The Jefferson Era/Lesson 2: The Louisiana Purchase

In 1800 the territory of the United States extended as far west as the ______________________________ River.

• Mississippi

• Missouri

• Rio Grande

• Hudson

The area west of the Mississippi River, known as the ___________________, belonged to Spain. It was an enormous area of land, stretching south to the city of New Orleans and west to the Rocky Mountains. Its northern boundaries remained undefined.

• Florida Territory

• Canadian Territory

• Louisiana Territory

• Mexican Territory

Farmers needed access to the Mississippi to transport their crops to markets. Their goods traveled down the Mississippi to ______________________________, where workers loaded them onto other ships bound for markets on the East Coast. The Mississippi and this important port city were under Spanish control at the time.

• Boston

• New Orleans

• Philadelphia

• Charleston

In 1802, Spain no longer allowed American goods to move into and beyond New Orleans. As a result, Congress authorized ____________________________, the new minister to France, to offer as much as $2 million for New Orleans and West Florida in order to gain control of the territory and allow farmers to use the Mississippi River and the port city of New Orleans to ship their goods.

• John Pinckney

• John Jay

• Robert Livingston

• Sacagawea

A French official told U.S. representatives Robert Livingston and James Monroe that the entire__________________________ was for sale. The offer took Livingston and Monroe by surprise. The deal, however, was too good to pass up.

• Louisiana Territory

• Florida Territory

• Oregon Territory

• Canadian Territory

The ______________________________ would provide plenty of cheap land for farmers for future generations. It would also give the United States control of the Mississippi River, which would protect domestic shipping interests.

• Louisiana Territory

• Florida Territory

• Oregon Territory

• Mexican Territory

The Senate approved the purchase in October 1803. The purchase of the Louisiana Territory ________________________ the size of the United States.

• doubled

• tripled

• reduced in half

• decreased

The United States payed ___________________________to France for the Louisiana Territory in 1803.

• $10 million

• $15 million

• $20 million

• $5 million

Jefferson wanted to learn more about the Louisiana Territory. He convinced Congress to fund an expedition. It would document findings about the territory's people, plants, and animals and recommend sites for future forts. The expedition had another goal: finding and mapping the fabled _____________________, a water route across North America.

• Northwest Passage

• Northwest Territory

• Strait of Magellan

• Seven cities of gold

Jefferson chose ______________________, his 28-year-old private secretary, to head the expedition.

• Sacagawea

• Charlie Clark

• Meriwether Lewis

• Zebulon Pike