Among the Yanktons

The stretch of the Missouri River along the present-day border between Nebraska and South Dakota was a flurry of activity. In just three days, a detachment visits the “Mountain of Little People,” today’s Spirit Mound, Patrick Gass is promoted to sergeant, and they first encounter the Yankton Sioux. They look for a volcano and Lewis becomes ill while testing one of the minerals he collected. At present Old Baldy, the expedition has it first encounter with prairie dogs.

The Otoes and Missourias

by Kristopher K. Townsend



At the time of the expedition, the nation from which the Missouri River derived its name were so reduced by smallpox and attacks that they had abandoned their villages and merged with other tribes—Kansas, Osages, but primarily, the Otoes.

 

The Wanapums



Lewis and Clark called them “Sokulks” but they were ‘river people’ from the Sahaptin wána (river) and pam (people). Wanapam is an alternate spelling.

 

The Omahas

by Kristopher K. Townsend



The captains appeared eager to meet with the Omaha. They tried to find them at their two biggest villages and planted a flag at the gravesite of the chief who for many years had controlled trade in the region, the infamous Blackbird.

 

The Poncas

by Kristopher K. Townsend



On 5 September 1804, the captains sent John Shields and George Gibson to the Ponca villages. The privates reported that the people were away hunting buffalo and that they had not planted their gardens.

 

The Yankton Sioux

by Kristopher K. Townsend



The Yankton along with the Yanktonai make up the Western Dakota division of the Dakota People. Although the Yankton and Yanktonai sometimes considered themselves to be one people, their separate locations resulted in a unique history for each.

 

Missouri River Hazards

The travails of river travel

by Joseph A. Mussulman



“So far, we have experienced more difficulty from the navigation of the Missouri, than danger from the Savages. The difficulties which oppose themselves to the navigation of this immence river, arise from the rapidity of it’s current, it’s falling banks, sandbars, and timber”

 

NE Nebraska Minerals

'Blue Earth,' 'Clift of White' and 'Burning Bluffs'

by John W. Jengo



The Missouri River exposed rock formations that were geologically diverse, distinctly colored, rich in mineral content, and in some places, dramatically distinguished by steaming and smoking hot earth that beckoned to be investigated.

 

Synopsis Part 1

Washington City to Fort Mandan

by Harry W. Fritz



The Corps of Discovery, as it would be called, or the “corps of volunteers for North Western Discovery,” as Lewis put it, epitomized the rising glory of the United States—its sense of limitless possibilities and unparalleled opportunities.

 

The Barge

Barge, keelboat, or just 'the boat'?

by Joseph A. Mussulman



Meriwether Lewis listed a “Keeled Boat” in his pre-expedition shopping list, but after he finally got it, he and the other journalists of the Corps of Discovery simply called it “the boat” (190 times) or, less often, “the barge” (32 times).

 

Elk Point

Names

by Joseph A. Mussulman



In the vicinity of Elk Point, South Dakota, the captains found a variety of unfamiliar minerals, including what Clark believed were arsenic and cobalt. “Capt. Lewis in proveing the quality of those minerals was near poisoning himself by the fumes & taste.”

 

The Vermillion River

The stream near Spirit Mound

by Joseph A. Mussulman



The Corps left the white pirogue at the mouth of this stream and followed it part of the way to the storied Spirit Mound. During the years between the day the Corps passed it and today, its mouth has migrated about 2.5 miles southeast.

 

La Véndrye’s Golden Sands

His visit to Spirit Mound

by Joseph A. Mussulman, Kristopher K. Townsend



La Vérendrye’s 1728 name for Spirit Mound contains several puzzling statements. Pako’s reference to that “very fine gold-coloured sand,” suggests the “little mountain” was located in a fabulous land, an Eldorado, of precious natural riches.

 

Spirit Mound

An elevation of devilish spirits

by Joseph A. Mussulman



The visit to this prairie hill was among the more bizarre sidelights of the whole expedition, but evidently it was not entirely unexpected. Seventy-six years earlier, explorer Pierre La Véndrye called the place the “Dwelling of the Spirits.”

 

Spirit Mound by Air

"Unusual spirits"

by Joseph A. Mussulman



On 25 August 1804, obedient to Jefferson’s instruction to observe Indians traditions, monuments and landmarks, Lewis and Clark went inland to visit a “conic form” rising from the plain.

 

Yankton by Air

Peace parley

by Joseph A. Mussulman



Here they “formed a camp in a Butifull Plain,” erected a flagpole, ran up their large flag, and settled in to wait for the Sioux, whom they had invited to meet with them. On August 30, seventy-five Sioux men of the Yankton tribe ceremoniously entered the expedition’s camp, eager to parley.

 

Sandbar Hazards

Knotty problem

by Joseph A. Mussulman



The task of piloting the expedition’s boats efficiently through the Missouri’s windings and blind leads was the principal responsibility of Pierre Cruzatte who, as a riverman, earned the respect and confidence of every member of the party.

 

The Niobrara River

Rushing river

by Joseph A. Mussulman



“We hoisted Sail,” wrote Ordway, and “ran verry fast a Short time. Broke our mast.” The party “came to” on the west side of the Niobrara. There the men made a new mast from the trunk of a tall, sturdy red cedar, which apparently lasted at least until they reached the Mandan villages.