The Lewis and Clark Expedition - St. Albans, MO
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member YoSam.
N 38° 34.844 W 090° 46.282
15S E 694126 N 4272607
Route and history of the expedition as seen from this spot.
Waymark Code: WMY58R
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 04/24/2018
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member iconions
Views: 1
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County of marker: Franklin County
Location of marker: , St. Albans
Marker erected: 2000
Erected by: Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail

Marker Text:
The Lewis and Clark Expedition
 In 1804-06, Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led about 40 soldiers and frontiersmen on an epic journey. President Thomas Jefferson commissioned this "Corps of Discovery" to find a route to the Pacific Ocean through the newly acquired Louisiana territory. Along the way, they mapped the land, recorded its resources, and contacted the native inhabitants.

The landscape has changed since Lewis and Clark explored it: rivers have been damned forests cut over, prairies plowed under, and roads built to the horizon. Although remnants of wilderness still exist, imagine this land as Lewis and Clark first saw it two centuries ago.

The United States purchased the Louisiana territory -- more than 83,000 square miles -- from France in 1803. President Jefferson selected Meriwether Lewis (far right) to lead an expedition there.

With Jefferson's permission, Lewis asked his friend and former commanding officer, William Clark (left), to be co-leader. Although opposite in temperment, they worked harmoniously throughout the two-year journey.

[Map with time line of the journey]:

Lewis left Washington, D.C. July 8, 1803

Lewis acquired arms from Harper's Ferry Arsenal July 8, 1803

Lewis gathered supplies in Pittsburgh July-August, 1803

Clark joined Lewis in Louisville, Kentucky October 14, 1803

Left Camp Wood (winter quarters, 1803-04) May 14, 1804

First council with Indians August 3, 1804

Sgt. Floyd died here August 20, 1804

Confronted by Tenton Sioux Indians September 26, 1804

Built Fort Mandan (winter quarters, 1804-05)

First arrived at Great Falls of Missouri June 14, 1805

Received horses from Shoshoni Indians August 30, 1805

Built canoes with help from Nez Perce Indians September 26-October 7, 1805

Arrived at the mouth of Columbia River November 7, 1805

Built Fort Clatsop (winter quarters 1805-06) Started return trip March 23, 1806

Expedition split July 3, 1806

Clash with Blackfeet Indians July 27, 1806

Captain Lewis accidentally shot August 11, 1806

Leis and Clark rejoined August 12, 1806

Arrived St. Louis September 23, 1806

Web link: [Web Link]

History of Mark:
In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson purchased 828,000 square miles of land from France west of the Mississippi River for $15 million (about 2.83 cents per acre). This area, called the Louisiana Purchase, almost doubled the size of the United States. It later became incorporated in 13 new states, including all of Missouri. President Jefferson decided that the land should be explored to determine the characteristics of the land, climate, and native peoples. In 1804 he commissioned a group of men known as the Corps of Discovery (more commonly known as the Lewis and Clark Expedition) to explore this western territory.

On May 23, 1804, only two days after the Corps of Discovery left from St. Charles, MO, the expedition almost came to a tragic end. While exploring a cave and bluffs just west of St. Louis on the Missouri River (near the present day town of St. Albans), Meriwether Lewis, the leader of the expedition almost fell to his death. While atop a 300-foot river bluff, Lewis started to slide. He nearly missed falling to his almost certain death by digging a knife into a crevice in the rock bluff.

Additional point: Not Listed
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