The Gadsden Purchase

The Gadsden Purchase, finalized in 1854, involved the United States acquiring a strip of land from Mexico that is now part of southern Arizona and New Mexico. This purchase was intended to facilitate the construction of a southern transcontinental railroad and to resolve lingering border issues following the Mexican-American War.

The Gadsden Purchase added approximately 29,670 square miles to the U. S. territory, continuing the nation’s westward expansion and impacting future transportation and trade.