James Gadsden

James Gadsden was an American diplomat and diplomat-in-training in the mid-1800s, best known for the Gadsden Purchase of 1853. This treaty involved the United States paying Mexico $10 million for a southern strip of land in present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. The purchase was strategic for building a transcontinental railroad route and expanding U.S. territory. Gadsden’s work helped shape U.S. borders and facilitated economic development in the western United States. His efforts played a significant role in the country's expansion during that period.