Chapter 5, Section 2

The Louisiana Purchase & Lewis and Clark Expedition

p. 188-193

Having acquired a vast expanse of western territory, Jefferson sends

Meriwether Lewis & William Clark to explore the region.

5.2 SECTION FOCUS QUESTION:

Why was the Louisiana Purchase so important to the history and development of the United States?

The Nation Looks West• By 1800 over 1 million

Americans live between the Appalachian Mountains & the Mississippi River.

• Spain controls the Mississippi River & New Orleans (Pinckney Treaty 1795)– Spain fears American

encroachment– Spain makes secret treaty to

give Louisiana back to France• 1802 (before giving N.O. to

France) Spain takes away our right to ship in New Orleans!

By 1800, over a million Americans lived in the “new” territories.

Napoleon Bonaparte• Jefferson fears Napoleon will

cut off Americans from the lands west of the Mississippi. Why? - He was trying to conquer all of

Europe, so why not America too?

• Jefferson sends his friends James Monroe & Robert Livingston to make a deal for New Orleans.

• Napoleon (who had lost his American base in Haiti) surprises Jefferson by offering to sell all of Louisiana for $15 million.

Toussaint L’Ouverture

The Louisiana Purchase

• Jefferson’s “Strict Interpretation” Dilemma:– Nowhere in the Constitution does it say that the President can buy real

estate. But this was an offer he could not refuse.

• Since the president can make treaties, Jefferson believed he had the authority to buy Louisiana, and got Congress to agree

James Monroe &Robert Livingston

Lewis & Clark Explore the West

• Meriwether Lewis & William Clark lead expedition (a long organized journey) to explore the Louisiana territory.

• Use Native Americans as guides & translators– Sacagawea

• Cross the continental divide and reach the Pacific Ocean– place where river systems flow in opposite directions

• Bring back new information about the continent (There is no NW Passage....)

Lewis & Clark p. 190

QUESTION FOR DISCUSSION:

How might America be different without the Louisiana Purchase?

Pike’s Expedition• Zebulon Pike ordered to

explore Southwest of the Louisiana Purchase– Captured by Spanish and

imprisoned as spies– Released after several

months, returns to U.S.

• Both Pike and Lewis & Clarks’ expeditions are for exploration AND espionage.

Zebulon Pike

5.2 SECTION FOCUS QUESTION:Why was the Louisiana Purchase so important to the history and development of the United States?

The Louisiana Purchase nearly doubled the size of the U.S. We avoided war with France. It allowed U.S. to expand from “sea to shining sea”. We learned about the people, landforms, and wildlife of the west and found out once and for all that there is no Northwest Passage.