McLane-Ocampo Treaty
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The McLane-Ocampo Treaty, formally the Treaty of Transit and Commerce, was an 1859 agreement between the United States and Mexico which would have sold the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to the U.S. for $4 million. Although President James Buchanan strongly favored the arrangement, it was never ratified by the Senate.
The U.S. hoped to build a railroad or canal across the isthmus to speed transport of mail and trade goods between the east and west coasts. Roads there and in Nicaragua and Panama already carried considerable traffic.
The treaty derives its name from Robert Milligan McLane, then ambassador to Mexico, and liberal politician Melchor Ocampo, in hopes the money would boost the faction's chances in the Mexican Reform War. [link] The treaty would also have placed Mexico under the military protection of the U.S. [link] and reduced or eliminated tariffs [link] [link]
Treaty provisions
- Extending the Gadsden Treaty, Mexico agreed to grant the US a right "in perpetuity" to transit across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec
- Both parties agreed to protect the region's trade routes
- Mexico agreed to establish "ports of deposit" at both coasts
- * Goods in transit from port to port would be subject to no tariff or duty
- * Goods imported to Mexico at these ports would be subject to normal tariffs
See also
External links
- [Mexican-American relations] were a primary topic of the 1860 State of the Union address by Buchanan.
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