USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -On April 11, 1803, just days before Monroe’s arrival, Barbé-Marbois offered Livingston all of Louisiana for $15 million, which averages to less than three cents per acre (7¢/ha). The total of $15 million is equivalent to about $337 million in 2021 dollars, or 64 cents per acre.

Detailed explanation-2: -But when the French offered them a $15 million deal for all of Louisiana, they consented immediately.

Detailed explanation-3: -In this transaction with France, signed on April 30, 1803, the United States purchased 828, 000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1803 the United States paid France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory–828, 000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River. The lands acquired stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border.

Detailed explanation-5: -There were 222 land relinquishments from Indian communities to the U.S. government between 1804 and 1970. The final purchase price for these lands was no less than $2.6 billion ($8.5 billion in 2020), much higher than the $15 million the U.S. paid to France.