The Impact of the Louisiana Purchase

The Louisiana Purchase was done in 1803 and it was a land arrangement between the United States and France. In that land agreement, about 827K miles of the land was acquired by the United States and it was located to the west of the Mississippi River for million.

Thomas Jefferson only wanted the city of New Orleans and him accessible $10 to Napoleon who was the front-runner of France. Napoleon presented the city of New Orleans and the complete Louisiana Territory for $15 million. France was at war with the British and they were losing the American Empire. That’s Napoleon made a deal with Thomas Jefferson for $15 million so that he can fund his war with the British.

This purchase was considered to be the largest purchase made by the United States. The United States was in need of land as it was growing rapidly and they required new land to raise the livestock and for agriculture. The west part of the Appalachian Mountains was being expanded by the people adding the Northwest territory.

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That’s the reason why people needed more land as those areas were crowded. This land was so big that it would have later become 15 different states and it would double the size of the United States. (David M. Kennedy)

However, there were several impacts of the Louisiana Purchase on the United State. The first impact was of course the size of the United State. The size of the United States would double if this purchase was made. Our border went from south to the boundary with Spanish Florida, Canada to the north, the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean.

The bargain was great considering what we offered France back then for New Orleans and West Florida. It helped to secure the use of the Mississippi River and the port of New Orleans for us. This was a great chance for us as we wanted to expand as a country. Our government would get credibility by the Louisiana Purchase. It would show that the United State can negotiate and make deals with other countries. (Anirudh)

The serious challenge was presented to the United States when Spain limited our usage of the Mississippi River and cut off our rights to deposit the goods at New Orleans. We needed to store our goods at New Orleans and ship it using the Mississippi River and it was offered to France, once they got control of this region from Spain. Moving on, United State also made clear to the other countries that they’ll peacefully solve our problems by finding a way during the Louisiana Purchase. We tried to find a peaceful way to solve issues, instead of fighting Spain and France over the port of New Orleans and the Mississippi River. This also showed the people who lived in the west that our government cared about them and would work to fulfill their needs. They assisted western farmers to remain loyal to our country. (Koren, The Louisiana Purchase)

Many leaders in United State didn’t support the Louisiana Purchase. They were thinking that Thomas Jefferson did not have a right to make such a decision or the purchase of such a large amount of land that would have caused the war with Spain over the land soon after purchasing it. Thomas Jefferson had to convince everyone in the Constitution in order to make this deal. The result was ’59-57’ as Congress nearly canceled the purchase. It got passed by only two votes. (Koren)

After winning the votes by 2 people, Thomas Jefferson and Napoleon in 1803, signed a paper known as the Louisiana Purchase. Thomas Jefferson in 1803 then hired William Clark and Lewis Merriweather to explore Louisiana. They were instructed to find the passage to the Pacific Ocean so that they can faster their trades with Asia. Their specific instruction was to develop a map to the Pacific Ocean, learn about the Indian tradition and study the wildlife.

Today, Louisiana Purchase is considered to be one of the greatest deals in US history as it increased the size of the US, it gained control of more land for natural resources and farming. Also, the purchase removed France from North America.