What were two primary reasons why the United States sought to acquire Florida from Spain in the early 1800s?
- The United States sought a base from which to attack British colonies in the Caribbean.
- The United States believed that Florida had extensive silver deposits.
- Spain controlled the southern coastline all the way to the Mississippi River, blocking American access to Gulf seaports.
- Spanish Florida was a refuge for people escaping slavery and for dispossessed Native Americans.