Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
Chapter 8, Lesson 1, Exploring Beyond the Mississippi (pp. 222-227)
I. The United States Expands
B. President Jefferson believed that western lands would be important for farming and for trade.
C. Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark to explore the new territory, find a water route to
the Pacific Ocean, and establish good trade relations with the Native Americans.
II. Lewis and Clark Explore the West
B. The expedition proved that the Missouri River was not the Northwest Passage.
C. Lewis and Clark established ties with Native Americans, provided the first accurate
maps and descriptions of the land, and aroused great interest in westward expansion.
III. Mountain Men Blaze Trails
B. The U.S. government also sent expeditions to explore and map western lands.
C. As more of the west became known, a movement grew to push the border of the United
States to the Pacific.
Lesson at a Glance Outline
A. In 1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France.
A. The Lewis and Clark expedition took two and half years to travel to the Pacific Ocean
and return.
A. Fur trappers in the west, known as mountain men, found routes across the mountains
and deserts that later became overland trails for settlers moving west.
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