France had owned Louisiana, then Spain, then back to France. Why? Here’s why. In the French and Indian war, France passed Louisiana to Spain, hoping to get them out of the war. Then, Napoleon asked Spain to give Louisiana in exchange for Tuscany in secret. He wanted to make New Orleans the capital of New France.
But because Napoleon was broke, he needed money to make weapons, and President Thomas Jefferson needs trade rights and access to the New Orleans port by the Mississippi. So, what do you think will happen?
Thomas Jefferson wanted access to the port in New Orleans and sent two men to make a deal with France. Initially, they wanted a contract of $10M for the port. Instead, France offered the whole of Louisiana (from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains of Canada) to America for $15M. It was a bargain! If you compute, Louisiana was 827,987 square miles, and it only costs $18.12 per square mile or $0.03 per acre! So, America bought Louisiana, and Napoleon had the money for supplies! Everyone was happy. Later, the government sold it to the people of America for $1 per acre.
The Expeditions of Lewis and Clark
Thomas Jefferson sent a team to explore Louisiana. He hired Meriwether Lewis (an army captain) to explore in the North West and William Clark. Lewis secretly promoted Clark to co-leader! Both of them have experience in the wilderness, and they hired 43 more recruits. Their first trip was 8,000 miles in St. Louis, Missouri, on May 14, 1804. They saw 3000 buffaloes in a herd and some grizzly bears. They recorded 122 species of animals in all in their journals! They also encountered lots of gnats and mosquitos.
They met Sioux (sue) Indians, and later the Mandan Indians. They also met a French-Canadian Trader, who was Toussaint Charbonneau and his wife named Sacagawea.
Sacagawea was engraved in the $1 gold coin in honor of her. Why was she in the $1 coin? Because she became the translator for Native Americans and helped lessen the fear of native Americans. Sacagawea’s son was named Jean Baptiste (baptist). Along the way, the expedition met an Indian chief, who was Sacagawea’s brother! They did not see each other for a long time. So when she came back, they had a celebration!
They finished the trip in March 1806. Two years!!!
Zebulon Pike
Lieutenant Zebulon Pike also was hired by TJ in 1806. Pikes Peak was named after him. At 14, 114 feet above sea level, Pikes Peak in is one of 54 mountains in Colorado to exceed 14, 000 feet. At the end of their trip, they were captured by the Spanish! The Spanish kept them for a few months, then sent them back home through Texas.
The End
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