The Lewis and Clark Expedition

Great expeditions have been made for many years; however, one of the best expeditions was the Lewis and Clark expedition. Although Lewis and Clark did not technically “find” anything, the expedition was important to American history and helped people gain knowledge and provided individuals with inquisitiveness of what was in the West. The knowledge gained through the expedition, helped improve the colony’s knowledge and helped lead to even more important advances in American history. Lewis was born on August 18th, 1774 and Clark was born on August 1st 1770. Lewis’ family had a long line of respectable soldiers. Because Lewis’ family was one of the first to settle in the colony, his family was close to Thomas Jefferson. Clark was not as well recognized as Lewis but was a good soldier and was an army partner of Lewis at one point. Jefferson explained to Lewis his plans of exploring the western side of the American continent and Lewis volunteered to lead the expedition. When Lewis was allowed to lead the expedition across the Louisiana Purchase, he asked Clark to come with him and help lead the expedition (Abrams 1, “William Clark- Biography” 1). The people of the expedition (Corps of Discovery) set out on May 21st 1804. They started out going up the Mississippi river and tried to maintain a pace of around fourteen to twenty miles per day. In October of 1804, they set up a camp for the winter (Fort Mandan). Here is where they met Sacagawea. She was a helpful interpreter for the Corps of Discovery and joined in on the expedition along with her husband and son. The explorers met the Nez Perce Indians when they came from the Falls of Missouri and the Lolo Trail. The Corps of Discovery were famished and fatigued and the Nez Perce Indians helped nurse them back to health. Once the explorers reached the Pacific Ocean, they set up a fort and began to prepare for the return trip. They set out on March 23rd, 1806. They made it back to The Nez Perce Indians and stayed with