Louisiana Purchase and Westward Expansion (Video Notes)

American Settlers Move West

In the early 1800s, thousands of Americans moved west between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River.
States admitted: Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio.
People in the region depended on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to move their products to eastern markets.
New Orleans was a very important port for American products to be sent to European markets.
Jefferson began to worry that foreign powers might shut down access to New Orleans; concern for trade and westward expansion.

Spain controlled both New Orleans and Louisiana, which stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains.
Spanish officials could not keep Americans out of the territory.
Spain suddenly changed their policy to let American goods be shipped through the area.
Spain traded Louisiana to France in a secret treaty.

Spain closed ports to Americans right before trading it to France, and farmers worried about what it would do to the economy.
Jefferson asked U.S. Ambassador to France, Robert Livingston, about purchasing Louisiana and sent James Monroe to help him negotiate.
Robert Livingston (right) and James Monroe (left) [image caption referencing the diplomats].

Timeframe: 1791-1804.
The Haitian Revolution began amid the broader upheavals of the era and involved enslaved and free people of color in Saint-Domingue (Haiti).
The revolution challenged European colonial powers and reshaped ideas about freedom and rights.

A concise, dramatic framing of the slave revolt in Haiti; emphasizes rapid and transformative nature of the uprising.

Haiti’s struggle intersected with questions of freedom and France’s power in the Atlantic world.
French plans for empire and control of Caribbean holdings affected European strategy and the balance of power.
Port-au-Prince referenced; Limoges and other places noted as centers of political and economic influence (contextual references).

Planned to create empires in Europe and America.
Dreamed of a Western Empire and saw the Caribbean island Santo Domingo as an important naval base.
Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French, King of Italy, Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine (title framing).

The Haitian Revolution began in the context of the French Revolution and the rise of the aristocrats (bourgeoisie).
The stages of the French Revolution were reflected in the revolution in Saint-Domingue, interpreted through race, class, and plantation society.
Slaves began to revolt against plantation owners; mulattoes (mixed-race people) switched sides depending on political conflicts.
Toussaint L’Ouverture joined the fight and forged a disciplined army from enslaved people, astonishing European commanders.
They defeated both the British expeditionary force and Napoleon's best troops.

Jefferson and Congress sent Livingston and Monroe to offer 2{,}000{,}000 to purchase the Louisiana Territory.
Napoleon no longer needed Louisiana and needed money to continue fighting the British.
The U.S. purchased the territory for 15{,}000{,}000.
Jefferson worried the purchase might not be constitutional; ultimately decided that the treaty power allowed it.

Jefferson persuaded Congress to sponsor an expedition to gather information about the new land.
Another goal was to find and map the fabled Northwest Passage (a water route through North America).
Jefferson chose 28-year-old Meriwether Lewis, who chose 32-year-old William Clark to co-lead.
Clark brought along his slave York with them, highlighting issues of slavery and freedom in the expedition era.

Daughter of a Shoshone chief.
Lewis and Clark hired her and her husband as interpreters.
She carried her 2-month-old baby in a cradleboard.
She helped negotiate the purchase of horses, found edible plants, and made moccasins and clothing.
According to Clark, she eased the fears of other Native American groups.

Collected valuable information about people, plants, animals, and the geography of the West.
Inspired people to move west.

Lt. Zebulon Pike led two expeditions west between 1805 and 1807.
Pike was instructed to seek the headwaters of the Arkansas and Red rivers and to investigate Spanish settlements in New Mexico.
Traveled through the Upper Mississippi River valley and into present-day Colorado; mapped part of the Rio Grande and traveled across northern Mexico (now Southern Texas).
He found a snowcapped mountain, which he named Grand Peak, now known as Pike’s Peak.
Americans learned about the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains.