Louisiana Purchase

The Louisiana Purchase was the most influential and important land purchases in American history. The acquired land in this historical purchase proved to far outweigh what most Americans at the time could imagine. The Louisiana Purchase more than doubled the size of the United States, and lead to many great discoveries and societal benefits. Some of the major and most prominent ways that the Louisiana Purchase influenced the evolution of American were the expeditions of Louis and Clark on the newly acquired westward territory, increase in the countries resources, which in turn increased in trade and resulted in a richer, more economically stable country, and it also played a very pivotal role in the relationship with African Americans, which still is remembered and prevalent in today’s society.

With the Louisiana Purchase (1803), the United States more than doubled its size. Now that the U.S. was in control of all of the new territory, Americans were free to roam and explore the newly acquired lands. Not to long after the purchase, President Thomas Jefferson had the U.S. Congress provide $2500, "to send intelligent officers with ten or twelve men, to explore even to the western ocean" (www.wikipedia.org). The main objectives of the crew were to study the western terrain, Indian tribes, geology, botany, and wildlife in the Louisiana territory. Another objective of the crew was to evaluate the interference of British and French trappers who were already well established in the newly

purchased territory. Meriwether Lewis (depicted on the left) was selected