Another of Thomas Jefferson’s most important legacies was the
purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France. When
Jefferson became president in 1801, most of the United States population lived
within 50 miles of the Atlantic Ocean. Not much was known about the western
part of the continent.
During my interview with Mr. Heilman he told me one of the reasons Thomas Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase was to get New Orleans because it was a port and from there boats could go up the Mississippi River (Heilman). Jefferson also hoped to establish trade with the Native American people of the West and find a water route to the Pacific (Thomas Jefferson Monticello).
In 1803 Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory for $15 million. The Louisiana Territory was more than 820,000 square miles, and included the land between the Mississippi River and Rocky Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico to present-day Canada which doubled the size of the United States (History). Mr. Heilman also told me that the French wanted to sell the United States the land because they were at war with England and needed money. To pay France the United States had to borrow money from England (Heilman).
Jefferson then hired Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the land, plus the area beyond, out to the Pacific Ocean. The expedition lasted from 1804 to 1806 and provided valuable information about the geography, Native American tribes and animal and plant life of the western part of the continent (History).
During my interview with Mr. Heilman he told me one of the reasons Thomas Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase was to get New Orleans because it was a port and from there boats could go up the Mississippi River (Heilman). Jefferson also hoped to establish trade with the Native American people of the West and find a water route to the Pacific (Thomas Jefferson Monticello).
In 1803 Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory for $15 million. The Louisiana Territory was more than 820,000 square miles, and included the land between the Mississippi River and Rocky Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico to present-day Canada which doubled the size of the United States (History). Mr. Heilman also told me that the French wanted to sell the United States the land because they were at war with England and needed money. To pay France the United States had to borrow money from England (Heilman).
Jefferson then hired Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the land, plus the area beyond, out to the Pacific Ocean. The expedition lasted from 1804 to 1806 and provided valuable information about the geography, Native American tribes and animal and plant life of the western part of the continent (History).