The great event of Jefferson’s first term was the acquisition of the Louisiana Territory, that vast tract of land extending from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains, from the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico. The purchase of this land from Napoleon was not a premeditated act but rather the result of seizing an opportunity that presented itself. President Jefferson started out merely to buy New Orleans from France but ended up with more than 800,000 square miles. The agreed-on price was about $15,000,000, or something like two cents per acre.

Napoleon had forced Spain to give Louisiana back to France after Spain had held the territory nearly forty years. Just before the letter in the following account was written, the Spanish Intendant (director) of New Orleans, who had not yet turned over the city to France, closed the port to American commerce. Because most of the produce of the Ohio and Mississippi valleys reached eastern and foreign markets via New Orleans, closing the port seemed almost an act of war against the United States. At this point Jefferson sent James Monroe to Europe as special minister to buy New Orleans. It turned out just then that Napoleon needed money to renew his war against England, and the entire territory was purchased within a few weeks. The events which led to the purchase are described in the following letter that Jefferson wrote on February 3, 1803, to Robert Livingston, the American minister to France.

Jefferson Writes to Robert Livingston

A late suspension by the Intendant of New Orleans of our right of deposit there, without which the right of navigation is impracticable, has thrown this country into such a flame of hostile disposition as can scarcely be described. The western country was peculiarly sensible to it as you may suppose. Our business was to take the most effectual pacific measures in our power to remove the suspension, and at the same time to persuade our countrymen that pacific measures would be the most effectual and the most speedily so. The opposition caught it as a plank in a shipwreck, hoping it would enable them to tack the western people to them. They raised the cry of war, were intriguing in all the quarters to exasperate the western inhabitants to arm and go down on their own authority and possess themselves of New Orleans, and in the meantime were daily reiterating, in new shapes, inflammatory resolutions for the adoption of the House.

As a remedy to all this we determined to name a minister extraordinary to go immediately to Paris and Madrid to settle this matter. This measure being a visible one, and the person named peculiarly proper with the western country, crushed at once and put an end to all further attempts on the Legislature. From that moment all has become quiet; and the more readily in the western country, as the sudden alliance of these new federal friends had of itself already began to make them suspect the wisdom of their own course. The measure was moreover proposed from another cause. We must know at once whether we can acquire New Orleans or not. We are satisfied nothing else will secure us against a war at no distant period; and we cannot press this reason without beginning those arrangements which will be necessary if war is hereafter to result.

For this purpose it was necessary that the negotiators should be fully possessed of every idea we have on the subject, so as to meet the propositions of the opposite party, in whatever form they may be offered; and give them a shape admissible by us without being obliged to await new instructions hence. With this view, we have joined Mr. Monroe to yourself at Paris, and to Mr. Pinckney at Madrid, although we believe it will be hardly necessary for him to go to this last place.

The Lewis and Clark Expedition

Exploring the Missouri River Valley and the Rocky Mountain area long had been a cherished project of President Jefferson. He had talked about it periodically since the Revolution, and when he became President he set about to make his dream come true. Even before the United States owned the Louisiana Territory, Capt. Meriwether Lewis, Jefferson’s secretary, and William Clark, younger brother of George Rogers Clark, had been picked to head an expedition to explore the West.

The journey did not begin, however, until May, 1804, when the expedition left St. Louis. Capt. Lewis led his explorers up the Missouri River to what is now North Dakota, and before cold weather set in they built huts and a stockade for winter quarters. The next spring they moved on up the river in dugout canoes (pirogues) towards the mountains. The following selection from Capt. Lewis’ journal of the expedition was set down on April 13, 1805, when the party was at the junction of the Missouri and the Little Missouri rivers, still in North Dakota.

Being disappointed in my observations of yesterday for longitude, I was unwilling to remain at the entrance of the river another day for that purpose, and therefore determined to set out early this morning; which we did accordingly; the wind was in our favour after 9 A.M. and continued favourable until 3 P.M. We therefore hoisted both the sails in the White Pirogue, consisting of a small square sail and spritsail, which carried her at a pretty good gait, until about 2 in the afternoon when a sudden squall of wind struck us and turned the pirogue so much on the side as to alarm Charbonneau [the interpreter], who was steering at the time. In this state of alarm he threw the pirogue with her side to the wind, when the spritsail gibing was as near oversetting the pirogue as it was possible to have missed. The wind, however, abating for an instant, I ordered Drouillard [also an interpreter] to the helm and the sails to be taken in, which was instantly executed, and the pirogue being steered before the wind was again placed in a state of security. This accident was very near costing us dearly. Believing this vessel to be the most steady and safe, we had embarked on board of it our instruments, papers, medicine, and the most valuable part of the merchandise which we had still in reserve as presents for the Indians. We had also embarked on board ourselves, with three men who could not swim, and the squaw [Sacajawea, the Shoshone wife of Charbonneau, who showed the party the way across the Continental Divide and obtained horses and protection for them from the Shoshones] with the young child, all of whom, had the pirogue overset, would most probably have perished, as the waves were high, and the pirogue upwards of 200 yards from the nearest shore; however, we fortunately escaped and pursued our journey under the square sail, which shortly after the accident I directed to be again hoisted.

By the end of May the expedition had moved halfway across Montana, still following the Missouri River:

Today we passed on the starboard [right] side the remains of a vast many mangled carcasses of buffalo which had been driven over a precipice of 120 feet by the Indians and perished; the water appeared to have washed away a part of this immense pile of slaughter and still there remained the fragments of at least a hundred carcasses. They created a most horrid stench. In this manner the Indians of the Missouri destroy vast herds of buffalo at a stroke; for this purpose one of the most active and fleet young men is selected and disguised in a robe of buffalo skin, having also the skin of the buffalo’s head with the ears and horns fastened on his head in form of a cap. Thus caparisoned he places himself at a convenient distance between a herd of buffalo and a precipice proper for the purpose, which happens in many places on this river for miles together; the other Indians now surround the herd on the back and flanks, and at a signal agreed on all show themselves at the same time moving forward towards the buffalo.

The disguised Indian or decoy has taken care to place himself sufficiently nigh the buffalo to be noticed by them when they take to flight, and running before them they follow him in full speed to the precipice, the cattle behind driving those in front over and seeing them go do not look or hesitate about following until the whole are precipitated down the precipice forming one common mass of dead and mangled carcasses. The decoy in the meantime has taken care to secure himself in some cranny or crevice of the cliff which he had previously prepared for that purpose.

By August 13 the expedition was crossing the Continental Divide at Lemhi Pass on the border between Montana and Idaho. In the selection that follows, Capt. Lewis describes the party’s meeting with the Shoshone Indians.

We had not continued our route more than a mile when we were so fortunate as to meet with three female savages. The short and steep ravines which we passed concealed us from each other until we arrived within 30 paces. A young woman immediately took to flight; an elderly woman and a girl of about 12 years old remained. I instantly laid by my gun and advanced towards them. They appeared much alarmed but saw that we were too near for them to escape by flight; they therefore seated themselves on the ground, holding down their heads as if reconciled to die, which they expected no doubt would be their fate. I took the elderly woman by the hand and raised her up, repeated the word tab-ba-bone and stripped up my shirt sleeve to show her my skin; to prove to her the truth of the assertion that I was a white man, for my face and hands, which have been constantly exposed to the sun, were quite as dark as their own. They appeared instantly reconciled, and the men coming up, I gave these women some beads, a few moccasin awls, some pewter looking-glasses, and a little paint.

I directed Drouillard to request the old woman to recall the young woman who had run off to some distance by this time, fearing she might alarm the camp before we approached and might so exasperate the natives that they would perhaps attack us without enquiring who we were. The old woman did as she was requested and the fugitive soon returned almost out of breath. I bestowed an equivalent portion of trinket on her with the others. I now painted their tawny cheeks with some vermillion, which with this nation is emblematic of peace. After they had become composed I informed them by signs that I wished them to conduct us to their camp, that we were anxious to become acquainted with the chiefs and warriors of their nation. They readily obeyed and we set out, still pursuing the road down the river.

We had marched about 2 miles when we met a party of about 60 warriors mounted on excellent horses, who came in nearly full speed. When they arrived, I advanced towards them with the flag, leaving my gun with the party about 50 paces behind me. The chief and two others who were a little in advance of the main body spoke to the women, and they informed them who we were and exultingly showed the presents which had been given them. These men then advanced and embraced me very affectionately in their way, which is by putting their left arm over your right shoulder, clasping your back, while they apply their left cheek to yours and frequently vociferate the word ah-hi-e, ah-hi-e, that is, I am much pleased, I am much rejoiced. Both parties now advanced and we were all caressed and besmeared with their grease and paint till I was heartily tired of the national hug.

I now had the pipe lit and gave them smoke; they seated themselves in a circle around us and pulled off their moccasins before they would receive or smoke the pipe. This is a custom among them, as I afterwards learned, indicative of a sacred obligation of sincerity in their profession of friendship, given by the act of receiving and smoking the pipe of a stranger. Or which is as much as to say that they wish they may always go barefoot if they are not sincere; a pretty heavy penalty if they are to march through the plains of their country.

After crossing the Continental Divide, the expedition descended the Columbia River to the Pacific Coast, where they built a fort and spent the winter of 1805-1806. The next year they retraced their steps across the wilderness and returned to St. Louis in September, 1806, having been gone twenty-eight months. The expedition not only was a great adventure, but it also captured the imagination of the country. Not long afterwards fur traders began tapping the rich resources of the area, and by the middle of the century settlers were crossing the plains and mountains via the Oregon Trail.