The Louisiana Purchase was a land acquisition in 1803 that doubled the size of the United States. President Thomas Jefferson authorized the purchase of 828,800 square miles for $15 million from France, including the port of New Orleans. Napoleon Bonaparte originally did not want to sell the port, but after his plans to control Santo Domingo failed, he needed the funds to invade Britain. France offered to sell all of Louisiana, not just the port, which included land from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and parts of Canada. Today, this land contains all or part of 14 states.
The Louisiana Purchase was a land acquisition for the United States. On April 30, 1803, the Louisiana Purchase Treaty was signed, transferring ownership from France to the United States. President Thomas Jefferson authorized the purchase of the 828,800 square miles (2,147,000 square km) for $15 million. The purchase doubled the size of the United States and remains the largest land purchase in US history.
In the early 1800s, the Port of New Orleans was a major shipping site for American products. New Orleans was located on the south end of the Mississippi River, a prime shipping route for Americans. France claimed the city of New Orleans and its port. Jefferson feared that the French might block American access to the port and impede burgeoning American industry. In 1801 Jefferson sent a representative, Robert Livingston, to Paris to negotiate the purchase of the port.
The Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, was originally not interested in selling his country’s claim to the port. He planned to control the sugar cane fields of Santo Domingo, now called the Republic of Haiti. Napoleon wanted to use the Louisiana Territory, the strip of land north of New Orleans, as a granary to produce food for his Santo Domingo slaves. The port of New Orleans was essential to his plan as the port would be used to ship food from the mainland to Santo Domingo.
Napoleon’s plans were thwarted when resistance from the natives of Santo Domingo and an outbreak of yellow fever decimated his armies. Once Napoleon was forced to give up his idea of controlling Santo Domingo’s sugar cane revenues, he no longer needed the Louisiana Territory or New Orleans. Napoleon turned his sights to invading Britain, an undertaking that would require a large amount of capital. Funds offered by the United States for the Louisiana Territory Purchase would help finance his plan.
Jefferson decided to increase the amount of his offer to purchase New Orleans and in 1803 sent two envoys to France to make the offer. Robert Livingston and James Monroe bid to buy New Orleans and were surprised when representatives from France offered to sell all of Louisiana, not just the city. The territory included the land area from the Mississippi River west to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico north into parts of Canada. Today, this land contains all or part of 14 states. The current boundaries of the Louisiana Purchase were established in the years following the signing of the treaty.
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