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Unit 7, Notes 2
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France, under the leadership of Napoleon, took the Louisiana Territory from Spain in 1800 President Thomas Jefferson wanted to purchase New Orleans and Florida from the French but Napoleon needed more money to fund his European wars After American diplomats Robert Livingston and James Monroe bargained with French foreign minister Talleyrand, France agreed to sell all of the Louisiana Territory (2.1 million square miles) for $15 million (4 cents an acre) The U.S. more than doubled in size and gained complete control over the Mississippi River Irony: Jefferson believed in minimal government power and spending…Nothing in the Constitution gave the federal government the right to purchase additional land The land was bought with U.S. Bonds made possible by Hamilton’s Bank initiative that Jefferson had opposed as unconstitutional
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Meriwether Lewis: private secretary of Thomas Jefferson and veteran soldier William Clark: war veteran, Indian trader, pioneer Lewis and Clark were chosen by Jefferson to lead the “Corps of Discovery” for the purposes of investigating the new territory and finding a Northwest Passage (water route to the Pacific) The expedition (about 40 men) left St. Louis aboard a 55 foot keelboat and 2 canoes and sailed up the Missouri River in the Spring of 1804
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The expedition discovered that a Northwest Passage did not exist and were forced to travel through the mountain passes on foot Encountered several geographic features, animal/plant species, and Native American tribes that were new to the Americans Sacagawea: Shoshone Indian and pregnant wife of a French fur trader that served as a guide and interpreter after crossing paths with the expedition After crossing the Rockies, the expedition built boats and sailed down the Clearwater and Columbia Rivers until they reached the Pacific Coast The expedition then returned to share their encounters and arrived in St. Louis on September 23, 1806 William Clark went on to be a very influential mediator in Indian affairs; raised Sacagawea’s son Meriwether Lewis suffered from depression and committed suicide
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Length of round-trip journey: 28 months Discoveries: plants, animals, climate conditions, rivers, lakes, mountains, passes, Native Americans What they carried: books, medicine and medical supplies, 15 rifles, clothing (45 flannel shirts), presents for Indians (tools, mirrors, tobacco, knives, etc.), camp supplies, and mathematical instruments Dangers: uncharted terrain, Indian skirmishes, wild animals Casualties: 1 death (appendicitis) Significance: America was introduced to its great love of the 19 th century… “The West” Learned about the land and its potential
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Zebulon Pike: army officer that led an expedition westward in 1806 Pike’s Expedition traveled through the southwestern section of the Louisiana Territory along the Arkansas River and to the Rocky Mountains Charted the mountain known as Pikes Peak Mapped part of the Rio Grande Gave a detailed description of the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains
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