The Gadsden Purchase enabled the United States to do which of the following? (5 points) a
Gain access to important natural resources in the Southwest

b
Increase crop production in the Southwest

c
Link to the Southwest by railway system

d
Provide better defenses against Mexico

C

EXPLANATION

The Gadsden Purchase is a 29,670-square-mile region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that the United States acquired from Mexico by the Treaty of Mesilla, which took effect on June 8, 1854. The purchase included lands south of the Gila River and west of the Rio Grande where the U.S. wanted to build a transcontinental railroad along a deep southern route