American History : Lewis & Clark.
828,000 square miles.
President #3, Thomas Jefferson, wanted to explore the 828,000 square miles of land the U.S. had just purchased from France. This was called The Louisiana Purchase, and is unquestionably one of the greatest deals in real estate history. If you’re the United States. France might have a different opinion. Fifteen million bucks for eight hundred thousand square miles.
So he commissioned the expedition known as the Corps of Discovery.
The reasons for exploration.
President Jefferson wanted to find out if there was a Northwest Passage. This was a legendary belief that there was a way for a boat to travel from Missouri all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
Also, being a smart fellow, he figured they could learn about plants, animals, geography, climate, and trading opportunities with the peoples who already lived there - Native Americans.
Note: “trading opportunities” does not paint the complete picture. Exploring this new territory would also do two other things, in addition to finding an all-water passage to the Pacific and mapping out the flora, fauna, and geography for scientific reasons, the expedition would help to:
Firmly establish sovereignty over any other European claims
Establish not simply relationships,
but sovereignty over Native Americans
along the Missouri River…and anywhere else.
So there were stated goals and less obvious goals.
Picking a team.
Jefferson picked Army Captain Meriwether Lewis to lead the expedition. Here’s something that’s super cool: Meriwether could have picked a second-in-command, somebody to be right underneath him. But instead, he chose his buddy William Clark to be co-captain. Basically, they’d both lead. As we look around at all the people today drawing attention to themselves and bickering over who’s more important or who has more power, this is an inspiring example.
So the two captains put out the word: brave unmarried frontiersmen with a spirit of adventure and some hunting skills needed. Also, everyone would get a big piece of land when they returned.
Preparation.
The expedition was a military one, which meant everyone had to go through basic training first. If you’re a frontiersman, then maybe you’ve got a streak of independence that might be a good thing and might be a bad thing, in terms the Corps of Discovery. So the group trained together to learn discipline and how to work as a unit and follow rules. This was easier for some than for others.
Departure.
May 1804, all 31 of them took off from Missouri in a keelboat and two pirogues.
Vocabulary:
A keelboat is a mid-sized, unpowered riverboat that is typically propelled with oars or poles and is great for hauling cargo. Theirs was 55 feet long and could hold 12 tons of supplies.
A pirogue is a smaller flat-bottomed boat that is more maneuverable and handles shallow water well. Theirs were 41 and 35 feet long.
Along the way, they carved 15 canoes to use. Each was around 30 feet long.
Also, consider that they were heading upriver. That meant that a good chunk of the time men were in the water, slogging along waist-deep, pushing the keelboat against the current. On the upside, they had adorable little creatures such as mosquitos and snakes to keep them company.
Spoiler alert: the expedition was successful. Not only that, but only one man died. Appendicitis. But he got buried at a lovely place along an Iowa river.
Native Americans, part I : friendly.
So they followed the Missouri River and eventually met up with groups from the Oto and Missouri tribes. They were treated well, invited to a feast, and played music together. Native Americans found Big York fascinating. Why? And who was Big York?
Big York was Captain Clark’s slave. Yes, this took place in the early-1800s, in Thomas Jefferson’s America, and is still one of the hardest parts about the Founding Fathers to reconcile: how could such brilliant and progressive-thinking men support, on any level, slavery or the subjugation of another based on their skin color?
But yet it was what it was. Slavery was reality, the Oto and Missouri had never seen a black person before, and thus found him to be an intriguing figure.
Native Americans, part II : not so friendly, then friendly.
The journey continued. There was grumbling and one fellow tried deserting. He was caught, brought back, and disciplined via running the gauntlet. Another fellow got lost for over two weeks and survived on wild rabbit and grapes until finding his way back. Saddest of all, poor old Charles Floyd died. Then they crossed paths with the Teton Sioux.
The Lakota nation, called Sioux by Americans, were a powerful tribe, and not inclined to allow free trade on the river. There was tension, some pushing, some yelling, some almost-fighting, but in the end they headed up river again. With their heads intact.
Winter was coming. Fortunately the expedition was helped by the Mandan, who assisted in building a fort and getting stocked up with meat for the cold months, which could hit 40 below zero. Over the winter, they met a French trader, Toussaint Charbonneau, who brought some of his Native wives. One of them was a sixteen-year old pregnant girl named Sacagawea. She had been kidnapped from her Shoshone tribe, then later sold to Charbonneau. She spoke two Native dialects (Hidatsa and Shoshone), and Charbonneau spoke French and Hidatsa, so they joined (for pay) as interpreter. To be accurate, they hired him…but we will soon learn why there’s a reason history remembers the name Sacagawea more so than Toussaint.
Fast forward through winter: Sacagawea gave birth to adorable little Jean Baptiste and they all took off in the spring of 1805. Thirty-one men, one woman, and one baby, and one dog. Off they paddled in their two pirogues and six canoes.
A few challenges and mishaps at this point:
Having to carry boats up around waterfalls (portaging)
Mosquitos
Hunting every day for food
Heat stroke
To be clear, when we talk about portage (carrying boats around waterfalls), we’re not talking about a tiny little one. We’re talking about the Great Falls of the Missouri River (in Montana). Eighty feet high. And there’s not just one: there’s multiple. It’s going to be an eighteen mile portage to get around the five waterfalls. It takes a month. And it’s amidst storms, mosquitos, rattlesnakes, bears, moccasins wearing out…
…finally they made it over the last falls, where the river shallowed as they approached the headwaters of the Missouri. Led by the confident navigation of Sacagawea, they successfully made it to Shoshone territory (remember, she was Shoshone and had been kidnapped as a young girl). After some communication challenges, they avoided getting attacked and got to the village. The presence of Sacagawea and son were likely a calming influence; Native Americans did not go on raiding or war parties with women or children.
One thing about the Corps of Discovery is that its success was due to a lot of careful planning, skillful leadership, and a hardy crew. But its eventual success also had a lot of plain good luck. For example, when they reached the village, the Shoshone were still suspicious of the white men, who they had never before seen. But when they entered the Chief’s tent, Sacagawea ran to him and embraced him. It was her brother. A happy reunion.
It was here that Lewis learned there would be no all-water route to the Pacific. So much for the fabled Northwest Passage. The chief told him the only route possible. A tough one: across the Bitterroot Mountains. It’s now August and another brutal winter is coming so they head out. A snowy pass to cross (Lolo). Their good luck seems to turn bad: horses slide down the mountain, supplies go with them, no food to hunt…not looking good. Eventually, they stagger their way over the mountains, weak, sick, hungry…
…and again, a Native American tribe helps save the day. The Nez Pierce let them stay in their village for two weeks while they recuperate, eat, and learn how to (more) quickly make canoes by burning out the inside of a tree.
Clearwater, Columbia, Pacific here we come.
Now that they’re over the Rockies and the Continental Divide, something very cool happens: they’re going downstream.
Continental Divide:
drainage point on a continent where one side of the divide
drains into one body of water (e.g. Atlantic Ocean) and the other side
drains into a different body (e.g. Pacific Ocean). America’s Continental Divide
runs along the Rocky Mountains (North) and Andes Mountains (South).
So they rush downriver, down the Clearwater and onto the Columbia River and its many falls. Northwest Native Americans watch from the banks, and many are familiar with European traders, who have come via the Pacific Ocean. They’re willing to trade for food. Some hard bargaining, but they’re willing.
The Pacific Ocean is close.
Fort Clatsop.
And then they’re there. Finally. The Pacific. They’ve made it. Not via an all-water passage. But they’ve made it after traveling, by Captain Clark’s estimation, 4,162 miles. But there’s not much time to sit back and enjoy the ocean view.
Another winter is coming. They build what will ideally be their last winter camp: Fort Clatsop.
Over the winter, the captains worked on writing and recording maps and observations about plants and animals. Not an exciting winter, but a productive and necessary one.
Finally, it’s time to head back.
The return.
Going against the current this time. At least until the Rockies. Bummer. Homeward bound treks are a mix of bittersweet emotions, and possibly this was no different. More adventures, more mishaps, more challenges.
They stay with the Walla Walla Indians for a bit, then reunite with the Nez Pierce while waiting for the Bitterroot snows to melt. After a false start, they make it over. After successfully crossing, they split into two groups: one to explore the Marias River and one to explore the Yellowstone River.
Maris River
Captain Lewis led a group through Blackfoot territory, and it did not go well. They were unexcited about white men infringing on their lands and trading, and ended up in a squirmish where two Native Americans ended up dead. They rode hard to escape retribution.
Yellowstone River
Captain Clark led his group along the Yellowstone, where they encountered members of the Crow tribe. In spite of losing half their horses, it was a successful detour because Sacagawea helped to map out many of the passes for future travel.
Eventually they hopped back on the Missouri River. Two years and four months after departing, they returned to St. Louis, as thousands of people stood on their river banks and cheered.
Summary.
The original and primary objective - to find an all-water route to the Pacific - was unsuccessful. However, the expedition was massively successful in every other way.
They mapped out the new territory and its topography, including major formations such as mountain ranges and rivers.
They established legal claim to the land.
They built diplomatic relations with many indigenous nations and began trading with them.
They found a continuous trail to get to the Pacific, via the Missouri River, to Columbia River.
They amassed a huge amount of information about plants, animals, and habitats.
They learned a great deal about Native American culture, language, and customs.
In the end, it worked out well for President Jefferson and the new country of the United States of America. Did it work out quite as well for the many indigenous peoples who lived on this route long before the Corps of Discovery’s two-year expedition?
That’s another story.