In a letter to his brother, Clark explains his long and recent illness, the celebrations encompassing the transfer of Louisiana, and the inspection of the fortifications at St. Louis.
Clark’s Recurring Illness
St. Louis 25th Feby. 1804
Dear Brother
Your letter of the first of January I rceivede the post before the last and Should have written you by the last but I was at that time So unwell that I could not, my health at this time is Somewhat better_ thoh. not entirely recovered from the Indisposition which attacted me in assending the river— I thought at one time I had entirely recovered, but having frequint returns of the disorder I am induced to belevie that time and attention alone will destroy the effects [of] it.
. . . .
Wm Clark[1]William Clark to Jonathan Clark. James J. Holmberg, ed. Dear Brother: Letters of William Clark to Jonathan Clark (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2002), 76–77.
“Plan of St. Lewis with the Project of an Intrenched Camp French”
Georges Henri Victor Collot (1752–1805)
Engraved map from Voyage dans l’Amérique Septentrionale. Page 2. Paris: A. Bertrad, 1826. Downloaded from archive.org. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.
French General Victor Collot inspected St. Louis in 1796 as part of his intelligence gathering on Louisiana and Ohio fortifications. This map was not published until 1826, and the map’s key is lost to history.
St. Louis Fortifications
St. Louis 25th Feby. 1804
Dear Brother
. . . .
about the middle of this day Capt. Stoddard the Lt. Govr. and about ten officers came to my Quarters at Mr. Cada [Pierre] Cheautous— for Capt. Lewis and my Self to accompany them to examine the forifications (which is in a retched State)
. . . .
Wm Clark[2]Ibid., 77.
Sumptuous Dinner
St. Louis 25th Feby. 1804
Dear Brother
. . . .
We dined as yesterday with the Lt. Govr. a most Sumpcious Dinner, & a large Compy. A great Deel of formality and parade was displayed_
. . . .
Wm Clark[3]Ibid.
Weather Diary
Therm at rise
weather wind Therm at 4 Oclk weather wind River 20 above 0 fair N E 38 [perhaps 28] above 0 S.S.W. River on a Stand
—William Clark and Meriwether Lewis[4]To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the “day of month 1804” 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 February 25, 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.
In present St. Louis, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial “commemorates Thomas Jefferson’s vision of the continental expansion of the United States” and is a High Potential Historic Site along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail managed by the U.S. National Park Service.
Notes
| ↑1 | William Clark to Jonathan Clark. James J. Holmberg, ed. Dear Brother: Letters of William Clark to Jonathan Clark (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2002), 76–77. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | Ibid., 77. |
| ↑3 | Ibid. |
| ↑4 | To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the “day of month 1804” column, merged the “River” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations. |
