The Louisiana Purchase

Summary

The Louisiana Purchase was the 1803 acquisition of approximately 828,000 square miles of territory from France for $15 million. President Thomas Jefferson negotiated the deal with Napoleon Bonaparte, who needed funds for European wars and had abandoned plans for a North American empire. The purchase doubled the size of the United States and extended its western border from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. This massive land acquisition included all or part of fifteen present-day states and set the stage for westward expansion.