The Louisiana Purchase had what effect on the size of the United States?

• A. It decreased it
• B. It had no effect
• C. It expanded territory by acquiring new lands
• D. It ceded land to Britain

Answer: (C)

This question asks what happened to the United States’ territory as a result of the Louisiana Purchase. In 1803 the U.S. bought a vast area from France, adding a huge chunk of land west of the Mississippi River. That purchase roughly doubled the country’s size, extending from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico up toward what would become Canada. Because of this, the United States gained substantial new lands and expanded its geographic footprint, setting the stage for westward exploration and statehood. So the best answer is that it expanded territory by acquiring new lands. It did not decrease the size, leave it unchanged, or cede land to Britain.