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William Clark is Born
Clark was born August 1, 1770, in Caroline County, Virginia. He was a U.S. soldier and explorer. Clark and Meriwether Lewis met while they were both serving in the army in 1795. (Clark was Lewis’s captain.) -
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Events Leading Up To the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Many events took place before the Expedition began. -
Meriwether Lewis is Born
Meriwether Lewis was born August 18, 1774 at the Lewis family estate, Locust Hill, in Albemarle County, Virginia. -
Thomas Jefferson Elected President
Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican served as Vice President from 1797-1801. Then he became president February 17, 1801 and was 58 years old. The Louisiana Purchase was the greatest contribution he made as president. -
President Jefferson Appoints Lewis As His Personal Secretary
Thomas Jefferson appointed Meriwether Lewis to become his personal secretary. Lewis helped Jefferson plan the western expansion to find a route to the Pacific coast of North America. During the planning period, Lewis lived in the East Room of the White House. Both Jefferson and Lewis were strong Republicans. Jefferson chose Lewis because of his army experience and because he was "a personal aquaintance." -
Congress Appropriates Money for Expedition
After the congress agreed to pay for the purchase of Louisiana earlier in the month of January, Jefferson quickly approached them for more money to fund the exploration of the new land. They agreed upon giving the expedition $2,500. The expedition was to be called The Corps of Discovery. Right after that Jefferson asked Lewis to lead the journey and they began preparing for it. -
Louisiana Purchase Treaty Signed
Robert Livingston and James Monroe went to Paris to work out the possible purchase. They ended up paying $15 million for 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River. This was about 4 cents per acre. -
Louisiana Territory Purchase Ratified
The purchase of this territory was finally ratified on October 20, 1803. This is considered the greatest real estate deal in history. It doubled the size of the United States and allowed for expansion into the west. -
The Journey Begins!
Lewis and Clark started preparing for the expedition in the fall of 1803. The expedition finally began May 14, 1804, (some records use the date May 21st) from their camp near St. Louis, Missouri. They travelled in a 55 foot long keelboat up the Missouri. They brought along about 33-40 members of the expedition, a Newfoundland dog, and supplies. The expedition was called “The Corps of Discovery.” -
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The Expedition of Lewis and Clark
"Lewis and Clark made significant additions to the zoological and botanical knowledge of the continent, providing the first scientific descriptions of many new species of animals, including the grizzly bear, prairie dog, pronghorn antelope, and mountain goat. They made the first attempt at a systematic record of the meteorology of the West, and less successfully attempted to determine the latitude and longitude of significant geographical points." -
Sergeant Charles Floyd Dies
Sergeant Floyd is the only member of the Corp to die along the journey. He is the first soldier to die west of the Missouri River. It is believed that he died from a ruptured appendicitis. -
The Teton Sioux Tribe
Along the Missouri River was the unfriendly Teton Sioux Tribe. They liked to control the trade in the area and felt threatened by anyone on the river. The Expedition stayed 3 days in Sioux camp but left their keelboat one mile away in case they needed to exit quickly. There was tension between the Expedition and the tribe, but that is somewhat understandable; they could not communicate well because no one spoke the other’s language. -
Established Fort Mandan
The Corps of Discovery stayed at Fort Mandan during the winter of 1804-1805. The Corp traded items for food from the Mandan Indians and when food supplies got too scarce they all hunted for buffalo together. Besides trading and hunting they also spent their time repairing equipment. -
Sacagawea and Corps Leave Fort Mandan
During the Corps stay at Fort Mandan, two French-Canadian fur trappers; Toussaint Charbonneau and Jean Baptiste LePage were hired as interpreters. Charbonneau had been living among the Hidatsa Indians and was married to the Shoshone Indian Sacagawea. Sacagawea had a baby boy during that winter, Jean Baptiste and he was only 55 days old when they left Fort Mandan on April 7, 1805 on their long journey to the Pacific Ocean. -
A Fork in the River
The Corp came to a fork in the Missouri and there was disagreement as whether to go north or south. Lewis explored the north fork for 9 days and 60 miles. Lewis thought it was headed too far north so they chose to take the south fork, which turned out to be the correct direction. -
Sacagawea Very Sick
Sacagawea got really sick when the Expedition reached the mouth of the Marias River. Lewis said, "Sah-cah-gah, we a, our Indian woman is very sick this evening: Capt. C. blead her." Clark also gave her “doste” salts a couple of days later and then “two dozes of barks and opium a few days after that. Finally, they had her drink mineral water from a sulfur spring and put a concoction of Peruvian bark on her stomach. -
Lewis Reaches Great Falls of Missouri
Lewis and a few of the others traveled ahead of the main group and found the Great Falls June 13, 1805. Lewis said, “The grandest sight . . . from the reflection of the sun on the sprey or mist which arrises from these falls is a beautifull rainbow produced which adds not little to the beauty of this majestically grand senery." The river was so rough that they had to carry their supplies and canoes 18 miles over land to bypass the 21 miles of rapids and falls. -
Lewis Crosses Continental Divide
Lewis crossed the Continental Divide through Lemhi Pass which is now considered Idaho. That is where he came in contact with the Shoshone Indians. He promised Cameahwait (Sacagawea’s brother) that if they would give them horses that when the Corps got back to the East, “whitemen would come to them with a number of guns and every other article necessary to their defense and comfort.” -
Expedition Meets Shoshone Indians
Lewis and three others came across Shoshone women gathering food. Lewis laid down his gun and the four men painted their faces with vermilion which is a symbol of peace. The Shoshone women helped convince a war party of 60 Indians that the men were friendly. The Indian chief, Cameahwait, ended up being Sacajawea’s brother. Cameahwait told the Expedition that there was not a passable river route and they would need to cross the Bitterroot Mountains to continue the expedition. -
Expedition Climbs the Bitterroot Mountains
The Corps began their climb into the Bitterroot Mts. and Sergeant Patrick Gass said, “The most terrible mountains I ever beheld.” After starting thie climb, the expedition ran low on food and had to butcher a horse to eat. It took them 11 days to cross the mountains. -
Men Finally Escape the Mountains!
The men were almost starving as they came out of the Bitterroot Mountains in what is now Weippe, Idaho. They came to the villages of Nez Perce Indians. The Nez Perce feed the explorers buffalo, dried salmon, and camas bread. Then the Indians showed them how to make hollowed out canoes by using fire. -
“Ocian in view! O! the joy.”
Clark thinks he sees the Pacific Ocean but he was on the eastern part of Gray's Bay that is 20 miles away from the ocean and was just seeing the widening of the Columbia River. Pacific rain storms pelted them them for many weeks. Clark said, “The most disagreeable time I have experienced.” -
Expedition Finally Arrives at Pacific Ocean
They arrived at the Pacific Ocean in what is today called Seaview, Washington. It rained for 11 days. On November 24th they took a vote where to set up camp for the winter. -
Established Fort Clatsop
After arriving at the Pacific Ocean the Corps of Discovery setup camp at Fort Clatsop. They stayed there until March 23, 1806 to prepare for their journey home. The Fort was named for the Indian tribe that was nearby. -
The Journey Home Began
The Clatsop Indians had helped the Expedition with food and making it through the winter. Clark sketched a picture of how the Indians flattened their heads. The Fort is given to the Clatsop Indians and the expedition begins the long trip home. -
Camp with the Nez Perce
Lewis and Clark ended up staying with the Nez Perce while they wait for the snow to melt so they can cross over the Continental Divide. The Nez Perce provide the explorers with food. This was their longest stay in any camps other than their winter camps. -
Expedition Separates to Explore
After the Corp got through the Bitterroots they split into 4 groups to explore the Louisiana Territory. Clark heads towards Yellowstone and Lewis goes towards The Great Falls. Lewis and Clark came together again on August 12, 1806. -
Two Blackfoot Indians Killed
Lewis camps with eight Indians and later the Indians tried to steal their horses and weapons. Two Indians were killed in the fight. Lewis then puts a peace medal around one of the dead Indian’s necks. This is the only act of bloodshed during the expedition. -
Lewi Shot in Hip
Lewis and others were hunting deer in North Dakota above the mouth of the White Earth River. Lewis got shot in his left thigh just one inch above the hip joint. The man, Cruzatte, was known to have poor eye sight. -
Home at Last!!!
The Corps of Discovery reached St. Louis after being gone almost two and a half years. Many thought that they were dead because it had taken so long. “Now,” young John Ordway writes, “we intend to return to our native homes to see our parents once more, as we have been so long from them.” -
Meriwether Lewis Dies Unexpectedly
Lewis past away unexpectedly October 11, 1809 at Grinder’s Tavern which is in Natchez Trace, Tennessee. He was only 35 years old. He was severally depressed and may have committed suicide. -
Sacagawea Dies
Six year after the Expedition Scagawea had a baby girl. When she died she was with her husband at Fort Manuel which was a Missouri Fur Company trading post. Eight months after she died Clark adopted her two children. -
William Clark Dies
After the great expedition Clark married Julia Hancock in 1808. He was the governor for the Missouri Territory for seven years. Clark died in St. Louis, Missouri on September 1, 1838.
