The phrase “manifest destiny” is the belief that the United States would inevitably expand westward to the Pacific Ocean and into Mexican territory. The word manifest means obvious so the destiny was manifest or obvious. Americans assumed the United States would expand to the Pacific Ocean. Thomas Jefferson was president at the time and he dreamed of expanding the U.S. to the Pacific Ocean. People had many reasons for wanting to move to the west. For example, people had personal economic problems and wanted to start fresh in the west. Also, the abundance of land attracted people for farming or land ownership, which was an important step toward success and good fortune. Growth in manufacturing and the rise of business made people want to expand
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In 1803 the U.S. bought all of the land from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. France sold us this land for $15 million. Spain originally owned the Louisiana territory but then France gained the land in 1800 from the Treaty of San Ildefonso. The Louisiana Purchase doubled the nation’s size. Even before the Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson wanted to explore the west. In February 1803 an expedition to the west was funded. Meriwether Lewis, who was Thomas Jefferson’s personal secretary, and Lewis’ dear friend William Clark lead an expedition to the west, with 50 other men accompanying them. The expedition started in St. Louis and was expected to go to the Pacific Ocean. Along the journey, they met a Native American woman named Sacajawea, who helped guide the expedition. The Lewis and Clark expedition took a little over two years. They discovered a lot about the western territory. The British remained owner of Florida during the Revolutionary War, but from the Treaty of Paris in1783 Florida returned to Spanish control. The Adams-Onis Treaty was negotiated by John Quincy Adams and the Spanish Minister, Don Luis de Onis. The treaty included the acquisition of Florida by the U.S. and the establishment of a boundary line between Spanish territory and the United States. The treaty was signed in February 1819 and was ratified in
In 1803 the U.S. bought all of the land from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. France sold us this land for $15 million. Spain originally owned the Louisiana territory but then France gained the land in 1800 from the Treaty of San Ildefonso. The Louisiana Purchase doubled the nation’s size. Even before the Louisiana Purchase, Jefferson wanted to explore the west. In February 1803 an expedition to the west was funded. Meriwether Lewis, who was Thomas Jefferson’s personal secretary, and Lewis’ dear friend William Clark lead an expedition to the west, with 50 other men accompanying them. The expedition started in St. Louis and was expected to go to the Pacific Ocean. Along the journey, they met a Native American woman named Sacajawea, who helped guide the expedition. The Lewis and Clark expedition took a little over two years. They discovered a lot about the western territory. The British remained owner of Florida during the Revolutionary War, but from the Treaty of Paris in1783 Florida returned to Spanish control. The Adams-Onis Treaty was negotiated by John Quincy Adams and the Spanish Minister, Don Luis de Onis. The treaty included the acquisition of Florida by the U.S. and the establishment of a boundary line between Spanish territory and the United States. The treaty was signed in February 1819 and was ratified in