The Pros And Cons Of The Louisiana Purchase

The Implications of the Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase was one of the largest single expansions of land that the United States has ever acquired. From an outsider’s standpoint, it is easy to assume that one of the only main benefits to come out of the Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition of land. That could not be farthest from the truth. Thomas Jefferson believed in the “Empire of Liberty.” He wrote in a letter to a friend that “Our confederacy must be viewed as the nest from which all America, North or South, is to be peopled.” While Thomas Jefferson acquired over eight hundred and twenty eight thousand square miles of land, the effects of the purchase reached beyond just the physical limitations. This paper will argue that
The newly acquired lands were rich in gold, silver and other ores, as well as huge forests and endless lands for grazing and farming. The new acquisition would add to America’s wealth in an unprecedented way. Jefferson stated “The fertility of the country, its climate and extent, promise in due season important aids to our treasury, an ample provision for our posterity, and a wide-spread field for the blessings of freedom.” the purchase also opened up much more trade and business opportunities through the opening of the Mississippi River. Lewis and Clarks exploration showed the opportunity for potential goods and merchants to make their way west. The ability also for traders to make their way from North to South so easily created easy accessibility and allowed for the heartland of America to serve as a halfway point. This created economic stimulation that would not have been possible
While there had already been tension building between the North and the South, the addition of new territory added new fuel to the fire. If the new states that emerged from the Louisiana Territory were all free, then the balance of power in the U.S. Senate would tilt decisively against slavery or vice versa . From the moment that the expansion of the United States emerged, there was conflict. Eventually after many years of debate the Missouri Compromise came to be in 1820. The Missouri Compromise was devised by Henry Clay . It was an attempt to defuse the tension causes by the addition of the Louisiana Purchase. It gave the pre-slavers the decisive state they needed to hold their position in congress. After much debate was had about which states would be free or slave states with the addition of the Louisiana Purchase, a compromise was worked out. To appease both sides Missouri would be admitted as a slave state and Maine (which used to be apart Massachusetts) would have the status of a free state, and minus Missouri, slavery was to be excluded at a certain latitude . With the Missouri Compromise; all states south of Missouri would be slave states and all states north of it would be free. The addition of Missouri as a slave state just ignited the already hot debate about the legitimacy of slavery. While the Louisiana Purchase would eventually help to