(?-1837), Private
by Barbara Fifer, Joseph A. Mussulman
At a place where “one false Step of a horse would be certain destruction,” Frazer’s pack horse took that fateful step, lost its footing and rolled with its load “near a hundred yards into the Creek,” over “large irregular and broken rocks.”
(1769–1809), Private
During the damp winter at Fort Clatsop and throughout 1806, the journals speak more and more often about Shields’ life-sustaining work as gunsmith. Certainly the guns had seen hard use.
Ardent spirits on the expedition
by Robert R. Hunt
No military commander of the 18th-century would have thought of leading his troops on any mission without planning for liquor. In legislation and military orders of the day, the ration was typically expressed in “gills.”
Heading home
by Barbara Fifer, Joseph A. Mussulman
Homeward bound in April 1806, the Lewis and Clark Expedition traveled through the Columbia Gorge and pitched camps on its north side. Their passage was tense and unpleasant, with Indians taking small goods regularly.
Cynomys ludovicianus
by Joseph A. Mussulman
Few of their discoveries seized more interest, even controversy, from the American public. And certainly no others demanded more care than the six live specimens—including one prairie dog—that endured a four-month, 4,000-mile cage-bound odyssey to Washington City.
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).
Measures of torment
by Joseph A. Mussulman
“Our trio of pests still invade and obstruct us on all occasions, these are the Musquetoes eye knats and prickley pears, equal to any three curses that ever poor Egypt laiboured under.”
"No regular botanist"
by James L. Reveal
This interview with botany Professor James Reveal recorded at Packer Meadow near Lolo Pass analyzes the botany of Lewis.
Watlala was the name of a key Upper Chinookan village at the Cascades of the Columbia. The name has been extended by many to mean the tribe more often called the Cascades. The captains called them the Shahala, meaning ‘those upriver.’ The natural constriction of the river provided the people with a fishery and a good measure of control over those who traveled up and down the river. As a result, the Cascade Clahclellah village which the expedition visited on 31 October 1805 and 9 April 1806 was a major trade center before and during white contact.
Hunter and interpreter, (1773–1810)
by Barbara Fifer, Joseph A. Mussulman
Drouillard was one of the captains’ three most valuable hands. He was also the highest paid member after the captains, he shared the Charbonneaus’ tent with the family and the captains, and he was the only man Clark seemed to call by first name in the journals.
An enlightened approach
by Arlen J. Large
President Jefferson naturally was curious about weather conditions in the newly acquired expanse of Louisiana, and weather observations were on the long list of assignments for his exploring team. Jefferson instructed Lewis to record climate data observed on the trip.
The fur trade had put Charbonneau in place to meet the captains and join their expedition. He was the oldest expedition member would outlive most of his fellows as he followed the rigorous life of a fur trader, guide, and interpreter.
Interpreter with "fortitude and resolution"
by Barbara Fifer
She was with the expedition for just over 16 of the 28 months of the official journey. Speaking both Shoshone and Hidatsa, she served as a link in the communication chain during some crucial negotiations. She remains the third most famous person of the expedition.
Reunion
Below the Little Knife River, the captains reunite after separating at Travelers’ Rest. They share stories, treat Lewis’s gunshot wound, and proceed on. Lewis writes his last daily journal entry.
Cruzatte shoots Lewis
Lewis is shot through the buttock. An Indian attack is suspected, but likely Pvt. Cruzatte mistook him for an elk. Clark meets fur traders who share news of the barge, the fur trade, and Indian wars.
Sketches of River Rochejhone
Lewis has the boats repaired while he botanizes. In the afternoon, they move a few miles closer to Clark’s camp near present Tobacco Garden, North Dakota. There, Clark works on his maps of the Yellowstone.
Sacagawea gathers currants
Near Tobacco Garden Creek, Sacagawea gather currants while Clark’s group moves their boats down the Missouri. Near present Williston, Lewis stops to make clothes, and two of his lost hunters catch up.
Sgt. Pryor catches up
In the morning, Pryor arrives at Clark’s camp having paddled two bull boats down the Yellowstone River. Lewis sets up a camp near present-day Williston to make clothes, repair boats, hunt, and make jerky.
Still no reunion
Lewis reaches the Yellowstone River where he finds fragments of two notes. Down the Missouri, Clark moves to a sandbar where there are fewer mosquitoes. Pryor’s detachment is somewhere between the two.
Pryor takes Clark's note
On or near this date, Pryor takes Clark’s note meant for Lewis delaying the captains’ reunion. Near present Williston, Clark moves very little as he waits for Lewis who passes the Poplar River on this day.
This page was funded in part by the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, U.S. National Park Service.
This site is provided as a public service by the
Lewis and Clark Trail Alliance
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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).