D E P A R T ME N T O F T H E I N T E R I O R
$ E N E R AL L AN D O FFI C E
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L O UI S I A NA
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AN D TH E L O U I S I A NA P UR C H AS E
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W I T H A S TAT E M E N T O F O T H E R
A C QU I S I T I O N S
W AS H I N $ T O N
$ O VE R N M E N T P R IN T IN $ O FFI C E
19 12
This p ublication may be purchased from the S up erint en
Documents Government Printing O ffice W ashington D
10 cents
,
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,
LOUI S I AN A P UR CH AS E P R O$ R ES S MAP S or TH E
UNI TED S TATES
.
I N T R O D U C TI O N
.
$
A s eri e s of five maps of t h e United S t a t es showing the orig inal L ou
isi an a and the c h anges in its boundary during t h e 1 3 7 yea rs between
1 6 8 2 the date of La Salle s discovery and 1 8 1 9 the da t e o f th e
p ur chase of Florida formed an interesting p art of t h e e xhi bit of th e
General Land Offi ce at th e Loui siana Purc h ase E xposition h eld at
St Louis Mo in 1 9 04 Di fferences o f opinion have prevailed as t o
t he extent of Louisiana as purc h ased from Fr ance
It is believed
t h at t h ese are due firs t to a misconcep tion o f th e scope of La Salle s
discovery and proclamation and second to a mi sunderstanding of
t h e re al significance of t h e p olitical acts of th e United States between
18 03 and 1 8 1 9 affecting that p art o f La Salle s Louisiana W hi c h
extended along th e Gulf co ast east of th e Mississippi River It is
su bmi tted as t o th e former th at th e Louisiana Purc h ase of 1 8 03
di d no t inclu d e territory beyond the limits o f the original Lou isiana
and as to t h e lat t e r that all Sp anis h do ubts as to ownership we re
r esolved and permanentl y settled by th e political acts of t h e Uni ted
States follo wi ng th e purchase from France but anteda ting the
purchase o f Florida from Sp ain It is believed also th a t a t rue
picture o f th e extent and location of La Salle s Louisiana is s h own upon
map No 1 Thi s picture greatl y assists o n e t o understand the
h
ase
t
h
e
w
h
ole
of
Louisiana
w
h
ic
h
was
used
in
subsequent
r
p
tre aties of cession
In the brief discussion of each m ap which follows no effort has
b e e n made to har moni z e the con flicting vi ews held and heretofor e
published by num erous writers upon the subj ect o f Lo ui siana or the
Louisiana Pur chas e
Thes e views are as divers e as the i r author
ship is num ero u s This is no t surpris i ng when it is un d e rstood that
the c o mm on effo r t has been aim ed at solving the questions of terri
t o ri al limi ts o f Louis iana as this province p assed from o n e State to
another W ithout fir s t attempt ing t o fix the origin al limits of the
t e rri tory thus transfe rr e d To this fact probably more than any
o ther may the failur e to r each a common concl u sion be attributed
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T E RR IT O R$
$MAP
O F L O U I S IA N A , 16 8 2 - 1 762
NO
.
Th e
gr eat er colored area shown upon thi s map is based upon the
di scoveries o f La Sall e and his proclamation made at the mouth o f the
Mississippi Riv e r o n April 9 1 6 8 2 This proclamation was mad e in
the presence o f the entire p arty u n der arms who chanted the Te
Deum the E xa u d i a t and the Domine s alvu m fac Reg e m Aft er a
salute o f firearms and cries o f Viv e 1e Roi La Salle erec ted a col
umn and whi le standing near it said in a loud voice $
I n th e na m e of th e m ost h i gh m i ghty i nvi nc i bl e a n d vi ctor i ou s p rin c e L o ui s th e
$ rea t b y th e g ra c e of $ od K i ng of Fra nc e an d of N a va rr e fo ur t e e n th of th a t na m e
th i s nin th d a y o f A p r i l one th ou sa n d si xhund re d a nd e ighty tw o I in vi rtu e of th e
c omm issi on o f H i s Maj e sty wh i ch I h ol d i n m y ha n d an d wh i ch m ay be se e n b y al l
wh om i t m a y c on c e rn ha ve take n an d d o n ow ta k e in th e nam e of H i s Majesty an d
of h i s succ essor s to th e cr ow n p osse ssi on of th i s c o un try o f L o u i sia na th e seas h ar b o rs
p orts , ba y a d ja c e n t stra i ts and all th e na t i ons p eop l e p rov i nc e s c i ti es towns
vil lag e s m i n e s m i n e ra l s fish e r i e s str ea m s a n d r i v e r s c omp r ise d i n th e e xt e n t o f sa i d
L ou i siana fr om th e m o uth of th e gr ea t r i ve r St L o u is o n th e e ast e rn si d e oth erw i se
c all e d O h i o A l i gi n S i p ore or C h u kagona a nd th i s w i th th e c onse n t of th e C h aonanon s
C h i c kac h as a n d o th er p eo p l e d w e ll i ng th e r e in w i th w h om w e ha v e m a d e a ll ian c e ;
as a l so a l ong th e r i v e r C o lb e rt or M issi ssi pp i an d r i v e rs wh i ch d i sch a rg e th e m se l v es
th e r ein fr om i ts sourc e b e y on d th e c ou ntry of th e K i ou s or N ad ou ce ssi ons an d th is
wi th th e i r c onse nt an d wi th th e c onse n t of th e M otan te s I ll i noi s M esigan eas N a tch es
K or oas wh i ch are th e m ost c on si d e ra bl e n a t i ons d w e ll i ng th e r e i n w i th wh om a l so w e
have ma d e a ll ia n c e e i th e r b y ourse l ve s or b y oth e rs i n our b eha l f as far as i ts m outh
b y th e sea or $ u l f o f Me xi c o a b out th e t w en ty se ve n th d egr e e of th e e l e va t i on of th e
N orth P o l e an d a lso t o th e m o uth of th e r i v e r o f P a l m s ; u p o n th e assuran c e wh i ch w e
have re c e i ve d from a l l th e se na t i ons tha t w e are th e first E ur op eans w h o ha ve d esc en d e d
o r a sc e n d e d th e sa i d r i v e r C o lb e rt ; h e r e b y p ro t e st i n g aga i n s t a l l w h o m a y i n f utur e
un d e rta ke to i nva d e an y or al l of th ese c ou n tr i e s p e op l e or la n d s a b ove d e scri b e d t o
th e p re j u d ic e of th e r i ghts o f H i s Ma j es ty a c q u i r e d b y th e c on se n t o f th e Iia t i ons h ere i n
O f wh i ch an d a l l th a t c a n b e n e e d e d I h e r e b y ta ke to wi tn ess th ose w h o
na m e d
h ear m e and d e man d a n a c t of th e nota ry as r e q u i re d b y l aw
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Title to Fr e nch territory in the Mi ssissippi Valley and along the
Gulf of Mexico was b ased upon this voyage and proclamation of
La Salle These acts of L a Sall e were in fact th e foundation o f
French ownership and have b e e n so considered by all natio ns since
The Louisiana thus claimed embraced two areas o f contigu
1 68 2
o u s territory
firs t the t err itory drained by the Mississippi River
with all o f its tributaries and s econd the t erritory b e tween th e
Mississippi River and th e River Palms The wo r ding o f the proc
l am a ti o n is simple and direct and its mean ing seems i n cap abl e of
di stortion or o f being m isunderst ood It a ppears e vi dent that L a
Salle had no information of t erritory beyond the sources o f th e Mis
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ti on f L S ll p c l m t ion i t k n fr m S park L if f L a S lle publi hed t B t n
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River and it tributari e s t o th e west o r if he knew o f such
e
erritory
he
purposely
excluded
any
claim
to
it
for
Franc
The
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W estern boun dary o f the original Louisiana is therefore traced along
the s um m it of the watershed whi ch defines the dr ainage b asin o f the
Missi ssippi in that r egion vi z around th e headwaters bo th o f the
R e d River and the Ark ansas with their t ri butaries and the Misso u ri
River with all of its gr e at tributaries from th e wes t and southwest to
the pres ent northern United States boundary
In the effort m ade t o locate th e western boundary o f La Sa lle s
Louisiana many untenable claims have been put forth by geographers
In o n e o f thos e claims the province was carried far beyond the drainage
basin o f the M ississippi River ; in fact across the Roc ky Mountai ns
In ano ther it is assu m ed that
to th e Paci fi c coast in the Northwes t
because Franc e at o ne tim e claim e d the Gulf co ast to St B ernard
Matagorda
Bay
by
r
ason
of
La
Salle
s
later
discoveries
this
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t erritory sho ul d be added to the original Louisiana
A third while
r ej e cting the Paci fic co ast ex t ension selected the Rio Grande as the
s outhwestern boundary but lac k in g in cour age of conviction pub
li sh e d maps r estricting the limits o n the wes t by the Sp ani sh Ame ric an
c ompromise line o f 1 8 1 9 The gr e at m aj ority o f geographers now
r ej ect the Pacifi c co as t e xtension but there remains a disposition to
include the Rio Grand e country A car eful s tudy o f available his
tori c al data r eveals claims o f Franc e at o n e time extending only to the
divide b etwe e n th e Color ado River and the Rio Grande a t another
time to the Rio Grande itself and with spiritual j ur isdiction to the
Pacific co ast In the nego tiations with France fo r the p u rch as e of
Louisiana Napoleon Tall e yrand and M arbo i s admitted great
obsc uri ty as to boundaries and declared their inability to throw any
light upon the subj e ct The negotiations incident t o the treaty o f
1 8 1 9 and the maps showing the c l a i m s o f t h e United Stat e s and Sp ain
at the time s e e m t o show that fo r diplomatic reasons probably t h e
United Stat e s claim e d the t erritory to the Rio Grande Spain
declared this claim pr e posterous and fix e d the equally absurd n i nety
third degree o f longitude as her eas t ern an d o ur western limi t W hil e
t he compromise line was no t agreed to as fix ing the w es tern li m its o f
the Louisiana purchas e from France by the United States bu t r ather
a s definitel y establishing a boundary between Spanish and A m erican
t erritory wes t o f the Mississippi River it is perhaps significant that
in its beginning e ast o f th e Texas t e rritory in question and in its
c ours e northw est erly to the forty second p arallel thi s bounda ry
approximat e d the location o f th e true Louisiana boundary o f La Salle
It is b eli e v e d the claim for the Rio Grande limit is untenable fo r the
s e v e ral r easons that the southern Texas country was a later discovery
and the r e asons off ered for its union with Louisiana are unconvincing
and ins uffi cient ; its area was indefinite and its boundaries unkn own ;
si ssi pp i
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6
L O U I S I AN A
PU R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
M AP S
.
it was never made a part O f La Sall e s Louisiana ; doub t as to Am er
ican titl e w as s tro ng enough to insure a ready acc e ptanc e o f th e c o n
tention o f Spain as to her own ership o f this portion o f the Gulf co ast
in 1 8 1 9 and this acceptance was in mar k ed contrast to th e vigorous
policy p u rsued in the Perdido R iv e r boundary contention wh ere
Am eri can ownership by virtu e Of th e pur chase was d e clared a n d
m aintained by the Governm e nt o f the Unit e d States On the o th e r
h and there is roo m fo r but o n e interpretation of th e limits of
Louisiana as proclaimed by L a Salle It is th e line d efining th e
drainage basin O f the Mississippi River o n the w e st and this lin e is
therefo re adopted as the Louisiana Purchase boundary through the
present State o f T exas N O available fact warrants the acc e ptance o f
the Spani sh Ameri can boundary o f 1 8 19 e stablished 1 6 years aft er the
pur ch ase o f Louisiana as th e boundary of this territory
I t has be e n h eld that t he Province O f Louisiana as proclaim e d
by La Sall e should be e nlarged on t he north by the addition o f the
t errit ory south O f the forty ninth parall e l and west of t h e head
waters O i the Mississippi Riv e r that is to say by th e drainage basin
of the R e d Rive r of t he North It is certain that t hi s t e rritory was
not in La Sall e s Louisiana and i t is ev e n do ubtful that it ev e r re ally
b e longed to France I t is u ni versally conceded that th e powe rs
sig natory to the treat y of Utre cht in 1 7 1 3 in the b e lief that the
h eadwat e rs o f the Mississippi Riv e r were north o f the forty ninth
parallel intended t o c onfirm France in t he possession no t o f t e rritory
beyond t h e Mississippi drainag e bu t o f Mississippi Vall ey t e rritory
whi ch was proclaim e d Louisiana b y La Salle 3 1 y e ars b e fore
Bu t French o w nershi p even if conced e d b y virtue o f th e tre aty of
Utrecht would be unimportan t for su ch conc e ssion would in n o
degree support the con t ention that the R e d Rive r Basin form e d a
part of Louisiana Al l of th e French terri tory t o t he north of La
Sall e s Louisiana of whatever e xt e nt e as t o r west of the Gre at I akes
was transferred t o Gre at Britain in 1 76 3 and no French claim to any
part O f i t h as appeared sin c e t hat time
The o rigin o f Am e rican t itl e to t he di stric t north and we st of
the h e adwat e rs o f the MissiSsip pi River and south o f the forty ni nth
parallel may be found in t he tr e aties b e twe e n th e United Stat e s and
Great Britain o f 1 78 3 and 1 8 1 7 the former d efining t erritorial l imi ts
a t t he close o f the R e volutionary W ar and the latt e r fixing the fort y
nin th parall e l as the north boundary of the United Stat e s b e twe e n
the La k e o f t h e W oods and t h e Roc ky Mountains
Franc e having
parted with t h e district a ffected b y the s e tr e ati e s long prior to th eir
n egotiation by the powers intere st e d w as wholly indiff e r e nt to the
transfe rs of the territory made th e re b y The drainage basin of
the R e d Riv e r Of t h e North is th e re fore excluded from the t e rritory
o f Louisiana purchas e d from Franc e in 1 8 03
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LO
UISIA N A PU R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
M AP S
.
7
.
Referri ng to the ext e nsion o f th e south boundary o f th e original
Louisiana t e rritory as S hown on the map a ppeal is again had to th e
proclamation o f La Sall e who said And also to the mouth of the
rive r Pal ms
Thi s river was located with so m e difficult y The
firs t mention o f it was found in a large volu m e b e longing to the
records of the Divisions of Privat e Lands etc General Land Offic e
A Complet e H istorical Chronological and Geographi cal
e nti tled
American Atlas e t c publish e d by Care y and L e a Phi ladelphi a
In t he hi storical data d e scriptive o f Florida was found t he
re cord o f a grant in 1 5 2 6 t o P a m phil o de Narvae z fro mCharles t he
Fifth of a ll the l ands from Cap e Florida t o t he river Palmos in th e
Gulf Of Me xico
This river appears upon the map of Florida in
the atlas bu t it is not named Cape Florida is shown upon all
m odern maps as we ll as ancie nt publications but appeal t o maps
published early in t he l ast century was n e c e ssary to l ocate Palm
River It emptied into Palm Sound now cal le d Sarasota Bay and
the southern extr e mit y of Palm Island which was also shown o n
the ancient maps is opposit e the m outh of t he river Thi s island
is now called Sarasota K ey Thi s grant o f land b y Spain 1 5 6 years
bef o re La Salle s vo y age down the Miss1ss1pp1 was peculiar in that
its limi ts we re d efined in sp e cifi c terms It is here noted m erel y as
offe ring a reasonable suggestion fo r t he a c tion o f La Salle in choosing
P a lm River a s t he e ast e rn limit o f Louisiana o n t he Gulf coast
Th e fac t of hi s choic e is unqu e st ioned
Co mm ercial rights ov e r t hi s o ri ginal Louisiana as fa r as the
Illi n ois for a peri od o f 1 0 ye ars we re grante d b y Louis $ I V to
An t oine de Cro z at S e pt e mber 1 4 1 7 1 2 and t he territory itse lf was
c eded t o Spain b y t reat y of Novemb e r 3 1 7 6 2 t he language of t h e
trea t y being the whole country kno wn under t he name of L ou is ana
t oge t he r with N e w Orl e ans and t he island on whi ch that city s t ands
Thi s was th e first transf e r relating to th e territory o f Louisiana
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T E RRI T O R$
O F LOU I S I AN A , 1 76 2 - 1800
$M A P
NO
.
Th e
gre at but partially t e mporary shri n k ag e in ar e a Of t he t er
ri t o ry o f Louisiana as s h own b y map No 2 was caused no t b y an y
change s in desc ription of the territory ceded t o Spain b y t rea t y of
No ve m be r 3 1 76 2 bu t b y t he fail ure of France to d e live r t o Spain
a ll o f th e t e rri t o ry d e sc ribed in tha t t r eat y and was als o due t o t h e
cession t o Grea t Britain b y Spain in 1 7 6 3 of all of he r te rri tory
undes cribed as t o bounda ries south of l a ti t ude 3 1 and east of t h e
Mississippi Rive r
Fou r m on th s afte r t he cession b y France t o Spain of the whole
t e rritory known under the na m e o f Louisiana
the repr e sentatives
o f France and Spain and of Great B ri tain and Portugal m e t at Paris
and e n t ered into a treat y apparently int e nded to fix more d efinit e l y
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L
O UISIA N A PU R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
M
APS
.
the boundaries of th e ir respectiv e poss e ssions in North Am erica
Th e attitude of Spain during these negotiations was in e xplicable
A t t hi s ti m e she was one of the gre atest of t he powers and it would
be idl e t o assume that h e r diplomats were unaware of th e claim of
France du ri ng th e previous 8 0 years to that part of Louisiana
whi ch lay e ast of th e M ississippi River e sp e cially when th e commercial
gran t of Louis $ I V to Cro z at with its transfe r t o th e M ississippi
2 8 and 3 2 y ears before not only d efinit e ly sp e cifi e d t h i s terri to ry
bu t a lso had become a matt e r of wide spread knowl e dge thr ough
t he t re m en dous fi nancial crisis and pani c whi ch followe d the op e ra
tion s o f the later grantee It can onl y be assume d that Spani sh
reasons of state or t he exig e nci e s of diplomacy p e rmitted France
t o cede to Gr e at Britain t h e territory east of t he Mississippi and north
o f latitude
which four months b e fore she had plainly c e d e d to
Spain B y t hi s same tr e at y of F e bruary 1 0 1 7 6 3 Spain also ced e d
t o Gre a t Bri t ain a ll of h e r t e rritory e ast of the M ississippi River and
south of latitu de
so that wh e n th e actual d e liv e ry of Louis iana
b y France to Spain occurred on April 2 1 1 76 4 the t e rri torial bounda
ries were as shown on this map Spain s titl e to all o f the terri tory
at this t i m e was undoubt e dly good ; for t o h er
s outh o f latitude 3 1
undis puted title to that par t o f Flo ri da which was Obtain e d thr ough
di scov e ry and coloni z ation was added t h e strip o f original Louisiana
t erritory between the Mississippi Rive r and the river Palms O btain e d
b y the tr e at y o f November 3 1 7 6 2 This tract i s l eft uncolored
upon t he map t h e same as the northern portions o f th e alienat e d
Louisiana t e rritory
.
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O F L O U I S IA N A , 1 8 00 1 8 03
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No
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indicated upon Map N O 3 the boundaries o f the territory o f
Louisiana w e st o f the Mississippi River su ffe red n o changes between
April 2 1 1 7 6 4 the date o f delivery to Spain and 1 8 00 when th e
retrocession from Spain t o France by the secret treaty o f San Ild e
fo nso occurred
Att e nt ion is directed t o the c o lor e d area o f the
m ap Over that p art o f the original Louisiana as procl ai m e d by La
Salle whic h lies south of latitude 3 1 and east o f the M ississippi
River Twenty years aft e r the treaty o f Paris o f Febru ary 1 0 1 7 6 3
in th e settlement Of boundari e s at th e close o f the Revolutionary
W a r the Uni ted States too k over from Gr e at Britain all that p art
o f the o ri g inal Louisiana ced e d to the latter by Franc e in 1 7 6 3 vi z
the territory o f L o uisiana eas t o f the Mis sissippi Riv e r and north
N At this time also S ept ember 3 1 78 3 owing to
o f latitude 3 1
Spani sh claims and aggre ssion Gre at B ri tain ced e d bac k to Spain
without boundary d elimitations the territ o ry s o uth o f latitud e 3 1
and eas t o f the Mi ssissippi Riv e r which the former had received also
AS
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L
O UISIA N A
P
U R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
M
APS
9
.
ithout boundary delimitations through the definitive treaty Of
It should be remembered here that that p art o f this territory
1 7 63
sh ad ed in agreement with the rest Of the area called Louisiana
formed a part o f the original territory o f Louisiana proclaimed by
L a Salle and ceded by treaty stipulation t o Sp ain in 1 7 6 2
The Governm ent and pe o pl e o f th e Uni ted St ates w h o in 1 78 3
c ame into poss ession o f that p art o f the o riginal Louisiana ceded by
o reason t o question t h e validity O f
n
rance
Great
Britain
had
o
t
F
th e cession o f 1 7 6 3 by France since Sp ain had indorsed it and approv e d
it James Madison Secretary o f State in a letter t o Robert L iv
s ays o f thi s
i ngs t o n mini st e r t o France o f date March 3 1
c ess i o n $
S pain m ight n o t u n fai rl y b e c onsi d e re d as c e d i ng b a c k to Fran c e wh a t Fra n c e h ad
c e d e d to h e r i n asm uch as th e c e ssi on O f i t to $ rea t Bri ta i n w a s m a d e for th e b en e fi t o f
S p ain to wh om on th a t a cc o u n t C u b a w as re store d T h e e ffe ct w as p re c ise l y th e
sam e a s if Fran c e h a d i n f o rm m a d e t h e c e ssi on t o S p a i n a n d S p ai n h a d a ssi gn e d i t
o v e r to $ r e a t Bri tai n ; an d th e c e ssi on m a y th e m or e a p t l y b e c on si d e r e d as p as in g
throu gh S pa in as S pa in h e rself w as a p arty to th e trea ty b y wh i ch i t w a s c on ve ye d to
$ r ea t Bri tai n
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Spain Obt ained titl e from France to the whole o f Louisiana in
1 7 6 2 and was therefore in position to cede the Gulf co as t to Great
Britain in 1 7 6 3 There was nothing peculiar in the retrocession o f
this tract by Great Bri tain to Sp ain in 1 78 3 ; nothi ng app arent to
j ustify the contention o f Sp ain following th e retrocession t o France
i n 1 8 00 o f the c olon y o r province o f L o uisiana with th e s ame e xtent
it now has in the hands o f Sp ain and that it had when France pos
sessed it that this t e rritory belo nged t o and formed a p art o f h er
original possessions in Flo ri da
By secret treaty known as th e Treaty o f San Ildefonso
of
Octob er 1 1 8 00 Sp ain retro ceded t o France the colony o r provi nce
o f L o uisiana with th e s ame extent it n o w has in the hands o f Spain
and that it had when France poss e ssed it and such as it should be
after the treaty subs e quently entered into between Sp ain and the
other states
By this treaty Franc e again came into possession so
far as Sp anish interests w e re concerned o f the original territory o f
Louisiana ; bu t the s ame was of course shorn O f th e l arge area eas t
o f the Mississippi River and north o f l atitude
whi ch fo r 1 7 ye a rs
past had been a part o f the Uni ted States This retroceded Louisiana
undoubtedly embraced that portion o f the origina l territory whi ch
lies sout h O f latitude 3 1 and eas t O f the Mississippi River wha tever
m a y have been its extent
The wording o f th e treaty o f San Ilde
fo ns o precludes any o ther vi e w than that o f r e troces sion and the
United States s o held and unde rs too d it as shown by acts o f s o ve r
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O U ISIA N A
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PU
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M AP S
O F L O U I S IA NA , 18 03 - 18 19
.
$MAP
NO
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Map N o 4 S hows th e area Of the territory o f Louisiana as purchased
from France in 1 8 03 It will be no ted that no change in the boundary
Of that p art w e s t o f Mississippi Riv e r has o ccurred since 1 7 6 2 but
that the area o f th e tract along the Gulf co ast east o f the river is
m aterial ly reduced
Ap ril 3 0 1 8 03 France c e ded to the Uni t e d States th e terri tory o f
Louisiana with the s ame ext e nt that it no w h as in the hands Of
Sp ain and that it had when France p ossess e d it , and such as it
should be after the treati e s subsequently entered into b e tween Sp ain
and o ther States
using the identic al l anguage employed in the
cession to France by Sp ain in 1 8 00 but adding $ The French
Republic has an incontestible title to th e domain and t o the p o sses
sion o f said territory
The confi nement Of American claims under
the treaty o f 1 8 03 to the area west o f the Perdi do River was doubt
less due t o the fact of early Sp ani sh s e ttlement at Pensacola Bay and
at For t St Mark s o n the A p p al a ch e e River and to the common mi s
und e rstanding o f the real rights Of the Uni ted States to all Of the
territory south o f latitude
which formed a p art O i the original
Louisiana pro claim e d by L a S al le The firs t s ettlements in this
territory w e re made by Fr e nch colo ni sts in 1 6 9 9 but 1 7 years after
La Salle s proclamation and there can be no shadow o f doubt that
these s e ttl e ments were mad e fo r the purpose o f occupying and exploit
ing the vast domain add e d t o France under the name Louisiana
through the cour age and energy o f the great explorer The real
meaning and signi ficance o f La Salle s cl aim t o the eastern Gul f
co ast as far as P al m Riv e r seems to have be e n overloo k ed but this
can no t be s aid o f that portion betwe e n th e Perdido River and the
Mississippi River W hil e Sp ani sh diplomacy was undo ubtedl yaimed
at retaini ng thi s territory at the time o f the retroces sion t o France
in 1 8 00 no twithstanding the unequivocal wording o f the treaty o f
San Ildefonso t o the contrary the Gov e rnment o f th e Unit e d States
refused to acc ep t any such boundary d e limitation in 1 8 03
F e bru ary 2 4 1 8 04 C o ngress p assed an act fo r laying and collecting
duties in this t erritory and o n M arch 2 6 the district was added t o the
new Territory o f Orleans In October 1 8 1 0 the President by pro c la
mation directed the governor of Orleans Territory to ta k e poss essi o n
April 1 4 1 8 1 2 a p art o f thes e lands was annex e d to
o f the t erritory
Lo uisiana t erri tory and o n e month later the remainder lying
between the Pearl and Perdido Rivers was annexed to the t errit o ry
O f Mi ssissippi March 3 1 8 1 7 Congress divid e d this tract giving
Bo th Mi ssis
a ppro ximately half o f it t o the Territory o f Al abama
sippi and Alab ama came int o th e Uni o n before the treaty with Spain
fo r Florid a was rati fi ed Mississippi th e y ear before the tr eaty w as
nego tiated and Alabama the s ame year bu t two y e ars before ra tifi ca
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L
O UISIA N A PU R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
M APS
.
11
.
tion Durin g thi s p eriod also the Unite d Stat e s made a census o f the
population o f the district These citations are Off e red fo r the pur
pose O f showin g that this Government in its s o vereign cap acity and
through both its lawma king and execu tive branches had s e ttled and
finally disposed of all questions o f ownershi p of the territory between
the Mississippi and Perdido Rivers and south o f latitude 3 1 whi ch
were raised by Sp ain after the purchase from France in 1 8 03 and prio r
to the Florida treaty o f 18 1 9 The fact that the Uni ted States
Supr eme Court in many cases has supported the political acts o f the
Government relating to this territory is o f p assing interest Thes e
decisions however can have no direct bearing upon questions o f
title affecting the territory in th e aggregate
,
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T E RRIT O R$
OF LO U I S IA N A , 18 19 19 04
-
$MAP
NO
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Map N O 5 shows th e e xtent o f the Louisiana Purchase after its
boundaries o f 1 8 03 had been modified through the treaty with Sp ai n
c eding Florida t o the Uni ted States and fixi ng the boundary between
the Uni ted States and Sp anish possessions west o f the Mississipp i
It is o f interest because the American gains and loss es
R iver in 18 1 9
by that treaty are shown and because Sp ain was s atis fied to fix her
most northern boundary west o f the Roc k y Mountains at the p arallel
north Thi s west e rn United States Sp ani sh boundary as
o f 42
finally s e ttled was later accep ted as the boundary between th e
Republic o f Mexico and the Uni ted Sta tes and still later in p art as
the northern boundary o f the Republic o f Texas I t will be n oted
that two small tracts mark ed A no t forming a p art O f La Sall e s
Louisiana became a p art o f th e United States and that two tracts
m arked B o f much larger area S hown upon the map which are a
art
o f the Mississippi wat e rshed and were therefore a p art O f La Salle s
p
Louisiana were surrendered t o Sp ain in exchange
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S UM MA R $
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French title to t h e territory call e d Louisiana in the M ississippi
Valley had its origi n and was based upon the discovery and proclama
tion of La Salle April 9 1 6 8 2 The title Louisiana as proclaimed
by La Salle m ay no t prop erly b e applied to o ther and doubtful French
possessions in America and since French ownership o f terri tory
b eyond the watershed line at the time O f the purchase is a matter o f
grave doubt and can n o t b e established La Sall e s Louisiana may
n o t prop erl i n c lu d e such alleged possessions
The
Sp
anish
territory
y
directly drained into the Gulf o f Mexico w e st Of the Mississippi River
o r into the Gulf o f California o r the Sp anish and Oregon territory
drained into th e Pacific Ocean or the territory drained into H udson
Bay n e v e r belonged to France by virtu e o f La Salle s disc o v e ry and
pro clam a t ion of 1 6 82 when th e limi ts of L ouisiana were defined and
1
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L
O UISIA N A PU R C H AS E P R O $ RE SS
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M
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t itle t o
these districts was neither O ffered n or transfe rre d by France
t o th e United States i n the sale Of 1 8 03
2 French ti t l e to Gu lf territory from the Mississippi Riv er t o P a l m
R iver o n the Gulf co ast Of F lori d a as a part o f original Louisiana
w a s as g oo d as French title to the M ississippi Vall e y for both di stricts
c ame under the French flag at t h e same time and fo r the same r eason
v i z the discoveries o f La Salle and h is proclamati on based thereon at
the mouth o f the Mi ssissippi River Ap ri l 9 1 6 8 2 It therefo re
follows that subsequent cessions of the whole terri tory known under
the name o f Louisiana o r of the colony O r province of Louisiana
that it had when France p o ss ess e d
w i th the s ame extent
it conveyed title to thi s terri tory j ust as surely as they conveyed
title t o territory drained by the Mississippi River and its tributari e s
a n d the titl e thus conveyed was j ust as good
3 The Government o f the United States acted st ri ctly withi n its
t reaty rights when follo w ing the purchase o f Louisiana from France
i n 1 8 03 it occupied the territory between the Mississippi and Perdido
Rivers too k a census o f the p eople le vi ed and collected tax e s and
fin ally p ri or to the rati fication o f the purchase Of Florida divid e d
the tract into three S eparate p arcels and added one each t o th e States
ma Map N O 4 therefore prop
O f Louisiana Mississippi and Alab a
e rly e xhibits th e ou tboundari e s of the Louisiana purchas e d from
France in 1 8 03 and a ssert e d by the Unit e d Stat e s thereafter and
Map N o 5 shows the modificati o ns o f that boundary w es t o f the
Mississippi R iver agreed t o in the tre aty with Spain in 1 8 1 9
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OTH ER C ONTI $ UOUS ACQUI S I TI ONS $MAP NO 6)
.
Map N O 6 shows in addition t o the Louisiana Purchase b o undari e s
t he bound aries o f the Texas annexation o f 1 8 4 5 the Or e gon Territory
title to which was s e ttled in 1 8 46 th e Mexican cession o f 1 8 4 8 and the
Gadsden Purchase o f 1 8 5 3 The Dep artment o f the Interior and the
D epartment O f Comm erce and Labor by lette rs o f February 2 1 9 1 2
and Febru ary 1 0 1 9 1 2 resp e ctively formally acc epted th ese bounda
ries and th e ar e as th e reby d e t e rmi ned fo r u se in all publica tions Of
Th e north and east
the several bureaus o f each d ep artm e nt
boundaries o f the Texas territory are id e ntical with those o f the T ex as
R epublic which conformed t o the compromise boundary betwe en
Th e
S p ain and the Uni ted States established by tr e aty o f 1 8 1 9
w e s t boundary o f the Texas ann exation conforms t o t h e fo rmer west
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c mmi tt r pr nti g t h D p rt m nt f th I nt ri r c n i t i ng f M r Fr nk B d C hi f C l rk
gr ph r f th $ l gic l Sur y w pp i n t d b y th
n d S S $ nn tt g
f th $ n r l L n d Offi c
S c r t ry f th I nt ri r J n 9 19 11 ; nd c mm i tt r pr t i ng th D p t m t f C mm rc nd
L b r c n i ti g f M r O P A u ti n C hi f f t h Bu u f St t i tic d C S S l n g gr ph r
u f th C n w pp i t ed b y th S cr t ry f C mm rc d L b r J 13 1911 The
f th Bu
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T h e east e rn boundary o f the Oregon territory conforms t o the w e st e rn
boundary Of the Louisiana o f La Sall e and the Louisiana Purchase Of
1 8 03 the same being the watershed between the Mississippi Rive r
drainag e and the drainage toward the Pacific Ocean
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NONCONTI $ UOUS A CQUI S ITI ONS $MAP NO
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Map N o 7 sh ows the geodetic l ocati on and approximate c o nfig u ra
tion o f th e noncontiguous acquisitions o f the Uni ted States o f whi ch
onl y Al as k a and and th e Panama C anal Z one are situ ated upo n th e
c ontinent properly spea king H awaii Porto Rico the Philippin es
G il am and Samo a being islands o f the s ea O i thes e acquisitio ns
Al as k a was purchased from Russia in 1 8 6 7 the l ocation o f th e United
States C anadian bound ary thereof being fin al ly fix ed by treaty pro
claim ed March 3 1 9 03 Th e P hi lippine Islan ds Guam and P ort o
Rico were acquired as indemni ty and by p arti al purchase from Sp ain
in 1 8 98 ; the H awaiian Islands were annexed in 18 9 8 and th e Tutuil a
group w as a cquired in 1 8 99 The Panam a Can al Z one was ceded by
th e R epu blic o f Pan ama in 1 9 04
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L O U I S I A N A P U R C H AS E
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e ir l ocat ion adj oining the $ rea t Lake s the S t a te s e nu merate d be l ow cont ai n appr oxi m a te l y
s q uare m i l es of Lak e Michi gan ; Indiana
an addi t i ona l nu m b er of s q ua re m i l e s as fo ll o w s I lli nois
are miles of La k e Michi gan ; Michi gan
s q uare m i l es of La k e S rior
s q uare m i le s
230 s
of Laqu
e Michigan
uare m i l es of Lak e H r on and 460 s q uare m i l s La kes S t C lai r and E rie ;
Minn es ta
sq uare m i es of L a k e S rior ; N ew o r k
s q uare m i le s of Lak es O nt a i o and E ri e ;
O hi o
sq uare mi l es f Lake E rie ; nn ylv ni 8 9 1 s q uare mi l es of La ke E rie ; W is o nsin
m i l es of La k e S uper io r and
uare m i le s f L a ke Mic hi gan
$
addi tion t o the w ater areas note d a ove C al ifo rnia c l ai m s j u isdictio n over a ll P acific w aters lying
qn
w i thi n 3 E ngli h mi l es of her coast ; O re o n c l ai m s i d i ti n over a si m i la r s trip of the P acifi c O c e a n
I m ari n e l e agu e i n W i d th be twee n l tit e 42 no rt and the mou th of the C o l u m b ia R iver ; and T exas
c l ai m s j u risdiction over a stri p of $ u lf w ater 3 league s i n w id th adja ce n t t o her coas t and be twee n t h
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