Shaylee Larson Pd.

The Mexican War The Mexican War was a very important part of American history. It added lots of land to America including Texas and California. During the time president James K. Polk helped lead and expand America. He guided America to victory in the war and was a very important man. Although many lives were lost in the process, the Mexican War was a very important part of our history. During the time of the Mexican war, James K. Polk was the 11th president of the United States. Most people did not even know who Polk was, but while running for president he promised to try and expand America from coast to coast. This was what many Americans wanted at the time, so Polk soon became a favorite in the election. After Polk was elected, Texas finally became a state and lent much needed money and support to our country. Polk sent many men west to explore Texas and the surrounding area. Mexico didnt like this idea though, because they thought the US was taking their land. Polk sent men to negotiate the purchase of the area for 30 million dollars, but Mexico did not try to negotiate and ended up killing and wounding many of our soldiers. When news of this violence finally reached Polk he was very upset and America soon declared war with Mexico. Zachary Taylor was a general who led the American troops. Although the US was vastly out numbered, we carried better supplies. Not only were we better equipped, but word was sent out for 50,000 volunteers and over 200,000 ended up assisting in the war. Even thought Mexico started the war many Americans did not want us to fight them. Citizens from the north were apposed because they believed that if more land was added to the south this would increase the use of slavery. Still, the war was fought and eventually America and Mexico signed a treaty The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo ended the war in February of 1845. The treaty allowed America to buy the land but for the much reduced price of only $15 million. More than 500,000 square miles of land, including California, Texas, Nevada, and Utah were added to the USA. The added land increased our countries size by almost 25%. Now that the war was ended the US was much larger, but still there were no fixed boundaries. Not until the Gadsden Purchase were fixed boundaries put in place. The Gadsden Purchase gave the US both Arizona and New Mexico for around 10 million dollars. The Mexican War was a very important part of our nations history. The war and treaty signed during this time earned us much of the land we live on today. Were it not for the war and the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo America would not be the same as it is today.

Shaylee Larson Pd. 2