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What happened before the expedition U.S. President Thomas Jefferson sends a secret message to Congress asking for approval and funding of an expedition to explore the Western part of the continent.
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how they prepared Spring 1803: Meriwether Lewis begins his training as the expedition's leader in Philadelphia. Summer 1803: In Pittsburgh, Lewis oversees construction of a keelboat, then picks up William Clark and other recruits as he travels down the Ohio River. Fall/Winter 1803: Lewis and Clark establish Camp Wood, the winter camp for their Corps of Discovery, on the Wood River in Illinois.
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history of territory and purchaseLewis and Clark travel to St. Louis to attend ceremonies formally transferring the Louisiana Territory to the United States.
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Introduction To: The Corps of Discovery leaves Camp Wood and begins its journey up the Missouri River "under a gentle breeze." From: After a winter of only 12 days without rain, the men present their fort to the Clatsop Indians and set out for home.
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Flag history and independence day The Corps holds the first Independence Day celebration west of the Mississippi River.
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North of present-day Omaha, Nebraska, the Corps holds a council with the Oto and Missouri Indians. The Corps holds a council with the Yankton Sioux Tribe at present-day Yankton, South Dakota. The Corps has a tense encounter with the Teton Sioux near today's Pierre, South Dakota; one of the Sioux chiefs waves his men off and conflict is averted. The Corps attends a Mandan buffalo dance, performed to call buffalo to the area.
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Animal Discoveries The Corps enters the Great Plains and sees animals unknown in the eastern United States. The continue to discover many animals until their journey ends in 1806.
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Who was Sacagawea? Lewis and Clark hire French-Canadian fur-trader Toussaint Charbonneau and his Shoshone wife, Sacagawea, to act as interpreters on the journey ahead.
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The Corps marvels at the abundance of game; they kill their first grizzly bear near the Yellowstone River in Montana.
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Crossing the Rockies The Corps begins the steep ascent into the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Mountains; the crossing will cover more than 160 miles (260 kilometers). Starving, the men emerge from the mountains near present-day Weippe, Idaho, at the villages of the Nez Perce Indians.
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Interesting Facts Having found an easier route across the country, the men reach St. Louis nearly two and a half years after their journey began and are acclaimed as national heroes.
