President Thomas Jefferson assures Caspar Wistar that Meriwether Lewis is headed to Washington City and that an engraved map of the expedition’s route will be sent to the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia.
Clark’s map, engraved for the first edition of the journals
To see text and labels, point to the map.
Special Collections, Mansfield Library, The University of Montana, Missoula.[1]From Paul Allen, ed., History of the expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clark, to the sources of the Missouri, thence across the Rocky Mountains and down the river Columbia to the … Continue reading
Engraved Map
Washington Dec. 8. 06.
Th: Jefferson presents his salutations to Dr. Wistar; & incloses him mr Stuart’s letter which gives the only information he possesses respecting the squirrel’s head. Capt. Lewis’s rout will probably, as soon as he arrives here be engraved. a copy shall be sent to the society, as also of Lt. Pike’s survey of the Misipi. & Freeman’s of the Red river.[2]Thomas Jefferson to Caspar Wistar, Founders Online, National Archives, founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/99-01-02-4649 accessed 3 January 2026.
Notes
| ↑1 | From Paul Allen, ed., History of the expedition under the command of Captains Lewis and Clark, to the sources of the Missouri, thence across the Rocky Mountains and down the river Columbia to the Pacific Ocean. Performed during the years 1804-5-6. By order of the government of the United States. (2 vols., Philadelphia: Bradford and Inskeep, 1814), Plate 3. |
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| ↑2 | Thomas Jefferson to Caspar Wistar, Founders Online, National Archives, founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/99-01-02-4649 accessed 3 January 2026. |
Experience the Lewis and Clark Trail
The Lewis and Clark Trail Experience—our sister site at lewisandclark.travel—connects the world to people and places on the Lewis and Clark Trail.
Discover More
- The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Day by Day by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2018). The story in prose, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals: An American Epic of Discovery (abridged) by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2003). Selected journal excerpts, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals. by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 1983–2001). The complete story in 13 volumes.
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