Bloggeron

Back in the seventeenth century, the first Europeans made it to what is now Missouri. Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet were the first to explore the mighty Mississippi River in their canoes in the year of 1673. In 1682, this land area was claimed for France as part of the Louisiana Territory by Robert Cavalier.

More European immigrants began to arrive in the eighteenth century. These new immigrants were accompanied by black slaves. Not long after these new arrivals, Fort Orleans was constructed by the French in 1724 on the Missouri River.

A few decades later, Spain took control of this region in 1762 with the use of the Treaty of Fontainebleau. However, they did not assume total control until 1770. In the year of 1800, this territory was returned to France. France then sold this territory to the United States in 1803 as a part of the Louisiana.

A year later, in 1804, the Lewis and Clark Expedition set out to map the entire region. A year after this, in 1805, the Louisiana Territory was finally organized. Louisiana became a state in 1812 and what was remaining of this territory became known as the Missouri Territory. Missouri requested to be admitted into the Union as a slave state in 1818. At the time, this was a serious political problem since there was such a delicate balance between slave states and free states.

Two years later, in 1820, Missouri was admitted as a slave state by the Missouri Compromise and Maine was admitted as a free state. Missouri was officially a state and admitted to the Union in 1821. When Missouri was finally admitted into the Union, its western border was a straight line. In 1836, this changed due to the acquiring of Native American lands. Additional lands were added to the northwest corner of the state with the Platte Purchase.

Later on, in 1848, the California Gold Rush had begun. Missouri then became an important departure point in the south to go to the West. It was given a nickname in these days: “Gateway to the West.” A little over a decade later, the American Civil War began. Missouri was one of the few states of the south that voted against seceding from the Union.

There were people living in Missouri who felt sympathies for both sides of this war and those who favored secession here tried to form their own state government. This state became incredibly divided through these years and many terrible battles were fought in Missouri.

Four years later after the American Civil War started, Missouri abolished slavery in 1865. They abolished slavery in this state before the United States ever drafted and adopted the thirteenth amendment.