Lewis and Clark Expedition
expedition · 1804 AD–1806 AD
Commissioned by President Jefferson after the Louisiana Purchase, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led the Corps of Discovery up the Missouri River, across the Rocky Mountains and down the Columbia to the Pacific, and back, in 1804–1806. They relied throughout on Native American nations for food, horses and guidance, among them the Shoshone woman Sacagawea, who travelled with them. On the way home the party split to explore separately; only the main route is mapped. Their journals are among the best-documented records of any journey of exploration.
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Recorded boundaries
| Period | Control | Confidence | Evidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1804 AD | — | high confidence | no observation date recorded | Set out from Camp Dubois. Reached St. Charles → Kaw River mouth → Council Bluff → Floyd's Bluff → Bad River → Fort Mandan. Set off up the Missouri on 14 May 1804. First council with the Oto and Missouria. Sergeant Charles Floyd died here, the only member of the expedition to die on it. A tense standoff with the Teton Sioux. Wintered among the Mandan and Hidatsa, where Toussaint Charbonneau and Sacagawea joined them. |
| 1805 AD | — | high confidence | no observation date recorded | Reached Yellowstone River → Great Falls → Three Forks → Camp Fortunate → Lemhi Pass → Travelers' Rest → Weippe Prairie → Canoe Camp → Columbia River → Celilo Falls → Fort Clatsop. A month-long portage around five waterfalls. Met the Shoshone, whose chief Cameahwait turned out to be Sacagawea's brother, and traded for horses. Crossed the Continental Divide on 12 August. Came out of the Bitterroot Mountains starving, and were fed by the Nez Perce. Reached the Pacific in November and built a winter fort. |
| 1806 AD | — | high confidence | no observation date recorded | Reached Celilo Falls → Weippe Prairie → Travelers' Rest → Great Falls → Yellowstone River → Fort Mandan → St. Louis. Left Fort Clatsop for home on 23 March 1806. The party split: Lewis struck north-east to the Marias River, Clark south to the Yellowstone. Lewis's route is shown. Lewis and Clark reunited below the Yellowstone on 12 August. Returned on 23 September 1806, long since given up for dead. |
Each row is a snapshot the source recorded, not a continuous history. The period between two observations is an inference this atlas shows rather than hides.
Sources
- Stephen E. Ambrose, Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West, (1996)
- Meriwether Lewis and William Clark; edited by Gary E. Moulton, The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, (1983)