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How the Nation Gained Its Land is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how each territory became part of the United States, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.5.3-5. It prints 6 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 11 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

How the Nation Gained Its Land

D2.Geo.5.3-5

NameDate

Match each territory to how it was gained, then answer the questions.

1.Draw a line from each territory to how it was gained.
  • Land to the Mississippi River, 1783
  • Alaska, 1867
  • The Mexican Cession, 1848
  • The Louisiana Territory, 1803
  • A.Recognized by Britain in the treaty that ended the Revolution
  • B.Bought from Russia
  • C.Bought from France for fifteen million dollars
  • D.Taken from Mexico in the treaty that ended the Mexican-American War
2.Many people at first called the purchase of Alaska a mistake. What was later found there?
  • A.Tobacco fields
  • B.Cotton plantations
  • C.Gold, and much later oil
3.France sold Louisiana in 1803. Did the Native nations living there agree to the sale?
  • A.Yes; they signed the treaty in Paris
  • B.No; they were not part of the deal
  • C.Yes; they were paid by France
4.The Louisiana Purchase roughly doubled the size of the country. Who was president?
  • A.George Washington
  • B.Thomas Jefferson
  • C.Abraham Lincoln
5.People of what nation lived in California, New Mexico and Arizona before 1848?
  • A.Russia only
  • B.Mexico, along with many Native nations
  • C.Britain and France
6.What did many Americans in the 1840s mean by Manifest Destiny?
  • A.A plan to give land back to Native nations
  • B.A law that banned moving west
  • C.The belief that the nation was meant to spread to the Pacific

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.5.3-5 · Set 11 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — How the Nation Gained Its Land

Set 11. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Land to the Mississippi River, 1783 — A (Recognized by Britain in the treaty that ended the Revolution) 2. Alaska, 1867 — B (Bought from Russia) 3. The Mexican Cession, 1848 — D (Taken from Mexico in the treaty that ended the Mexican-American War) 4. The Louisiana Territory, 1803 — C (Bought from France for fifteen million dollars)
  2. 2.Gold, and much later oil
  3. 3.No; they were not part of the deal
  4. 4.Thomas Jefferson
  5. 5.Mexico, along with many Native nations
  6. 6.The belief that the nation was meant to spread to the Pacific

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Geo.5.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.