People and events impacting the land, culture, and shape of the US
Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant William Clark
Why are Lewis and Clark famous?
In 1804, President Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark on a military mission to explore the American West. They co-lead the Corps of Discovery Expedition, a military group of more than 45 men to explore land that the United States had purchased from France, known as the Louisiana Purchase.
When did this expedition take place?
1804 to 1806
What did Lewis and Clark accomplish?
- They mapped unchartered land, rivers, and mountains that included the Missouri River and Rocky Mountains.
- They recorded everything about their travels. They collected, pressed, and carried home more than 200 specimens of plants, fossils and minerals, many of which were unknown to Western science at the time.
- They were the first to create scientific descriptions about the land and animals, which included grizzly bears, prairie dogs, pronghorn antelope and mountain goats they had spotted along the way.
- They recorded detailed information about Native American tribes.
- They were the first “weathermen” of the West. They recorded the area’s weather and climate.
How far did Lewis and Clark travel?
Their journey was approximately 8,000 miles long. That’s like crisscrossing this country from East to West almost three times!
How did Lewis and Clark influence the shape of this country?
Their writings ignited people’s imaginations about the American West. In the mid-1800s, many were inspired to emigrate west, including the estimated 400,000 American pioneers who traveled along the Oregon Trail, a roughly 2,000-mile route from Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon.
Want more information?
- Seaman, a Newfoundland water dog, was Captain Lewis’ constant companion on this journey.
- President Thomas Jefferson was convinced that the explorers would encounter herds of wooly mammoths. These animals, which were the size of African elephants, had become extinct roughly 4,000 years ago.
- During the trip home, an enlisted man accidentally shot Lewis in the buttocks after mistaking him for an elk. Lewis was forced to spend several weeks on his stomach in a canoe as the expedition floated down the Missouri River.