Bill Speiden's Weekly Articles
Lewis and Clark This Week | December 10, 2004 | Back
By Bill Speiden, Lewis and Clark Exploratory Center
Article 1 of the series
This is the first of a series of articles following the saga of Thomas Jefferson’s Corps of Discovery a military exploration of the West, co-led by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Captain William Clark. We will follow the expedition up the Missouri to its headwaters, over the Rocky Mountains and down the treacherous Columbia River followed by their return trip in 1806.
Back in the late 1700’s Thomas Jefferson of Virginia was thinking of western expansion of the United States. His foresight was responsible for this nation turning its economic focus from looking east to Europe to our looking west to the Mississippi and beyond.
Early on in his presidency Jefferson appointed his fellow Virginian, Meriwether Lewis, to lead an expedition up the Missouri, across the Rocky Mountains and down the Columbia River to the Pacific. Included in the many goals Jefferson set were: to find the Northwest passage (a water connection between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans), report on the existence (or not) of mammoths in the west, find the lost "Welsh" white Indians and, most importantly, open the way for commerce with the Indians.
In 1803 Lewis set to work learning skills he would need on the trip, such as medicine, surveying, Indian history, astronomy and botany. He also asked his first choice as co-commander, William Clark, another Virginian, who immediately responded in the affirmative.
After much planning and boat building, the Corps of Discovery (Corps), settled in for the winter of 1803 at Fort Du Bois, just north of St. Louis on the Mississippi River. In May 1804, the Corps, after a vigorous winter of recruitment and training, proceeded up the Missouri River which joins the Mississippi from the west at that point. They had one 55-foot keelboat and two smaller pirogues carrying around 12 tons of supplies, gear and presents for the Indians. By poling, towing and occasional use of sails they made slow headway against the current of the shallow, obstruction-laden Missouri River.
The original company was made up of the two captains, three sergeants, twenty-two privates, York (Clark’s slave), George Drouillard (a half breed hunter and interpreter), and Seaman (Lewis’s Newfoundland dog).
After friendly Indian contacts in August in what is now South Dakota, they had a less than friendly confrontation with the dominant Teton Sioux in September at the confluence of the Bad and Missouri Rivers, where Pierre, South Dakota is today. The Sioux saw a threat to their already established trade system with the French Canadians.
Sights not seen before by the Corps included grizzly bears and herds of 1,000’s of buffalo (bison).
With their strenuous output the Corps was consuming up to 18,000 calories a day. That would translate into one buffalo or four deer a day necessary to maintain their energy levels.
By the first week of December the Corps was well settled in for the winter with the friendly Mandan Indians, who live in large round earth-covered lodges, often clustered in villages of up to 1500 or more people. The Corps built Fort Mandan on the east side of the Missouri near the confluence of the Knife River. Councils were held with the Indians and gifts were given. In exchange the neighboring Indians brought the officers some buffalo robes and other gifts.
From the Lewis and Clark Journals:
December 6, 1804: "….The Thermometer at 8 oClock A.M. Stood at 10 dgs. Above 0…a man and his Squar Came down with some meat for the inturpeter. His dress was a par [of] mockersons of buffalow Skin [a] Pr. Legins of Goat Skin & a Buffalow robe, …" Clark
December 7: "Cap Lewis with a party went out and killed 11 [buffalo] three in view of our fort, The weather so excessive Cold & wolves plenty, we only saved 5 of them [buffalo]…." Clark
December 8: "…. the Thermometer Stood at 12 d. below 0 ….. I with 15 men turned out and killed 8 buffalow & one deer…. I left 2 men to Skin and Keep off the wolves… This day being Cold Several men returned a little frost bit…" Clark
December 10: "…. Capt. Lewis & several of the hunters returned to the fort… with large loads of meat. The weather gits colder verry fast So that the Sentinel [guard] had to be relieved every hour." Ordway (One of the three sergeants who were required to keep journals)
December 12: "… I line my Gloves and have a cap made of the skin of the Lynx… the fur near 3 inches long… weather So Cold that we do not think it prudent to turn out to hunt…." Clark
In the next column we will meet North West Company (Canadian) traders, see the Indians at play, and Indian visits to the fort.