Lewis and Clark Expedition

In the summer of 1804, a former army man and an experienced outdoorsman began trekking across the unknown land that formed the Louisiana purchase. These explorers, Lewis and Clark, wanted to meet the indigenous people in the area, learn about the general geography of the Louisiana Purchase, and find a water route for traveling to the Pacific Ocean. Keep reading to learn about the expedition of Lewis and Clark!

Lewis and Clark's Expedition: Timeline

Fig. 1: A Map of Lewis and Clark's Expedition.

Lewis and Clark: Important Events

Some critical events in the expedition include

• Funding was approved in 1803

• The expedition started in 1804

• The expedition ended, and the team returned in 1806.

Lewis and Clark Expedition: Facts

When Thomas Jefferson became president in 1801, most of the United States population was concentrated on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Americans had little access to or knowledge of the land west of the Mississippi.

In 1803, The United States of America received access to a tremendously large chunk of land because of the Louisiana Purchase.

To learn more about the physical features of the land and the people and animals who lived there, President Thomas Jefferson tasked two men, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, with exploring the area and reporting back. President Jefferson had set goals for the expedition.

Meriwether Lewis was Thomas Jefferson's secretary and a former Army captain. Lewis was interested in American expansion into the West and had a background in science. He knew about botany, zoology, and archaeology. In the summer of 1803, Lewis asked Captain William Clark to go on the journey with him.

Fig. 2: 1905 Painting of Lewis and Clark

The Expedition of Lewis and Clark

In the spring of 1803, Meriwether Lewis began to prepare for the expedition. He traveled to Philadelphia to study medicine, map making, and surveying.

He traveled to Harper's Ferry in the summer of 1803 to obtain supplies for the journey West. Lewis was not only responsible for getting scientific supplies such as chronometers and sextants, but he had to prepare arms and ammunition, food, blankets, books, and gifts for the indigenous people.

In the fall and winter of 1803, Lewis and Clark met in Indiana Territory. They later set up a winter camp on the banks of the Mississippi River, where they recruited and trained soldiers to become part of their team.

In the summer of 1804, the Corps of Discovery headed up the Missouri River. As they traveled, they took copious notes and met with indigenous tribes near present-day Iowa and South Dakota.

In the fall of 1804, the Corp arrived near what is now Bismarck, North Dakota, after traveling nearly 1000 miles. They spent the winter in the town of the Hidatsa and Mandan people. There, a man named Toussaint Charbonneau joined the team as a translator.

In the spring and summer of 1805, Lewis, Clark, Charbonneau, Sacagawea, the baby, and the rest of the team left Fort Mandan and headed west. They navigated around the Great Falls of the Missouri River. Sacagawea later negotiated for horses with her brother, a Shoshone chief. They traveled through the Bitterroot Mountains thanks to a Shoshone guide before entering the Columbia River in the late fall.

In the early winter, Clark mistakenly noted in his journal that they were near the ocean. The expedition set up a winter camp south of the Columbia River (Fort Clatsop).

The expedition began its journey home in the early spring of 1806. They traveled east, waiting for the snow to melt on the Bitterroot Mountains before crossing them. In the summer of 1806, Lewis and Clark divided the team to find an easier way to travel the Rockies. Lewis followed the Missouri River while Clark followed the Yellowstone. Lewis, Clark, and the rest of the corp later reassembled at the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers.

They arrived in St. Louis in September 1806 after more than two years of exploring.

Fig. 3: Lewis and Clark

The result of Lewis and Clark's Expedition

• Lewis and Clark were asked to explore the land west of the Mississippi.
• The Louisiana Purchase granted the United States access to a new land and new people
• Lewis and Clark had three goals:

  • explore the land from the Louisiana Purchase to learn about the physical features, plants, and animals

  • learn about the indigenous tribes and search for opportunities to increase trade with them

  • find a body of water to travel from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean

Were they successful? Lewis and Clark were successful in their goal to explore the land from the Louisiana Purchase and beyond, traveling to the western coast of the continental United States. They obtained new knowledge about the land and animals west of the Mississippi. They had some positive interactions with indigenous tribes, which allowed for diplomacy to begin. Unfortunately, they didn't find a single body of water to travel west on.

Fig. 4: Lewis and Clark at Three Forks.

Lewis and Clark's Expedition (Summary)

In 1803, the United States received a large parcel of land via the Louisiana Purchase. Americans knew very little about the land west of the Missouri River, so President Thomas Jefferson appealed to Congress to fund an expedition west.

In the early summer of 1804, Lewis, Clark, and the Corps of Discovery headed up the Missouri River. They headed to modern-day North Dakota. They joined and began working with a translator named Toussaint Charbonneau. Charbonneau's wife, Sacagawea, and child traveled with the corps.

They began their return journey in the spring of 1806. The team split into two groups to find a better way to pass through the Rocky Mountains, with one group traveling the Missouri River while another traveled along the Yellowstone. They returned home in September 1806, successfully exploring the land west of the Louisiana Purchase. Lewis and Clark learned about the plants, animals, and people of the Western United States. They successfully worked with indigenous tribes. They never found the water passage.

What do historians think of Lewis and Clark's expedition? Some view their expedition as the beginning of the end of a lifestyle in the American west. Once they explored the west, others followed. It severely impacted the lives of the people and animals already living there. For example, the slew of people migrating westward was dangerous for the native bison population. The indigenous people were treated terribly, as they were often purposely hurt or killed.

Some historians look positively at the expedition, citing the number of diverse people who held essential jobs. Indigenous people, women, and men- all had a critical role in the expedition's success. Americans tend to have a romantic view of the past.

Historians don't seem to debate the importance of the journals, maps, and other documentation that happened along the way.