He was five feet eight inches in height, had grey eyes, fair hair and a sandy complexion. Clark notes that he drank and was one of the more adventuresome of the party.
He is reported in St. Louis in and was living in Born in and raised in Brimfield, Massachusetts. He had blue eyes, fair hair and complexion. Clark says "he never drank water. Stark, U. He served for a time at Fort Adams. He married Genevieve Roy in St. Louis and had a son, Joseph, who was in the fur trade with Ashley in During the years to , Joseph Howard was on the upper Missouri. He was born and raised in Pennsylvania, but probably lived in Kentucky at time of enlistment. He was an excellent hunter and a faithful man to the expedition.
A man of this name was in the 1st Infantry in August , when that unit went up the Mississippi to establish Fort Madison. Hugh McNeal apparently remained in the army for he is on the muster rolls as of September Clark lists him as dead by — Born in Pennsylvania, son of Walter N.
Daniel Bissell 's 1st Infantry Company. He was powerful, strong willed and quick tempered. While enroute up the Missouri with the expedition, he made mutinous remarks, but afterwards did all he could to atone. He was with the return party in and was of valuable help in handling the keel-boat. He traded on the upper Missouri during the years to He was killed by the Yankton Sioux in the spring of Born about in Dillenburg, Germany. He had been a miller. Had black hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion.
Purdey's Company and joined the expedition on November 24, After the expedition he joined Manuel Lisa 's trapping party of to the upper Missouri. Here he again met John Colter , where they were attacked by the Blackfeet, and John Potts was killed. Not much known of this man. Apparently he was not valued for he once deserted while enroute up the Missouri, and as a result he was transferred to the return party of In the original manuscript of the Lewis and Clark journals someone has written "Moses B.
Born in in Pennsylvania, hence only eighteen when he joined Captain Lewis at Maysville, Kentucky, on October 19, His family had moved to Belmont County, Ohio, in He is listed as one of the "Nine young men from Kentucky.
George was Protestant-Irish, a good singer, hunter and horseman. He frequently was lost, but always managed to get back to the main party. After the expedition, in , he was one of the force under Ensign Nathaniel Pryor which attempted to return Chief Shahaka to his home among the Mandans. While the party was halted by the Arikara, Shannon was shot in the leg, which, after much suffering, had to be amputated at St.
Charles, Missouri. In he was in St. Louis, and in , by an act of Congress, was pensioned for the loss of his leg. During he assisted Nicholas Biddle edit the Lewis and Clark journals, and undoubtedly added some details to their notes.
By he was practicing law at Lexington, Kentucky. He was elected a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives in and He sold his land warrants for acres to Hon. Henry Clay, who later helped him on many occasions. After his Kentucky years, he practised law in Missouri. He was a senator from Missouri for a time, then returned to law. He died suddenly in court at Palmyra, Missouri, in , aged forty-nine, and is buried in that city.
Born in near Harrisonburg, Augusta County, Virginia. Being aged thirty-five, he appears to be the oldest man of the round-trip party.
He was the son of Robert and Nancy Stockton Shields, the sixth son and one of ten brothers and an older sister. Here John ran a mill and a blacksmith shop for his brother-in-law, Samuel Wilson.
John Shields enlisted in the expedition on October 19, , in Kentucky, and is considered one of the "Nine young men from Kentucky. His blacksmith work helped keep the party in corn and other foodstuffs for much of the winter and spring of — When the expedition returned, Captain Lewis wrote: "Shields had received the pay of only a private. Nothing was more particularly useful to us, in various situations, in repairing the guns, accoutrements, etc.
After the expedition, he spent a year trapping with his kinsman, Daniel Boone, in Missouri, and the following year with Squire Boone in Indiana. His wife Nancy, survived him.
Their only daughter, Janette, married her cousin, John Tipton, and they left descendants. John Tipton was an executor of his will. Place of birth unknown, but he lived in Indiana. He was a former surveyor at Vincennes, Indiana, and it can be imagined that he was of some assistance to Captain Lewis ' celestial observations, and of Captain Clark 's map-making. In addition to other duties, he often served as a cook while on the expedition.
Clark notes that he was dead by the years — He was probably born in Kentucky and enlisted from an unknown army unit. He was one of the salt makers and cooks of the party. Clark to deduct from the extra pay due Werner "if he has sold or given the horse away. If the horse died not through his negligence — then do not deduct. In he is reported to be in Virginia. Joseph Whitehouse was born about , probably in Fairfax County, Virginia. About , he and his family migrated to Kentucky.
They seem to have located in Boyle and Mercer counties, Kentucky. Captain Clark lists him as one of the "Nine young men from Kentucky" which would indicate that he grew up in that state. As a young man, he enlisted in the U. Army and during one period was stationed at Kaskaskia, Illinois Territory, where he had frequent contact with the traders who trafficked with the Indians on the lower Missouri River.
This was a favorite subject of interest to Whitehouse , so when he heard that recruits for the Lewis and Clark expedition were sought, he located the captains with the hope of joining them. He was transferred from Capt. Daniel Bissell 's Company, then at Fort Massac, to the expedition and was entered on the rolls of Lewis and Clark as of January 1, This would appear to mean that Whitehouse , and the other members recruited from other military commands, had remained on the pay-roll of their former units until December 31, , when they were entered upon the pay-roll of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
The Lewis and Clark journals frequently mention Whitehouse as a "hide-curer" and a "tailor," and record that he often made and repaired the clothes of the men. In , a St. Louis court ordered him arrested for debt. Clark , in his account of the members made during the years —, lists the name, Joseph Whitehouse , without comment. This could mean that Clark did not then know the whereabouts of Whitehouse — or that he may still have been living then.
Joseph Whitehouse kept a journal while on the expedition. A portion, apparently the field notes, or actual diary, is printed in Thwaites' edition of the Lewis and Clark journals.
Recently a revised version of Whitehouse 's journal has been found and now is in the Newberry Library of Chicago. This version has an entry for November 17, , but properly begins with the date, May 14, , when the expedition set out, and ends on April 6, when the expedition was on the lower Columbia, homeward bound.
It would appear that Whitehouse , during the fall of , prepared, or had prepared for him, a new, expanded journal with the thought of having it published. He included a preface and announced that his volume would contain a map.
This new version is to be published under the able editorship of Dr. Donald Jackson. Born August 24, , at Charlestown, New Hampshire. He was an only son of Jonathan and Betty Caswell Willard. Five feet ten inches tall, brown hair, dark eyes, dark complexion and of fine physique. He was living in Kentucky at time of enlistment from Capt.
Amos Stoddard 's Artillery Company. He went on Lewis and Clark 's payroll as of January 1, He was a good blacksmith, gunsmith and fine hunter. He may have kept a journal, yet to be located. He married in , Eleanor McDonald of Shelbyville, Kentucky, and they were the parents of seven sons one of whom was named Lewis, and another Clark , and five daughters.
They have left many descendants. In he worked as a blacksmith in Missouri. He served in the War of From to he lived at Plattesville and at Elk Grove, Wisconsin. In he and his family migrated by covered wagon to California, where he died in , aged eighty-seven.
He is buried at Franklin, near Sacramento, California. His wife, Eleanor, died June 11, , aged seventy-eight. He and Sgt. Gass lived during the discovery of photography, and is the only member of whom a photographic likeness is known. Place of birth unknown.
He enlisted in Kentucky and was on the Lewis and Clark muster roll as of January 1, , which suggests that he was recruited from some military unit, perhaps that of Capt. Russell Bissell. He was a useful man on the expedition and was usually with the hunting parties. After the expedition, he settled for a time in Missouri, but later re-enlisted in the army where he served until From to he was living on the Sangamon River in Illinois.
Born, October 3, , in Pennsylvania of German descent and probably a descendant of the noted Conrad Weiser. His father was John Phillip Weiser , born ; and grandfather, Peter, born , was a son of Conrad. He was enlisted as of January 1, , probably recruited from Capt. He was often a quartermaster, cook and hunter on the expedition.
He was killed prior to the years — The town of Weiser , and the Weiser River in Idaho, are named for him. He was born in at Louisburg, North Carolina, and was transferred from Capt. John Campbell 's 2nd Infantry Company on May 14, He was on Lewis and Clark 's payroll until June 1, , when he had returned to St. Louis in charge of the "return" party members from Fort Mandan. He was five feet ten inches tall, had brown hair, black eyes, fair complexion.
After the expedition he returned to his original military company. Some time later he was discharged after serving his enlistment agreement. He was probably born at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but at time of enlistment was living at Kaskaskia, Illinois. His father, John Boley , Sr. Louis in from Pittsburgh. John Jr. He was one of the return party of On August 9, he joined Zebulon Pike 's expedition to the sources of the Mississippi, and went again with him in to the Rocky Mountains.
His parents home place at Meramac, Missouri, became his property at their death. He is said to have been with the Bissell brothers expedition to the mountains. He and his wife were living at Carondelet in October Born in at Pallingham, New Hampshire.
Five feet nine inches in height, blue eyes, light hair and fair complexion. Amos Stoddard 's Company at Kaskaskia. He was mentioned in the journals because he killed a pelican on August 7, while enroute up the Missouri. For many years Robert Frazier has been reported as being born in Vermont, and was a former fencing master. There was a Robert Frazier living in Brattleboro, Vermont, in However, recent research indicates that our Robert Frazier was born in Augusta County, Virginia, a descendant of the Frazier family long resident in that and Rockingham County.
He was a valuable man on the expedition, and was transferred from the extra party to the permanent party in the spring of He kept a journal which he intended to publish, but it has become lost.
His map of the Northwest, which was intended to be issued with his journal, is now in the Library of Congress — a small section of which is published in this work. After the expedition he accompanied Captain Lewis to Washington and Virginia, and then returned to St. On October 6, , the captains gave him a bond for land with the citation: "That said Robert Frazier , having faithfully complied with the several stipulations of his agreement, the undersigned,.
Louis and New Orleans. He was reported in several scrapes with the law in St. Louis until the year From to he was living on or near the Gasconade River in Missouri. He died in Franklin County, Missouri, in Born about in New Hampshire.
He was a shoemaker and was transferred from Capt. Amos Stoddard 's Company at Kaskaskia on October 1, He was cited for disorderly conduct while at Camp du Bois.
He started with the expedition but was dismissed on June 12, , less than a month after it had started. He was returned to St. Louis and he probably rejoined his original unit in Capt. Stoddard 's Infantry. Later, he may have been the same John G. Jack Robertson , "an old Ashley man and whisky peddler," and partner with Antoine Robidoux in the s.
He is reported to have been a fur trader for forty years — from to On August 3, , he wrote to his mother, Mrs. In this letter he states that he had intended to come home, but had re-engaged with William Sublette and Andrew Drips as a partner in a trading company. Born in at New Haven, Connecticut. Amos Stoddard 's Company. Five feet seven inches tall, blue eyes, brown hair and of fair complexion. Before his army service he had been a farmer.
Born in at Holliston, Massachusetts. Five feet seven and a half inches tall, sandy hair and fair complexion. Half French and half Omaha , he probably was a descendant from the Cruzatte family who were early settlers of St. Obviously his father had lived among the Omaha at an early date. He enlisted with Lewis and Clark on May 16, Pierre had formerly been a trader on the Missouri for the Chouteaus before enlisting. He could speak the Omaha language and was skilled in sign-talk, so was of valuable assistance to the captains at the Indian councils and encounters with the tribes on the lower Missouri.
He was a small man, wiry, had but one eye and was nearsighted. He was called "St. Peter" by the men as a nickname. Like the other regular men, he was awarded extra pay and a land grant after the expedition's return. He was killed by — He may be the same Jean Baptiste Deschamps , Jr. Charles, August 15, Our Jean seems to have been recruited at Kaskaskia and was the patron, or head Waterman of one of the pirogues.
He was recruited at Kaskaskia. He deserted the expedition early on the voyage and was not found thereafter. He probably remained among the Oto e for a few years. If this is the same man, he may have drifted down the Missouri and lived among the Oto e Indians a year or two before joining Lewis and Clark. Louis, January 11, La Liberte, aged 60, probably the same man, was buried at St. Louis, May 31, He was recruited at Kaskaskia and was half-French and half- Omaha.
He served as interpreter and as patron of one of the pirogues. Adept in French, English and several Indian languages, he was of considerable value to the expedition. As he was also an excellent tracker, hunter and waterman, he was elected to be one of the permanent party. After the expedition, he went to Washington as interpreter to the group of Indians accompanying Captain Lewis. Louis between and It appears that Labiche and Labuche were both nicknames.
The proper family name is probably Milhomme. Among other things, Labiche meant "the doe," while Labuche meant "the log" or a "heavy fall. Louis used Labuche. Louis, or nearby, after Rose, Quebec, Canada. He had married at St. All were baptized at St. He apparently died in late , for his wife married a Mr. Poirier of St. Charles on September 19, It may be his son, Jean Baptiste, Jr. Paul Parish, Oregon. As shown above, La Jeunnesse was another of the married men of the expedition.
There were several other La Jeunnesse families but it probably was his nephew, Basil, born June 25, , at St. Louis, son of Jacques and Helene Le Vasseur, who accompanied Fremont on his first and second expeditions to the west in — His father, Francois Malbeuf, baptized at least seven children by two or three Indian women. Elisabeth, his daughter by Angelique, a Mandan woman, was baptized at St. Etienne was baptized at St. Charles on December 26, , but no age nor date of birth is given in the Parish Register.
He must have been born about as he was old enough to serve as godfather to a child of his sister, Elisabeth, and her husband, Jean Baptiste La Jeunnesse, in By Etienne was living in Kaskaskia where he was hired for the expedition.
Wages were paid for this employment under Captain Lewis on October 4, Probably a son of Joseph Pineau and a Missouri Indian woman. He was born "in the woods" about , and was baptized at St. He may have been sent back to St. Louis on June 13, , along with John Robertson , in Pierre Dorion's returning raft crew, as he is not mentioned as being with the expedition thereafter.
He married Pelagie Bissonet at St. Louis on November 18, Paul was hired for the expedition at Kaskaskia, and is mentioned as a member on May 26, Born near Montreal, Canada, in , he was hired at Kaskaskia. Rivet was the man who "danced on his head" at the Mandan parties. He, with three others, DeChamps, Malboeuf and Carson, seem to be the four engagees who, after being discharged, built a hut of their own next to Fort Mandan , and remained there under the protection of the expedition during the winter of — Thwaites, vol.
In the spring of , Rivet and Philippe Degie —who had attached himself to the party on October 18, — built a canoe of their own and descended the Missouri with Warfington's return party as far as the Arikara nation. The expedition was meant to prepare the way for the extension of the American fur trade and to advance geographical knowledge.
The President provided the best supplies, clothing, firearms, equipment, and rations then available. Lewis and Clark were instructed to observe and record the entire range of natural history and ethnology of the areas they explored. They were also to note possible resources which would support future settlement.
The Louisiana Purchase of had doubled the size of the nation, but a good share of the territory the expedition would explore was unmapped.
Jefferson envisioned the nation's eventual expansion to the Pacific and desired to strengthen the American claim to the Northwest Columbia Basin. They "discovered" beauty beyond their wildest expectations and the people they encountered represented nearly 50 indigenous tribes that enabled the successful completion of their mission. And even though an easy water route across the continent was not found, the geography, flora, fauna and other natural phenomena they documented resulted in a large body of scientific information that was new to the Western world.
These accomplishments made the Lewis and Clark Expedition one of the most successful explorations of all time. Lewis and Clark in canoes meeting the Indians. Clark recruited and trained men, while Lewis spent time in St.
Louis, conferring with traders about the Upper Missouri regions and obtaining maps made by earlier explorers. Charles, Missouri. The Corps of Discovery numbered over 45 and included 27 young, unmarried soldiers, a French-Indian interpreter, and Clark's Black slave York.
Travel up the Missouri River was difficult due to its strong current and many snags. The explorers suffered from heat exhaustion and disease along with encounters with animals and insects. They forever destroyed the dream of a Northwest Passage, but proved the success of overland travel to the Pacific. The expedition compiled the first general survey of life and material culture of the Native American tribes they encountered. Lewis and Clark made significant additions to the zoological and botanical knowledge of the continent, providing the first scientific descriptions of many new species of animals, including the grizzly bear, prairie dog, pronghorn antelope, and mountain goat.
They made the first attempt at a systematic record of the meteorology of the West, and less successfully attempted to determine the latitude and longitude of significant geographical points. By any measure of scientific exploration, the Lewis and Clark expedition was phenomenally successful in terms of accomplishing its stated goals, expanding human knowledge, and spurring further curiosity and wonder about the vast American West.
Show 10 40 per page. One Memorial Drive Suite St. Louis , MO Explore This Park. Gateway Arch National Park Missouri. Info Alerts Maps Calendar Reserve. Alerts In Effect Dismiss. Dismiss View all alerts.
Corps of Discovery. Tags: corps of discovery. Stay Connected. Tortohonga hastily ordered the young men away from the pirogue. The crisis had passed. After the showdown on the banks of the Bad River, peace was made with the duly impressed Lakotas, who regaled the men with a feast and a dance. The Corps then continued its epic journey.
By the time they reached the site of future Bismarck, N. Now, however, the days of fall were getting shorter, and the first bite of winter was in the air. Accordingly, by November, the expedition made plans to spend the season among the Mandan Indians along the Missouri River. For protection, in true military fashion, they constructed Fort Mandan.
Through the frigid winter—at least 40 days between December and March the thermometer sank to a bone-rattling zero—Fort Mandan stood as an impressive symbol of American power for the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara, as well as the Lakotas.
More than Lakotas rushed them, cut the traces of the sleds, and made off with two of the horses while an Indian with the soldiers gave them another. This horsestealing raid, more a test of Lakota courage than a provocation to the Corps, was the only challenge the mighty tribe made against Fort Mandan and its garrison. When spring came and the ice on the Missouri melted, the Corps made preparations to continue its journey.
The group left the fort on April 7. Here came an historic parting of the ways for the members of the expedition: Some would continue the voyage to the ocean, while others would return downstream to St.
Louis with the information they had gathered thus far. Through country rich with wildlife, the party traveled onto the Yellowstone River, tributary to the all-powerful Missouri. Another trial soon faced the wearying advance scouts of the American empire. They reached the Great Falls of the Missouri, where the men were forced to undergo the most grueling rite of passage in all of Western sojourning: a portage.
The troops and laborers had to carry all their equipment, plus the boats, on their backs until the next navigable stretch of water was finally attained. By June 23, some of the men were limping from sore feet; others were scarcely able to stand for more than a few minutes from heat and fatigue. River-borne again on July 15, the trekkers soon entered the extraordinary range of rocks called the Gates of the Rocky Mountains, whose foothills, the Sawtooth Range in Montana, Lewis had climbed on May Meeting the Shoshone, the expedition found itself in a tense situation, much as with the Lakotas.
The tense impasse evaporated when, on August 17, Clark, in command of the rear detachment, came up with Sacagawea. When the two American leaders sat down in council with Chief Cameahwait, they kindly but firmly made known to the Shoshone their dependence on the will of the government for their future comfort and defense.
Cameahwait took this declaration of American sovereignty in good spirits and declared his willingness to help the expedition. With the happy conclusion of the pow-wow, Lewis and Clark set their sights on their ultimate goal—reaching the Pacific shores. Throughout August and September, the explorers pressed on through some of the most unforgiving terrain on the continent.
They backtracked into Montana by way of the north fork of the Salmon River, only to cross over back into Idaho by the Bitterroot Range. Throughout October, the Corps persevered through Idaho and into Washington, braving the wild Snake and Clearwater rivers, whose rapids ranked among the fiercest white water in North America.
Fortunately the water was not more than waist deep, so our lives and baggage were saved, though the latter was wet. On October 9, however, Old Toby and his son fled, fearful of confronting any more rapids.
On October 16, they reached the Columbia River, which would be their riverine path to the Pacific. On the 23rd, one of their Nez Perce guides told Lewis and Clark he had overheard that the Indians below intended to attack as they went down the river.
The ominous news had little effect on the Corps of Discovery. With the concern over hostile Indian attack passed, the Corps concentrated on the final leg of the journey to the Pacific. Still another test of strength awaited them with coastal Indians on their way to the Western sea. Not wishing to be taken advantage of by the more numerous Indians, Lewis and Clark had the Indians searched at gunpoint. Although the missing calumet was not found, the Skilloots learned the white warriors were men to be reckoned with.
Finally, three days later, the Corps reached the object of their dreams—the broad waters of the Pacific. After spending nearly a month exploring the coastal plain and the Indians who dwelt along the Pacific rim, the time came to plan once more for winter quarters, although the Northwestern climate freed them from the snows of the cold season experienced at Fort Mandan.
Called Fort Clatsop, after the tribe with whom the Corps now lived, the outpost was designed to be a fitting reminder of American power, even on the shores of the Pacific. The fortification would be a square construction, measuring 50 feet to a side. Building the fort commenced on December 8.
It was completed in time to celebrate Christmas, which was saluted at daylight by a discharge of firearms, followed by a song from the men. The sighting of the Pacific and the claim to the coast that Fort Clatsop so strongly represented marked the climax of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Now it was time for the Corps to begin the long march home. On the return journey, Indians who had been friendly on the way out had become sullen, almost hostile, perhaps due to action by agents of the British North West Fur Company.
Passing with rifles in hand through a gantlet of hostile tribes, the Corps reached the friendly people they had encountered on the way out the year before, the Walla Wallas and Nez Perce.
In early May, Lewis and Clark again met Twisted Hair, a Nez Perce chief who had been a guide on the western trek and who had guarded their horses during the winter.
On June 15, the Corps ascended again the arching peaks of the Bitterroots. Then, near present day Missoula, Mont. Lewis would explore to the north, gauging the chances of fur trapping into Canada, while Clark would hew to the trail back East. For once-and almost fatally-Lewis let down his guard.
The practiced eyes of the Indian raiders noticed that both guns and horses were unattended. Without warning, the Piegans struck. He called to his brother [Reuben] who instantly jumped up and pursued… him, and Reuben Fields, as he seized his gun, stabbed the Indian to the heart! Lewis himself quickly drew his big-mouthed. After the skirmish with the Blackfeet, Lewis, lest he be outnumbered by the warlike people, turned around to meet up again with Clark.
Lewis made good time covering as much as 83 miles in one day paddling downstream on the Missouri, and on August 7 he reached the mouth of the Yellowstone. There the men found a note from Captain Clark, informing them of his intention of waiting for them a few miles below.
After reuniting on the Missouri, the Lewis and Clark Expedition, together once more, set out on the final leg of the journey. On August 30 they became soldiers again when Clark, acting on behalf of the recuperating Lewis, berated the unruly Lakotas for breaking the peace with the Mandan tribe. After Clark returned from haranguing the Lakotas, all the men prepared their weapons in case of an attack—an attack that never materialized.
The land now became familiar, almost homelike, to the Corps. They had a happy meeting with the other Lakotas and passed again the sad site of the final resting place of Sergeant Floyd.
Sailing by St. Charles, the Corps descended the Mississippi to St. Louis, where it arrived at noon on September 23, , and received a hearty welcome from the whole town. The long march of Lewis and Clark was over. The 33 members of the Corps of Discovery picked up speed as they headed home. On their journey west, which began near St. Louis in May , the explorers had rowed and pulled their boats upstream on the Missouri River, laboring to cover 10 miles a day.
Now, late in the summer of , the wayworn expedition members were heading downstream, sometimes making 75 miles a day. They had had their fill of grand adventure and longed to see their loved ones again. In canoes and hollowed-out logs called pirogues, Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and their Corps of Discovery traversed the Missouri into present-day North Dakota, where the map had ended before their journey.
Her husband, Toussaint Charbonneau, and son, Jean Baptiste, both of whom achieved renown of their own, left the expedition with her. Lewis and Clark and company reached St. Louis on September In the days since their departure, the explorers had traveled more than 8, miles, established friendships with several native nations, collected invaluable botanical and zoological specimens, produced surprisingly accurate maps, and compiled detailed records of the entire expedition.
The mountain men, explorers, buffalo hunters, soldiers, pioneers, gamblers, gold seekers, cowboys, outlaws, missionaries, and homesteaders who went west during the next century all followed in the wake of Lewis and Clark.
The nation rejoiced when Lewis and Clark and their men — rumored to be dead or lost — safely returned to civilization. Congress awarded 1,acre land grants to Lewis and Clark and acre grants to each enlisted man, as well as the back pay due to everyone. President Thomas Jefferson, the force behind the expedition, further rewarded the captains by appointing Lewis governor of the Territory of Upper Louisiana and Clark superintendent of Indian affairs.
Clark promptly ordered former expedition member Nathaniel Pryor, now an army ensign, to return Mandan chief Sheheke also called Big White to his home in North Dakota.
Pryor and his first wife, Margaret Patton, had six children. As he was forming his company, Pryor naturally looked for men he already knew and trusted. Only 18 years old when he joined the captains, Shannon was the youngest member of the party.
His youth sometimes showed: he had a habit of forgetting objects on the trail, and he had twice become separated from the main group. But Shannon proved to be particularly cool under pressure one night when a wolf attacked a small group of scouts. Gibson had acted as an interpreter on the expedition, probably using sign language, and he was also a first-rate hunter.
Pryor, Shannon, and Gibson had traveled to the Pacific Coast and back and had traversed Lakota, Yankton Sioux, and Crow territory without a single violent episode with Indians, but their luck changed for the worse on September 9, , when they encountered the Arikara, who were at war with the Mandan.
In the exchange of fire that followed, Shannon took a ball that broke his leg, and Gibson and another man were also wounded. The trapping party accompanying Pryor fared much worse: three men had been killed and seven others badly wounded, one mortally.
He was near death by the time the group returned to St. Louis, and a doctor amputated the leg above the knee. He assisted statesman and writer Nicholas Biddle in the publication of the Lewis and Clark journals, served in the Kentucky House of Representatives, and was named U.
In August of , at the age of 51, Shannon fell ill while attending a trial. George Gibson also recovered from his wound and married Maria Reagan. By January , however, the man who had delighted Indians with his fiddle playing fell ill. Fearing imminent death, Gibson made out his will and left everything to his wife. Five years after his encounter with the Arikara, Nathaniel Pryor made another narrow escape.
Pryor escaped by crossing the frozen Mississippi River. Pryor spent the latter part of his life trading with the Osage Indians in the Arkansas Territory, and he had three daughters by his second wife, an Osage woman. He established a reputation for integrity and served as an Indian agent in all but title, although the government offered him little in the way of position or compensation. Meriwether Lewis returned from the expedition as a conquering hero. At 32 he was an eligible bachelor, a prominent landowner, and governor of a huge territory.
His prospects seemed limitless. No one could have guessed that three years later he would die a lonely death in the Tennessee wilderness. Lewis had commanded the Corps with singular efficiency; his tenure as governor was a different story. After his appointment, he inexplicably lingered in the East for a year.
0コメント