Democratic-Republican
He was the 3rd President of the United States and the primary author of the Declaration of Independence.
Thomas Jefferson
The U.S. originally only wanted to buy this vital port city to secure control of the Mississippi River for western farmers.
New Orleans
President Jefferson commissioned these two men to lead the Corps of Discovery from 1804 to 1806.
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark
The Louisiana Purchase had this immediate mathematical effect on the physical size of the United States in 1803.
It doubled the size of the country.
This political party, led by Jefferson, believed in strong state governments and an agrarian economy.
Democratic-Republican Party.
This French military leader sold the Louisiana Territory to the United States to fund his European wars.
Napoleon Bonaparte
This Shoshone woman played a crucial role in the expedition as an interpreter, guide, and symbol of peace to native tribes.
Sacagawea
The massive acquisition of western land accelerated this large-scale movement of American settlers seeking new economic opportunities.
westward migration
Jefferson believed in this type of interpretation of the Constitution, meaning the government only has powers explicitly listed in the document.
strict constructionism.
A successful slave rebellion in this Caribbean colony (modern-day Haiti) ruined France's plans for a North American empire.
Saint-Domingue
A primary, yet ultimately unsuccessful, goal of the expedition was to find this legendary all-water route across North America to the Pacific Ocean.
Northwest Passage
This was the devastating primary impact of American westward expansion on the indigenous tribes already living in the Louisiana Territory.
loss of ancestral lands
To reduce the national debt, Jefferson's administration eliminated these types of domestic taxes, including the highly unpopular whiskey tax.
Internal taxes.
In 1803, the United States purchased the 828,000 square mile Louisiana Territory from France for this total monetary amount.
$15 million
In November 1805, the Corps of Discovery finally reached this major body of water, marking the western limit of their historic journey.
Pacific Ocean
The United States government frequently used these formal, often broken, legal agreements to acquire land from Native American nations.
treaties
Jefferson envisioned the United States as an "Empire of Liberty" primarily populated by these independent, self-sufficient citizens
yeoman farm
This crucial waterway was essential for American farmers in the Ohio River Valley to transport their agricultural goods to international markets.
Mississippi River
The expedition was explicitly tasked with documenting these three scientific elements of the newly acquired western lands.
plants, animals, and geography
The massive influx of settlers led to the rapid exploitation of these natural assets, fundamentally altering the western environment and native ways of life.
natural resources