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The Spanish Established El Paso
The Spanish established the first European settlement in the region near what is now El Paso, Texas. -
The Spanish Founded Santa Fe
The Spanish had founded Santa Fe, New Mexico. Soon they spread out along the upper reaches of the Rio Grande. -
France claimed the land drained by the Mississippi River.
France claimed the land drained by the Mississippi River, which included much of the land east of the Rocky Mountains. It called this vast area Louisiana. Over the years, the French placed a few settlements along the Mississippi River. The most important was New Orleans. It was founded in the early 1700s as a port for shipping goods from the river’s valley. -
The Spanish settled parts of California and Texas
The Spanish settled parts of California and Texas. Central to some settlements were missions. -
the territory of the United States was entirely east of the Mississippi River.
the territory of the United States was entirely east of the Mississippi River. -
President Thomas Jefferson purchased the vast Louisiana Territory from France.
President Thomas Jefferson purchased the vast Louisiana Territory from France. The Louisiana Purchase gave the United States most of the land between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. -
some Americans had come to believe in the idea of Manifest Destiny.
some Americans had come to believe in the idea of Manifest Destiny. -
the two countries reached an agreement.
the two countries reached an agreement. Under the deal, the United States gained control of those two future states. Britain kept control of lands to the north, which became part of Canada. -
Mexico gave the United States a vast area that later formed all of California, etc
Mexico gave the United States a vast area that later formed all of California, Utah, and Nevada and parts of Colorado, Arizona, Wyoming, and New Mexico.