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Congress approves Jefferson's request
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News of the Louisiana Purchase is announced; Lewis will now be exploring land largely owned by the United States.
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In Pittsburgh, Lewis oversees construction of a keelboat, then picks up William Clark and other recruits as he travels down the Ohio River
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The Beginning of the expedition
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Sergeant Charles Floyd dies of natural causes near present-day Sioux City, Iowa; he will be the only fatality among the Corps of Discovery during the expedition.
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October 24, 1804 -
- Expedition discovers earthlodge villages of the Mandan and Hidatsas Indians. The captains decide to build Fort Mandan across the river from the main village. -
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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May 29, 1805 -
- Clark names the Judith River in honor of a girl back in Virginia he hopes to marry.
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The expedition reaches the Three Forks of the Missouri which they name the Jefferson, Gallatin, and Madison in honor of the President, Secretary of the Treasury, and Secretary of State.
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Having reached the Pacific, the entire expedition—including Sacagawea and Clark's slave, York—take a vote on where to build their winter quarters. They chose the Clatsop Indian side of the Columbia, and the encampment came to be called Fort Clatsop.
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- President Jefferson welcomes a delegation of Missouri, Oto, Arikara, and Yankton Sioux chiefs who had met with Lewis and Clark more than a year earlier.
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February 11, 1805 -
- Sacagawea gives birth to baby boy, Jean Baptiste. -
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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BlackFeet Warriors
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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.
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the expedition ended
