEs

What was it? The Louisiana Purchase was the purchase of land by the United States from France in It was one of the most important land acquisitions in the history of the country. Many say that it allowed the United States to expand even further westward and to become the nation it is today.

What was included? The Purchase contained what now equates to portions of 15 states in the US and 2 Canadian provinces. The land that was bought enclosed all of Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and parts of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, New Mexico, Texas, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and of course Louisiana. The land purchased also included parts of what is now Alberta and Saskachewan in Canada. The land that was purchased in the Louisiana Purchase now makes up about 23% of the territory of the United States.

The Louisiana Purchase!!!

What did the French want? Napoleon Bonaparte wanted money. He was at war and trying to keep his influence in the West. He wanted to cash in on the sugar trade, but was failing. After his failed attempts at maintaining order there, he decided that keeping all the territory in North America simply wasn’t worth the trouble.

What did the U.S. Want? The U.S. understood the importance of the port of New Orleans and had already made previous negotiations to use the port and not be harassed there. The desire of the U.S. was to purchase the port outright so that they could control this very important marketplace. The U.S. went to Paris to negotiate the purchase of the port of New Orleans but was unsuccessful the first time.

The President at the time: As President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson faced much opposition to the purchase of the land. He didn’t want France and Spain to have the ability to block American trade across the port of New Orleans.

Napoleon recognized it was an important move: While Napoleon Bonaparte didn’t want to just give away his conquered territories, the rivalry between France and England was still very strong. Bonaparte saw selling the land to the U.S. as an opportunity to block the power of England.

Negotiations The negotiation took place in Paris in 1803 by James Monroe and Robert Livingston They only wanted the port at the time and didn’t imagine how much land they would really end up getting.

How much? The U.S. negotiators were prepared to spend $10 million on the port of New Orleans. They were pleasantly surprised when the entire region was offered to them for only $15 million. At the time, purchasing the territory meant doubling the size of the United State. The price of the land included in the purchase was less than 3 cents per acre.

The Ceremonial Transfer of the Louisiana Purchase in New Orleans in 1803

Exploring the Louisiana Purchase Lewis and Clark started adventure in 1804 To explore and map out the American West travelled by river and by land from St. Louis, Missouri, to the Oregon coast and back again. Both joined by a Shoshone Indian guide, interpreter, and negotiator Sacajawea. Her extensive contributions to the expedition brought about the Sacajawea dollar coin to the USA in 2000

Lewis and Clark’s Voyage Set out to explore and map the American West. Travelled by river and by land from St. Louis, Missouri, to the Oregon coast (Fort Clatsop), and back again.

People began moving! Voluntary Migration Mass immigration – because of the natural resources and religious freedoms in the United States, mass immigration occurred. The people thought they could build a better life here. Americans believed it was their destiny to expand to the Pacific coast, Manifest Destiny.

Westward Expansion - Starting in the 1800s, hundreds of thousands of Americans decided to move away from the original 13 colonies and move west. Not like today where there are airplanes and roads, the road to the West was hard. Even once the pioneers arrived in their new homes, life in the wild west was difficult. Westward, Ho!

Gold Rush On January 24, 1848, James Marshall discovered GOLD at Sutter’s Mill in California. News of the discovery soon spread, resulting in some 300,000 men, women, and children coming to California from the rest of the United States and abroad. The early gold-seekers, called "forty-niners," traveled to California by sail boat and in covered wagons across the continent.

The Gold Rush……Good New methods of transportation developed as steamships came into regular service and railroads were built. The business of agriculture was started on a wide scale throughout the state.

The Gold Rush……..Bad However, the Gold Rush also had negative effects: Native Americans were attacked and pushed off traditional lands. Gold mining caused environmental harm.

Involuntary Migration Forced to move

African Americans People in West Africa were forced into slavery and taken on ships to the New World. They were sold to landowners and forced to work. Their passage across the ocean is sometimes called the Middle Passage.

Native American President Andrew Jackson allowed Georgia to force the Cherokee Indians off their lands. They were forced to move to Oklahoma. Their journey was called the Trail of Tears because 25% of the Cherokee died.