In St. Louis, Lewis writes Clark regarding seven French engagés and the the enlisted men‘s pay. He sends flags, mosquito netting, and shirts to Clark who is managing the winter camp across the Mississippi. There, the barge is rolled over and several are drunk.
15-star Flag
© 2014 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
In 1804, the American Flag was rolled—not folded into a triangle—similar to the above.
Flags, Nets, and Shirts
St. Louis May 2nd 1804.
Dear friend—
I send you 19 small flaggs, sixteen Musquitoe nets [mosquito nets] and our shirts—pray send down as soon as possible thirteen ells of the brown linin purchased of Morrison to replace that quantity borrowed of Mr. Gratiot, also the case with the Maps, and the specimines of salt which you will find in my writing desk, on the shelves where our books are, or in the drawer of the Instrument case.
M. LEWIS.—in haist[1]Donald Jackson, ed. Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition with Related Documents: 1783-1854, 2nd ed., (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1978), 177.
Enlisted Men’s Pay
The pay of the men will commence from the dates of their last inlistments and will be made up to the last of November 1804. at the regular wages of soldiers & Sergts. &c.— . . . . this to commence with those inlisted in Kentuckey from the dates of their inlistments, all others from the 1st of January 1804.
M. LEWIS.—in haist[2]Ibid. 177–78.
French Engagés
Mr. Choteau [Pierre Chouteau] has procured seven engages to go as far as the Mandanes [Mandans]—but they will not agree to go further, and I found it impossible to reduce them to any other engagement than that usually made with those people. Your sincere friend,
M. LEWIS.—in haist[3]Ibid. 178.
Rolling the Barge
Mr. Hay, Wolpard, & leave Camp to St Louis at 12 oClock Several Drunk Heel the boat.
—William Clark
Weather Diary
Thermometer at rise
Weather Wind at Thermometer at 4 oCk. P.M. Weather Wind at 4 oCk. P.M River 27 above fair S E 76 above fair S S E fall 6 in. —Meriwether Lewis[4]To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “River” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations.
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 | Donald Jackson, ed. Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition with Related Documents: 1783-1854, 2nd ed., (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1978), 177. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | Ibid. 177–78. |
| ↑3 | Ibid. 178. |
| ↑4 | To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “River” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations. |
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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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Unless otherwise noted, journal excerpts are from The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by Gary E. Moulton, 13 vols. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1983-2001).