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The Purchase: Louisiana Purchase
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The eastern boundary of the Louisiana purchase was the Mississippi River, from its source to the 31st parallel, although the source of the Mississippi was then unknown. The eastern boundary below the 31st parallel was unclear; the U.S. claimed the land as far as the Perdido River, and Spain claimed the border of its Florida Colony remained the Mississippi river. In early 1804, Congress passed the Mobile Act which recognized West Florida as being part of the United States. The Treaty with Spain of 1819 resolved the issue. Today, the 31st parallel is the northern boundary of the western half of the Florida Panhandle, and the Perdido is the boundary between Florida and Alabama.
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The event commemorated by the St. Louis Exposition was the purchase of the Louisiana territory from France under the Administration of President Thomas Jefferson in 1803. It was the acquisition of an empire by the processes of peace and diplomacy, startling to the civilized world. Its magnitude and full significance were not appreciated at the time, but looking back over the one hundred years of development of this vast area, embracing so much of our country west of the Mississippi, none fails to recognize in the event a sufficient inspiration for the unsurpassed exposition held in the chief city within the purchased territory. Read the entire Treaty.
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Louisiana: European Explorations and the Louisiana Purchase presents a rich variety of research materials including maps, letters, and newspapers, as well as a lengthy essay relating to that landmark event. Browse the collection by Subject, Title, Creator, or Place.
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The purchase was an important moment in the presidency of Thomas Jefferson. At the time, it faced domestic opposition as being possibly unconstitutional. Although he felt that the US Constitution did not contain any provisions for acquiring territory, Jefferson decided to purchase Louisiana because he felt uneasy about France and Spain having the power to block American trade access to the port of New Orleans.
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Two more Spanish governors rotated through Louisiana (in 1798 Manuel Gayoso de Lemos replaced François-Louis Hector, Baron de Carondelet et Hoyelles, and in 1799 he was replaced by Manuel de Salcedo) before its purchase by the United States in 1803. Although France was in turmoil due to its revolution in 1789, many citizens of France and Louisiana still longed for Louisiana to become a French colony again.
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The vast Louisiana Territory was purchased for 60 Million Francs or about $15,000,000.00 of which $11,250,000.00 was to be paid directly. The balance to be covered by the U.S. in the assumption of French debts to U. S. citizens. This territory included 800,000 square miles of land.
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Louisiana Purchase