The captains are in St. Louis celebrating yesterday’s transfer of Upper Louisiana to the United States as some of the enlisted men guard the stores at winter camp in Illinois. For the first time this spring, the temperature rises well above the freezing point.
Sugaring at Camp Dubois
Diane Haker
Sapphire Mountain Graphics. Used by permission.
Questions about Indian Religion
The expedition’s “Questions for Indians” was an ongoing project with contributions from many sources. Clark’s notes while wintering at Wood River, Illinois summarize and finalize the list.
Inquiries relitive to the Indians of Louisiania.
. . . .
3rd. Relative to Religion
. . . .
Do they ever petition the good Spirit to interfere with his power to avert or relieve them from the evils which the bad Spirit meditates or is practicing against them.
Do they sacrifice to, or petition the bad Spirit
How do they dispose of their dead?
And with what ceremonies do they inter them?
Do they ever use human sacrifices in any case.
Do they Mourn for their disceased friends and what [is] their ceremony on such occasions.
—William Clark[1]Undated and unsigned list written in Clark’s hand. Donald Jackson, ed. Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition with Related Documents: 1783-1854, 2nd ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, … Continue reading
Weather Diary
Therm at rise
weather wind Therm at 4 Oclk weather wind River 20 above 0 fair E 38 above 0 fo [fair?] S W fall 2 ½ in. —Meriwether Lewis and William Clark[2]To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “River” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations.
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.
Plan a trip related to March 11, 1804:
- Winter Camp at Wood River (Camp Dubois)
- Along the Mississippi (Inspiration Trip)
- Around St. Louis (Inspiration Trip)
Winter Camp at Wood River (Camp Dubois) is a High Potential Historic Site along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail managed by the U.S. National Park Service. The site, near Hartford, Illinois, is managed as Lewis and Clark State Historic Site and is open to the public.
Notes
| ↑1 | Undated and unsigned list written in Clark’s hand. Donald Jackson, ed. Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition with Related Documents: 1783-1854, 2nd ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1978), 158–159. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “River” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations. |
