What land purchase resulted in the acquisition of present-day southern Arizona and New Mexico?

The Gadsden Purchase was a significant land acquisition completed in 1854 that resulted in the United States acquiring portions of present-day southern Arizona and New Mexico. The purchase was intended to facilitate the construction of a southern transcontinental railroad and aimed to resolve territorial disputes that remained after the Mexican-American War.

The transaction involved a payment of $10 million to Mexico for approximately 29,670 square miles of land. This area is particularly important as it provided valuable land for agriculture and further settlement by American citizens.

In contrast, the Louisiana Purchase was an expansive acquisition in 1803 that doubled the size of the United States but did not specifically pertain to southern Arizona or New Mexico. The Florida Purchase, involving the acquisition of Florida from Spain, occurred in 1819 and similarly had no connection to this region. Lastly, the Alaska Purchase occurred in 1867 and involved the acquisition of Alaska from Russia, which is geographically and historically unrelated to the Gadsden Purchase. Thus, the Gadsden Purchase stands out as the key transaction that led to the acquisition of southern Arizona and New Mexico.