The Expedition of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

The Louisiana Purchase

• Purchased from the French for $15 million• Finalized on July 4,

1803• Questioned for it’s

Constitutionality

Lewis

• Born August 18, 1774• Leader of the Corps of

discovery• Appointed Governor of

Upper Louisiana after the expedition• Taught by intellectuals,

including Jefferson himself in order to take good notes

Clark• Born August 1st 1770• No formal schooling• He spelled “Sioux” 27

different ways in his journals• Later became a

brigadier general

Reasons to Go• They needed to explore

the northern section of the new territory• Jefferson was

interested in finding a waterway to the Pacific• Jefferson authorized it

before the US bought the Louisiana Purchase• The US desired

knowledge of new flora and fauna

Beginning of an odyssey• Lewis set off on May

14th, 1804 from Saint Louis• He was accompanied

with 42 soldiers and hired help• Was to meet up with

Clark in Saint Charles, MO

MapsOne of the goals of the expedition was to map the territory

Sacajawea and the winter • The Corps of Discovery built Fort

Mandan near the Mandan Indians• Sacagawea became interpreter for

the group• Found her brother as the head of a

Shoshone tribe

The Journey• They traveled past the Rockies during the next year• Built Fort Clatsop on the south side of the Columbia River the

next winter.• This was because Clark’s slave and Sacajawea were allowed to

vote, for the first time ever• Lewis and Clark turned home on March 23, 1816

Journey Home• After the Rockies, on

July 3ed, they split into two teams• Home in Saint Louis

September 23, 1806

Significance• They found there was no water route to the Pacific• They had over 100 detailed maps and diaries• The maps fill in the basic outlines of what the United States had

just bought• Only one man had died, from appendicitis•

A lasting Impact• The expedition overall gained a US claim in Oregon• Discovered at least 200 new plant and animal species• Mapped the new territory with reference maps that would be

used for over 100 years

[citation needed]• The American Pageant, 14th ed• www.istockphoto.com• The Louisiana Purchase, Gail Sakurai• www.Lewis-clark.org• http://lewisandclarktrail.com/101.htm