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Personal secretary of Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis was chosen to command the Louisiana Purchase expedition because he was extremely reliable . This is important because an expedition needs a strong leader and if he had not been chosen the journey could have ended unsuccessfully.
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Meriweather Lewis chose military partner William Clark because of his superb mapping skills as well as his prior knowledge to boat navigation. Also, he would keep the journals and notes updates along the journey.
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A French Canadien fur trapper living with the Hidatsas was hired as an interepreter. His wife, Sacagawea, a Shoshone who had been captured by the Hidatsas and old to Charboneau, is also considered helpful as the Shoshones are said to live at the headwaters of the Missouri.
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The mens' quarters, the storage rooms, and the 16-foot pickets front and back, were designed for defense against hostile Indians, especially the Sioux, although they never attacked the fort. Here they celebrated their second Christmas and New Year's.
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Lewis and Clark keelboat and approximately a dozen men back down river with maps, reports, Indian artifacts, and other specific specimens for Jefferson.
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Scouting ahead of the rest of the expedition, Lewis comes across the Great Falls of Missouri. He also discovers four more water falls farther upsteam. The expedition will cover over 18 miles, taking nearly a month to get past them. This is important because they marked a new discovery however it slowed down the expedition.
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The shipment sent from Fort Mandan arrives in the east and delivered to Jefferson. Lewis assends the final ridge towards the Continental Divide expecting to see plains and a river flowing to the Pacific Ocean but he discovers more mountains. This is important because Lewis' predictions were wrong and he had come across more obstacles which he had not expected.
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After the disocvery, Lewis tried to negotiate for horses. Clark and the rest of the expedition arrived as well and it is disovered that the Shoshone chief, Cameahwait, is Sacagawea's brother. Lewis and Clark named the site Camp Fortunate. This is important because they gained more connections to help make the expedition more successful.
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The expedition reaches the Columbia River. This was a major checkpoint in the expedition and marks the progress of their journey so far.
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Clark believed he could see the ocean, in which he wrote his most famous journal entry: "Ocian in view! O! the joy." The expedition was actually 20 miles from sea. The expedition was halted for three weeks due to terrible storms.
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President Jefferson welcomes a delegation of Missouri, Oto, Arikara, and Yankton Sioux chiefs who had met with Louis and Clark more than a year earlier. This was important because it now meant that Lewis and Clark had more support.
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Fort Clatsop is presented to the Clatsop Indian for which it was named and the expedition begins the journey home.
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They must wait for the snow to melt before crosses them. During this time the expedition again stays with the Nez Perce, Lewis describes them as "the most hospitable, honest, and sincere people that we have met with in our voyage." It was important to have achieved aid at that time.
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The men had made a successful expedition, and had a safe trip home.
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Upon their return, Lewis and Clark were considered heroes. They returned to Washington, D.C. The men received double pay and 320 acres of land as a reward, and the captains received 1600 acres. Lewis is named governor of the Louisiana Territory, and Clark is made Indian agent for the West and bridadier general of the territory's militia.
