The Lewis & Clark Expedition
"...the Lewis and Clark expedition, in the form of
a covert military reconnaisance into lands nominally belonging to a nation
with whom the United States was then at peace, was poised to set forth
before the negotiations in Paris began." (14)
William Clark (15) |
Meriwether Lewis (16) |
On January 18, 1803, President Thomas Jefferson appointed Meriwether Lewis
and William Clark to lead an expedition into the Louisiana Territory. The
actual beginning of the "Voyage of Discovery", as the expedition was oficially
named, started two years earlier. Jefferson commissioned Lewis, his friend
and neighbor, and Clark, an army officer, to gather an expedition. The
expedition had two purposes: to gather scientific data about the territory,
and more importantly, to report on the military strength of the people
they might encounter. The expedition was postponed, however, because of
rumors about French acquisition of the Territory. Jefferson felt safe spying
on weak Spain's colony, but not on a colony that may belong to France.
Once again, European diplomatic factors dictated Jefferson's actions regarding
Louisana. It was not until after Jefferson was sure of the security of
Louisiana that the expedition was able to procede.
Map of the route taken by Lewis and Clark (17)
The "Voyage of Discovery" set out on May 14, 1804. By October 16, the
party had reached the Colombia River. On Novemeber 7, 1805, Clark wrote
his most famous journal entry: "Ocean in view! O! the joy!" (18)
In
actuality, the expedition was still twenty miles from the ocean.
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