Which expedition explored the lands acquired in the 1803 Louisiana Purchase?

• A. Pike Expedition
• B. Lewis and Clark Expedition
• C. Coronado Expedition
• D. Ferdinand Magellan Expedition

Answer: (B)

After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, the United States aimed to learn about and map the huge new region it had just gained. The expedition that fits this goal best was the one led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. They were chosen to explore from the Mississippi River to the Pacific, starting in 1804 from St. Louis. Over more than two years they crossed the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains, reached the Pacific Ocean, and produced detailed maps, notes on geography, plants, animals, and the people they met. Their journey helped establish American knowledge and claims in the lands bought in 1803 and set the stage for further westward expansion.

The other explorers listed were not the primary, official for this specific acquisition. The Pike Expedition did travel through parts of the region a few years later but did not undertake the broad, official exploration of the entire purchase. Coronado and Magellan explored earlier eras and regions far from the Louisiana Purchase, so their routes are not the ones associated with examining these newly acquired lands.