The Lewis and Clark Expedition
Kori Rusley Hr. 3
William Clark
William Clark was the second most significant person on the expedition. Although Clark had little actual education, he had an incredible ability for mapmaking. As a young army officer in the 1790's, Clark got more training in mapmaking. He was responsible for constructing military barriers, which was a job that required skill in drawing and reading maps.
Meriwether Lewis
Meriwether Lewis was the most important person on the Corps of Discovery Exploration. Lewis was personally taught by Thomas Jefferson the basic principles of determining latitude by observing altitudes of the sun or a star. Lewis was also tutored by some of America's leading scientists, mathematicians, and surveyors. Lewis joined the U.S. Army in 1794, serving 6 years in the Frontier Army and rising to the rank of captain in 1800. Meanwhile on the expedition, after the Louisiana Purchase was purchased, Lewis declared the expedition needed to be more diplomatic. The explorers needed to communicate with every Indian Tribe and foreign interest occupying land in the Missouri Watershed.
Sacagawea
Sacagawea was another very important person to the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Sacagawea was the only women on the whole expedition made up of 32 men. Sacagawea and traveled with her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau 'Pompy' for 5,000 miles. Sacagawea made many friendly relationships with Native Americans because she was native and new some very well.
Plants
Lewis and Clark discovered and recorded 174 different types of plants. Some types of plants discovered were Western Huckleberry, Umatilla Gooseberry, Idaho Fescue, and Fragile Prickly-Pear. Umatilla Gooseberry is a shrub the grows from 1.5 to 5 ft. tall. The branches of this plant are sprawling and covered in prickles. This plant produces berries and are somewhat plantable for humans. The Idaho Fescue is a tall meadow grass that is common in central and north America with smooth leaves and long stems.
Umatilla Gooseberry
Idaho Fescue
The Great Falls
The Great Falls of the Missouri River are a series of waterfalls in north-central Montana in the United States. The Greats Falls was one of the most challenging obstacles Lewis, Clark, and the group faced on the expedition. Although they were astonished to see the waterfall, they weren't so excited about it's 80 ft. high challenge. The Corps had to hike 18 miles to get around the 5 water falls and the members helped carry all the boats, supplies, and other things to the top. During this adventure, swarms of gnats and and mosquitos pestered them and grizzly bears and rattlesnakes were a great threat. Although with all of the obstacles, the Corps managed to over come the hike and continue the expedition after roughly 2 months.
Animals
Lewis and Clark discovered and recorded over 134 species of animals while on the expedition. Some of these animals were the American Raven, Blue Catfish, Mule Deer, and the Western Toad. The American Raven is similar to the American crow but bigger, with a heavier ill and a wedge-shaped tail. The throat of this bird appears to be shaggy because of the shape of it's feathers. This bird's soar looks like the soar of a hawk and length i between 21 and 27 inches. The Blue Catfish usually has a blue across it's back and fading to white on the belly. There is typically 30-35 spines in the fin.
American Raven
Blue Catfish
Seaman (Dog)
Seaman was a black Newfoundland dog. He became famous for being a member of the first American overland expedition from the Atlantic to Pacific coast and back. Seaman was also the only animal to complete the entire trip. For years people thought his name was Scannon because they misread the handwriting in the Lewis and Clark journals. Seaman was a water-going dog.
Sources/Citations:
Facts on File History (Online Infobase):
(1) http://online.infobase.com/HRC/Search/Details/210684?q=lewis%20and%20clark%20expedition
National Geographic:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/lewisandclark/
PBS:
http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/inside/index.html
All of the citations used for the sources in this project are in the link below:
https://www.noodletools.com/noodlebib/mybib.php?highlight=7399218