Thomas Jefferson sent the Corps of Discovery into the Lousiana Territory is because he wanted to see if there were any water routes to the Pacific Ocean.
secured approval to send Lewis and Clark on an expedition through upper Louisiana.
In 1803, when was President of the United States, the U.S. purchased the Louisiana Territory from France. This was a huge tract of over 800,000 square miles, taking in nearly the entire mid-section of North America from present-day Texas and Louisiana up to Montana and North Dakota. This almost doubled the size of the new country. Much of the new territory was unexplored. Jefferson decided to send an expedition up the Missouri River to its source in the western mountains and beyond to the Pacific Ocean. Jefferson hoped that the expedition would be able to find the elusive Northwest Passage, a water route across the country, which would be a great boon to commerce. So in that same year, Jefferson commissioned the Corps of Discovery under the command of his trusted private secretary, Meriwether Lewis. Besides seeking the Northwest Passage, Lewis was to map the new territory, assess its natural resources, and make contact with its inhabitants, befriending them if possible. Lewis recruited his friend William Clark to share equally in the command of the expedition, as well as a force of over 40 men. The members of the Corps of Discovery were soldiers, but their purpose was peaceful -- exploration, diplomacy, and science. Lewis was commissioned as a Captain of the Army of the United States, Clark as a Lieutenant (although this inferior rank was kept secret from the men, and Clark was always called "Captain").
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, and Zebulon Pike
Thomas Jefferson had dreamed of exploring the West for at least 20 years before he even became President. In 1783 he had even asked Clark's brother, George, to take on the challenge. After finally purchasing the Louisiana Territory, and two weeks before inauguration day Jefferson asked Lewis, his secretary of state, to go on the journey. After Lewis was very intelligent and trustworthy, and after being given specific instructions and properly trained, he began the expedition on August 30, 1803 in Pittsburgh PA. Lt. William Clark would only offer to join Lewis on the expedition weeks later on October 13, 1803 at Camp Dubois (in present-day Indiana). Jefferson had given Lewis full authority as leader of the expedition, so it was Lewis who chose Clark, not Jefferson. They then named their team the "Corps of Discovery."
Thomas Jefferson sent the Corps of Discovery into the Lousiana Territory is because he wanted to see if there were any water routes to the Pacific Ocean.
Thomas Jefferson sent James Monroe to buy the Louisiana purchase
secured approval to send Lewis and Clark on an expedition through upper Louisiana.
Lewis and CLark
president Jefferson send Lewis and Clark on an expedition to the west because president Jefferson wanted to learn as much as he can he could about the land (Louisiana) he bought.
1. To explore the Louisiana purchase 2. Find the northwest passage 3. To research the plants and animals of the Louisiana Purchase
He sent Monroe to Paris to help Robert Livingston negotiate the Louisiana Purchase.
Thomas Jefferson had dreamed of exploring the West for at least 20 years before he even became President. In 1783 he had even asked Clark's brother, George, to take on the challenge. After finally purchasing the Louisiana Territory, and two weeks before inauguration day Jefferson asked Lewis, his secretary of state, to go on the journey. After Lewis was very intelligent and trustworthy, and after being given specific instructions and properly trained, he began the expedition on August 30, 1803 in Pittsburgh PA. Lt. William Clark would only offer to join Lewis on the expedition weeks later on October 13, 1803 at Camp Dubois (in present-day Indiana). Jefferson had given Lewis full authority as leader of the expedition, so it was Lewis who chose Clark, not Jefferson. They then named their team the "Corps of Discovery."
Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark to explore the western territory. The Louisiana Purchase was important because it doubled the land size of the US at that time.
Livingston went to France in order to represent US interests. His specific goal was to negotiate over Louisiana and ended up performing the key negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase.
In 1803, when was President of the United States, the U.S. purchased the Louisiana Territory from France. This was a huge tract of over 800,000 square miles, taking in nearly the entire mid-section of North America from present-day Texas and Louisiana up to Montana and North Dakota. This almost doubled the size of the new country. Much of the new territory was unexplored. Jefferson decided to send an expedition up the Missouri River to its source in the western mountains and beyond to the Pacific Ocean. Jefferson hoped that the expedition would be able to find the elusive Northwest Passage, a water route across the country, which would be a great boon to commerce. So in that same year, Jefferson commissioned the Corps of Discovery under the command of his trusted private secretary, Meriwether Lewis. Besides seeking the Northwest Passage, Lewis was to map the new territory, assess its natural resources, and make contact with its inhabitants, befriending them if possible. Lewis recruited his friend William Clark to share equally in the command of the expedition, as well as a force of over 40 men. The members of the Corps of Discovery were soldiers, but their purpose was peaceful -- exploration, diplomacy, and science. Lewis was commissioned as a Captain of the Army of the United States, Clark as a Lieutenant (although this inferior rank was kept secret from the men, and Clark was always called "Captain").
He managed to double the country's size in the Louisiana Purchase, in which the US bought most of the MidWest from France. Jefferson explorers Lewis and Clark to explore the land.