The Lewis ( 1774 ) And William Clark - 1735 Words

Meriweather Lewis (1774) and William Clark (1770) are famously known for their expedition through the Louisiana territory to the coast of the Pacific, along with Sacagawea from the Shoshone tribe. They traveled down the Ohio River, up the Missouri River, across the Continental Divide, and to the Pacific Ocean. In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson sent the Cords of Discovery to the land never traveled before by any American to explore. They traveled over 8000 miles and discovered over 300 unknown species, 50 tribes of Indians, and the Rocky Mountains (â€Å"National Geographic: Lewis Clark†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ). It began May 1804 and ended September 1806. Before the expedition, Lewis was Jefferson s private presidential secretary. He also served in the military,†¦show more content†¦In the fall/winter of 1803, Camp Wood, their area camp, was established upstream from St. Louis. On May 14, 1804, William Clark, Meriweather Lewis, and nearly four dozen other men started upstream on th e Missouri River on their 55-foot-long keelboat and two smaller pirogues, marking the beginning of the Corps of Discovery expedition. As they traveled, Clark spent most of his time on the keelboat, charting the course and making maps, while Lewis was often ashore, studying the rock formations, soil, animals, and plants along the way (National Geographic: Lewis Clark†). They were always on the lookout for Indians, armed just in case. Whenever it was possible, Lewis and Clark made camp on river islands and had guards at night. By the end of July they had traveled more than 600 miles on the river and had not met a single Indian. At sunset on August 2, 1804, a party of Oto and Missouri Indians arrived at the expedition s camp. The encounter went well, exchanging greetings and gifts. But the captains realized that things would be different when they met the Sioux. President Jefferson had specifically mentioned the need to make a friendly impression on this powerful tribe. By the last week of August, Lewis and Clark had reached the eastern edge of the Great Plains, filled with elk, deer, buffalo, and beaver. They were now heading toward the heart of Sioux territory. They first encountered the Yankton Sioux, a more peaceable people than the Teton Sioux, farther up the