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NAME: Thomas Jefferson

NICKNAME: Father of the Declaration of Independence

BORN: April 13, 1743, in Shadwell, Virginia

DIED: July 4, 1826, in Charlottesville, Virginia

TIME IN OFFICE: March 4, 1801, to March 3, 1809

VICE PRESIDENTS: Aaron Burr (first term), George Clinton (second term)

POLITICAL PARTY: Democratic-Republican

EARLY LIFE

Thomas Jefferson was born near the Blue Ridge Mountains of the British-ruled colony of Virginia on April 13, 1743. From the age of nine, Jefferson studied away from home and lived with his tutor. His father-a landowner, surveyor, and government official-died when his son was 14. Later Jefferson enrolled at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. His education included science, mathematics, philosophy, law, English language and literature, Latin, Greek, French, and dancing.

"LIFE, LIBERTY, AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS"

After college, Jefferson became a lawyer. By age 26 he was a member of Virginia's colonial legislature, or government. Like George Washington, Jefferson spoke out against Great Britain's rule over the 13 North American colonies. When the colonists decided to demand their independence from Great Britain, Jefferson was chosen to write a document explaining why the colonies should be free. The document became known as the Declaration of Independence. It's still admired today for its call for freedom, equality, and its demand that all citizens deserve "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Before he became president, Jefferson was governor of Virginia before the Revolutionary War. After the war, he served as U.S. minister to France, secretary of state for President George Washington, and vice president for President John Adams, the country's second president.

GO WEST, YOUNG NATION

When Jefferson became the third president of the United States in 1801, the country basically ended at the Mississippi River; France controlled much of what was west. That included the Port of New Orleans, in what is now Louisiana. It's coastal location made it a key spot for trade-and Jefferson wanted it. In 1803, he made what's known as one of the greatest real estate deals in history: the Louisiana Purchase.

France agreed to sell the entire city of New Orleans, which included the port, to the United States for $10 million; they threw in the rest of the territory they owned for an additional $5 million. The agreement-which gave the United States about 828,000 square miles of land-almost doubled the size of the nearly 30-year-old nation. Jefferson selected his personal secretary, Meriwether Lewis, to join William Clark in leading an expedition to the West Coast to explore the country's new land. The Louisiana Purchase is thought by many to be Jefferson's greatest accomplishment as president.

LASTING LEGACY

Jefferson retired to Monticello, his home in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the end of his second term. He designed and founded the University of Virginia in Charlottesville during his retirement.

Jefferson left a complicated legacy: The man who wrote the Declaration of Independence-which states that "all men are created equal"-also enslaved more than 600 people during his lifetime. But according to his writings, Jefferson knew that future generations would have to end the enslavement of people, and that it would be a long, terrible process.

Like his friend John Adams, Jefferson died 50 years to the day after the approval of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1826.

From the Nat Geo Kids books Our Country's Presidents by Ann Bausum and Weird But True Know-It-All: U.S. Presidents by Brianna Dumont, revised for digital by Avery Hurt

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Learn about the life and achievements of the 3rd president of the United States.

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Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743–July 4, 1826) was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He drafted the Declaration of Independence, served as the country’s first secretary of state, and was elected the third U.S. president. As president,…

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Newsela | La expansión hacia el Oeste: La compra de Luisiana

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Una mirada histórica a la adquisición del territorio de Luisiana por los EE.UU. de Francia en 1803

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Sacagawea was not afraid. Although she was only 16 years old and the only female in an exploration group of more than 45 people, she was ready to courageously make her mark in American history.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson bought more than 825,000 square miles of land from France in what was called the Louisiana Purchase. To explore this new part of the country, Jefferson sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a two-year journey to report on what they found. They needed local guides to help them through this unknown territory. Sacagawea, a young Native American, joined them.

Born to a Shoshone chief around 1788, Sacagawea had been kidnapped by an enemy tribe when she was about 12, then sold to a French-Canadian trapper. When he was hired as a guide for Lewis and Clark's expedition in 1804, Sacagawea also joined as an interpreter to talk to Native-American people on their 8,000-mile journey.

Sacagawea soon became a respected member of the group. She was skilled at finding plants for food and medicine to help keep the explorers alive. When a boat capsized on the Missouri River as they were crossing into what is now Montana, Sacagawea saved important books and much-needed supplies. When they needed horses to cross rough terrain, she convinced a Shoshone tribe-led by her long-lost brother-to give them some. She was so respected by Lewis and Clark that when they reached the Pacific Ocean in November 1805, Sacagawea was asked to cast her vote for where they should build a fort.

Sacagawea proved herself again after the group took a different route home through what is now Idaho. As they passed through her homeland, Sacagawea remembered Shoshone trails from her childhood and helped the expedition find their way through. Clark even praised her as his "pilot."

Sacagawea left the group to return to what is now Bismarck, South Dakota, before the triumphant return of Lewis and Clark to St. Louis, Missouri, in 1806. She received no pay for her services and died on December 20, 1812. But Sacagawea's bravery and skill live on in the expedition's journals, which are full of praise for the 16-year-old Shoshone girl who guided the most famous American expedition of all time.

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Sacagawea was not afraid. Although she was only 16 years old and the only female in an exploration group of more than 45 people, she was ready to courageously make her mark in American history. In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson bought more than 825,000 square miles of land from France in what was called the Louisiana Purchase.

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Sacagawea

The Lewis and Clark expedition into the American west is one of the most legendary events in United States history. It might not have been so successful, however, if not for the help of a young Shoshone woman named Sacagawea.

When Sacagawea was about ten years old, she was kidnapped by Hidatsa Indians and taken to what is now North Dakota. She was then sold as a slave to Toussaint Charbonneau, a French-Canadian fur trader. She later became his wife.

In 1804, Lewis and Clark persuaded Charbonneau to join them on their expedition as an interpreter. It was understood that Sacagawea would join the party as well. They wanted her on the journey because traveling with a woman would indicate to Native American tribes that they came in peace. Shortly before the journey set out, Sacagawea gave birth to her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. He made most of the journey on his mother's back, becoming the country's youngest explorer!

Sacagawea spoke both Hidatsa and Shoshone. Her husband, Charbonneau, spoke Hidatsa and French. When the expedition met Native American tribes, Sacagawea spoke to them in Shoshone, then translated that to Hidatsa for her husband. He then translated the Hidatsa to French. Another member of the expedition spoke French, and by relaying the messages through three people, Lewis and Clark were able to communicate with the Native Americans they met.

Sacagawea was valuable not only as an interpreter. As a native of the American west, she knew which berries, roots, and nuts were safe to eat and which ones could be used as medicines. Once, when one of the expedition's boats capsized in a river, many of their important papers were in danger of being carried away by the current. Sacagawea quickly jumped into the water and recovered many important papers and supplies. Both Lewis and Clark were impressed by her calmness under stress.

At one point during the Corps of Discovery's expedition, Lewis and Clark attempted to buy horses from a Shoshone band. Sacagawea served as their interpreter. To their surprise, she found the leader of the band was her brother! She had not seen him since being kidnapped years earlier. Though she could have returned to her people, she chose to remain with the expedition. She continued the journey all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

A few years after the expedition, Sacagawea gave birth to a daughter, Lisette. After the birth of Lisette, the remainder of Sacagawea's life is uncertain. Most sources say that she died in 1812, shortly after Lisette's birth. Several months after her death, Clark adopted both of her children. Jean Baptiste was eventually sent to Europe with a German prince, but the fate of Lisette is unknown.

We may not know much about the end of Sacagawea's life. We do know, however, that without her, the Lewis and Clark expedition might not have been so successful. And Sacagawea's part in the story is even more impressive because she made the journey carrying a tiny baby on her back!

Some facts about the Corps of Discovery:

The expedition set out in 1804

Sacagawea received nothing for her help, but her husband was given over five hundred dollars and several hundred acres of land

Sacagawea was honored on a United States coin

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The Lewis and Clark expedition into the American west is one of the most legendary events in United States history. It might not have been so successful, however, if not for the help of a young Shoshone woman named Sacagawea. When Sacagawea was about ten years old, she was kidnapped by Hidatsa Indians and taken ...

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Read Aloud - American Slave, American Hero: York of the Lewis and Clark Expedition

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Updated: August 6, 2020

This statue honoring York stands in Belvedere/Riverfront Plaza in Louisville, Kentucky. It was created by Ed Hamilton and dedicated in October 2003. Photo: Creative Commons/Don Sniegowski

York, Captain William Clark's black servant, who accompanied him on the Corps of Discovery, has the distinction of being the first black man to cross the Continental Divide and the first African American to travel over land to the Pacific Ocean.

While York may have been a slave, he was nevertheless a significant and valuable member of the Corps of Discovery. He's mentioned often in Lewis and Clark's journals, which indicate his duties were much the same as the other Corps members—hunting (which was not allowed by slaves at the time), cooking, and hauling the canoes and keelboat up the Missouri. He was not, as many would assume, dedicated to attending to Clark's needs.

York was of particular interest to the Indians the Corps encountered on their journey. They called him "Big Medicine" and were eager to touch his black skin and feel his coarse hair. At a very young age, York had been given as a slave to Clark by his father. Growing up together, the two became inseparable companions. Clark's respect and fondness for York is evident in his journals.

Between present-day Townsend and Three Forks in Montana are a series of eight islands in the Missouri River, which Clark named after York.

After the expedition was over, York asked Clark for his freedom so that he could be nearer his wife. Initially, Clark said no, but York was persistent, and by 1809 he was sent to be with his wife and later granted his freedom. He is believed to have died of cholera sometime before 1832.

Updated: August 6, 2020

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Updated: August 6, 2020 This statue honoring York stands in Belvedere/Riverfront Plaza in Louisville, Kentucky. It was created by Ed Hamilton and dedicated in October 2003. Photo: Creative Commons/Don Sniegowski York, Captain William Clark's black servant, who accompanied him on the Corps of Discovery, has the distinction of being the first black man to cross the Continental Divide and the first African American to travel over land to the Pacific Ocean.

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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History for kids - Free history network for kids

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Meriwether Lewis

Born: 1774

Birthplace: Virginia

Died: 1809

Most famously known as part of the two-man team, including William Clark and the Native Indian Sacagawea that was assigned by Thomas Jefferson to form the Lewis and Clark expedition for the exploration of the land areas that were west of the Mississippi in 1805.

Lewis was the son of a father of Welsh ancestry and mother of English ancestry. His father died from pneumonia, and his mother and stepfather moved his family from Virginia to Georgia. Lewis had five brothers and sisters, which included two half-siblings from the second marriage of his mother.

His early youth in Georgia was devoted to spending a lot of time outdoors and developing his hunting skills. Once he reached his teenage years, his father's brother made his return to Virginia for formal education with private tutors. Lewis would go to college and graduate in 1793 from what was then called Liberty Hall (currently Washington and Lee University)

Lewis joined the state militia and participated in stopping the Pennsylvania uprising in 1794, where farmers rose up against taxes. This was called the "Whiskey Rebellion." A year later, he met and served with William Clark, who would later be an important partner. After joining the regular army, Lewis had the rank of captain, and President Jefferson asked him to be his private secretary in 1801.

President Jefferson then offered Lewis the opportunity to be the leader of an expedition to head west of the Mississippi to log information about the land, animals, plants, and Native Indians. Lewis recruited his army friend, William Clark, to be on the expedition with him.

They began their expedition in 1804 near St. Louis, Missouri, and traveled throughout the western regions. Lewis, Clark and the crew faced terrible weather, illness, injuries, hunger, exhaustion, and dangerous waters. Lewis maintained a detailed journal on the trip and collected samples of the animals and plants that they came across.

The expedition got a lot of help from many of the Native Indians that they met. They were supplied with supplies during their first winter by the Mandans, and they then added two additional team members: Sacagawea and her husband, Toussaint Charbonneau. Both were interpreters for some of the natives that they encountered.

The group was called the "Corps of Discovery," and by 1805, they had finally reached the Pacific Ocean. With winter coming in the area known today as Oregon, they built Fort Clatsop. By 1806 they began their return trip, and both Lewis and Clark decided to split up in the hopes that they could locate a faster return route.

The return trip for Lewis was bad when they faced an attack by some of the Blackfeet Indians, and then later, one of his own men accidentally shot Lewis in the thigh. The two groups, one led by Lewis and the other by Clark, met at the Missouri River, and all were together for the rest of the trip home. The total miles that the expedition had gone by foot, boat, and horseback were around 8,000 miles.

Upon arriving in Washington, Lewis and the members were met with fanfare and praise. Lewis got his payment as well as 1,600 acres of land and was given the title of the governor of the Louisiana Territory. Although Lewis published his journals, he began to experience drinking problems and ignored his governor's duties.

Lewis was on his way back to Washington, D.C., when he died at Nashville, Tennessee inn. He had never married. His accomplishments went beyond the incredible expedition. Due to his diligence, he logged many plants and animals that were previously unknown to any of the Europeans. Lewis inspired many others to become pioneers and settlers in the west.

Q&A:

What is the name of the farmers uprising that Lewis helped to stop?
Whiskey Rebellion

What job did Thomas Jefferson first give Lewis?
His personal secretary

How many total miles did the Lewis and Clark expedition cover?
Around 8,000 miles

What is the name of the Native Indian that traveled with the Lewis and Clark expedition?
Sacagawea

Besides getting financial pay, what else did Lewis receive for going on the expedition?
1,600 acres of land and the title of governor of the Louisiana Territory

What was the Lewis and Clark expedition called?
Corps of Discovery

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Born: 1774 Birthplace: Virginia Died: 1809 Most famously known as part of the two-man team, including William Clark and the Native Indian Sacagawea that was assigned by Thomas Jefferson to form the Lewis and Clark expedition for the exploration of the land areas that were west of the Mississippi in 1805.

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Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 - October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark. Their mission was to explore the territory of the Louisiana Purchase, establish trade with, and sovereignty over the natives near the Missouri River, and claim the Pacific Northwest and Oregon Country for the United States before European nations. They also collected scientific data, and information on indigenous nations. President Thomas Jefferson appointed him Governor of Upper Louisiana in 1806. He died in 1809.

Life and work

Meriwether Lewis was born August 18, 1774, on Locust Hill Plantation in Albemarle County, Colony of Virginia, in the present-day community of Ivy. He was the son of William Lewis, of Welsh ancestry, and Lucy Meriwether, of English ancestry. After his father died of pneumonia in November 1779, he moved with his mother and stepfather Captain John Marks to Georgia. They settled along the Broad River in the Goosepond Community within the Broad River Valley in Wilkes County (now Oglethorpe County). He was also the great-great-grandson of David Crawford, a prominent Virginia Burgess and militia colonel.

Lewis had no formal education until he was 13 years of age, but during his time in Georgia he enhanced his skills as a hunter and an outdoorsman. He would often venture out in the middle of the night in the dead of winter with only his dog to go hunting. Even at an early age, he was interested in natural history, which would develop into a lifelong passion. His mother taught him how to gather wild herbs for medicinal purposes.

In the Broad River Valley, Lewis first dealt with Native Americans. This was the traditional territory of the Cherokee, who resented encroachment by the colonists. Lewis seems to have been a champion for them among his own people. While in Georgia, he met Eric Parker, who encouraged him to travel. At age 13, Lewis was sent back to Virginia for education by private tutors. His father's older brother Nicholas Lewis became his guardian. One of his tutors was Parson Matthew Maury, an uncle of Matthew Fontaine Maury.

He joined the Virginia militia, and in 1794 he was sent as part of a detachment that was involved in putting down the Whiskey Rebellion. In 1795, Lewis joined the United States Army, commissioned as an ensign-an army rank that was later abolished and was equivalent to a modern-day second lieutenant. By 1800 he rose to captain, and ended his service there in 1801. Among his commanding officers was William Clark, who would later become his companion in the Corps of Discovery.

On April 1, 1801, Lewis was appointed as Secretary to the President by President Thomas Jefferson, whom he knew through Virginia society in Albemarle County. Lewis resided in the presidential mansion, and frequently conversed with various prominent figures in politics, the arts and other circles. He compiled information on the personnel and politics of the United States Army, which had seen an influx of Federalist officers as a result of "midnight appointments" made by outgoing president John Adams in 1801. Meriwether was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 1802.

When Jefferson began to plan for an expedition across the continent, he chose Lewis to lead the expedition. Meriwether Lewis recruited Clark, then aged 33, to share command of the expedition.

Expedition west

After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, Thomas Jefferson wanted to get an accurate sense of the new land and its resources. The president also hoped to find a "direct and practicable water communication across this continent, for the purposes of commerce with Asia". In addition, Jefferson placed special importance on declaring U.S. sovereignty over the Native Americans along the Missouri River.

The two-year exploration by Lewis and Clark was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States; however, Lewis and Clark reached the Pacific 12 years after Sir Alexander Mackenzie had done so overland in Canada. When they left Fort Mandan in April 1805 they were accompanied by the 16-year-old Shoshone woman, Sacagawea, the wife of the French-Canadian fur trader, Toussaint Charbonneau. The Corps of Discovery made contact with many Native Americans in the Trans-Mississippi West and found them accustomed to dealing with European traders and already connected to global markets.

After crossing the Rocky Mountains, the expedition reached the Oregon Country (which was disputed land beyond the Louisiana Purchase) and the Pacific Ocean in November 1805. They returned in 1806, bringing with them an immense amount of information about the region as well as numerous plant and animal specimens. They demonstrated the possibility of overland travel to the Pacific Coast. The success of their journey helped to strengthen the American concept of " manifest destiny" - the idea that the United States was destined to reach all the way across North America from Atlantic to Pacific.

Return and gubernatorial duties

After returning from the expedition, Lewis received a reward of 1,600 acres (6.5 km ²) of land. He also initially made arrangements to publish the Corps of Discovery journals, but had difficulty completing his writing. In 1807, Jefferson appointed him governor of the Louisiana Territory; he settled in St. Louis.

Lewis's record as an administrator is mixed. He published the first laws in the Upper Louisiana Territory, established roads and furthered Jefferson's mission as a strong proponent of the fur trade. He negotiated peace among several quarreling Indian tribes. His duty to enforce Indian treaties was to protect the western Indian lands from encroachment, which was opposed by the rush of settlers looking to open new lands for settlements. But due to his quarreling with local political leaders, some historians have argued that Lewis was a poor administrator.

That view has been reconsidered in recent biographies. Lewis's primary quarrels were with his territorial secretary Frederick Bates. Bates was accused of undermining Lewis to seek Lewis's dismissal and his own appointment as governor. Because of the slow-moving mail system, former president Jefferson and Lewis's superiors in Washington got the impression that Lewis did not adequately keep in touch with them.

Bates wrote letters to Lewis's superiors accusing Lewis of profiting from a mission to return a Mandan chief to his tribe. Because of Bates' accusation, the War Department refused to reimburse Lewis for a large sum he personally advanced for the mission. When Lewis's creditors heard that Lewis would not be reimbursed for the expenses, they called Lewis's notes, forcing him to liquidate his assets, including land he was granted for the Lewis and Clark Expedition. One of the primary reasons Lewis set out for Washington on this final trip was to clear up questions raised by Bates and to seek a reimbursement of the money he had advanced for the territorial government.

The U.S. government finally reimbursed the expenses to Lewis's estate two years after his death.

Freemasonry

Lewis was a Freemason, initiated, passed and raised in the "Door To Virtue Lodge No. 44" in Albemarle, Virginia, between 1796 and 1797. On August 2, 1808, Lewis and several of his acquaintances submitted a petition to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania requesting dispensation to establish a lodge in St. Louis. Lewis was nominated and recommended to serve as the first Master of the proposed Lodge, which was warranted as Lodge No. 111 on September 16, 1808.

Lewis and slavery

Although Lewis attempted to supervise enslaved people while running his mother's plantation before the westward expedition, he left that post and had no valet during the expedition, unlike William Clark, who brought his slave York. Lewis made assignments to York but allowed Clark to supervise him; Lewis also granted York and Sacagawea votes during expedition meetings. Later, Lewis hired a free African-American man as his valet, John Pernia. Pernia accompanied Lewis during his final journey, although his wages were considerably in arrears. After Lewis's death, Pernia continued to Monticello and asked Jefferson to pay the $240 owed him, but was refused.

On September 3, 1809, Lewis set out for Washington, D.C. He hoped to resolve issues regarding the denied payment of drafts he had drawn against the War Department while serving as governor of the Upper Louisiana Territory, leaving him in potentially ruinous debt. Lewis carried his journals with him for delivery to his publisher. He intended to travel to Washington by ship from New Orleans, but changed his plans while floating down the Mississippi River from St. Louis. He disembarked and decided instead to make an overland journey via the Natchez Trace and then east to Washington (the Natchez Trace was the old pioneer road between Natchez, Mississippi, and Nashville, Tennessee). Robbers preyed on travelers on that road and sometimes killed their victims.

Circumstances

According to a lost letter from October 19, 1809, to Thomas Jefferson, Lewis stopped at an inn on the Natchez Trace called Grinder's Stand, about 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Nashville on October 10. After dinner, he retired to his one-room cabin. In the predawn hours of October 11, the innkeeper's wife (Priscilla Griner) heard gunshots. Servants found Lewis badly injured. He died shortly after sunrise.

Lewis was buried near present-day Hohenwald, Tennessee, near his place of death. His grave was located about 200 yards from Grinder's Stand, alongside the Natchez Trace (that section of the 1801 Natchez Trace was built by the U.S. Army under the direction of Lewis's mentor Thomas Jefferson, during Lewis's lifetime).

At first, the grave was unmarked. Alexander Wilson, an ornithologist and friend of Lewis who visited the grave in May 1810 during a trip to New Orleans to sell his drawings, wrote that he gave the innkeeper Robert Griner money to erect a fence around the grave to protect it from animals.

The State of Tennessee erected a monument over Lewis's grave in 1848. Lemuel Kirby, a stonemason from Columbia, Tennessee, chose the design of a broken column, commonly used at the time to symbolize a life cut short.

An iron fence erected around the base of the monument was partially dismantled during the Civil War by Confederate detachments under General John Bell Hood marching from Shiloh toward Franklin; they forged the iron into horseshoes.

A September 1905 article in Everybody's Magazine called attention to Lewis's abandoned and overgrown grave. A county road worker, Teen Cothran, took the initiative to open a road to the cemetery. Thereafter, a local Tennessee Meriwether Lewis Monument Committee was soon formed to push for restoring Lewis's gravesite. In 1925, in response to the committee's work, President Calvin Coolidge designated Lewis's grave as the fifth National Monument in the South.

In 2009, the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation organized a commemoration for Lewis in conjunction with their 41st annual meeting from October 3-7, 2009. It included the first national memorial service at his grave site. On October 7, 2009, near the 200th anniversary of Lewis's death, about 2,500 people (National Park Service estimate) from more than 25 states gathered at his grave to acknowledge Lewis's life and achievements. Speakers included William Clark's descendant Peyton "Bud" Clark, Lewis's collateral descendants Howell Bowen and Tom McSwain, and Stephanie Ambrose Tubbs (daughter of Stephen Ambrose, who wrote Undaunted Courage, an award-winning book about the Lewis and Clark Expedition). A bronze bust of Lewis was dedicated at the Natchez Trace Parkway for a planned visitor center at the gravesite. The District of Columbia and governors of 20 states associated with the Lewis and Clark Trail sent flags flown over state capital buildings to be carried to Lewis's grave by residents of the states, acknowledging the significance of Lewis's contribution in the creation of their states.

The 2009 ceremony at Lewis's grave was the final bicentennial event honoring the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Re-enactors from the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial participated, and official attendees included representatives from Jefferson's Monticello. Lewis and Clark descendants and family members, along with representatives of St. Louis Lodge #1, past presidents of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation, and the Daughters of the American Revolution, carried wreaths and led a formal procession to Lewis's grave. Samples of plants which Lewis discovered on the expedition were brought from the Trail states and laid on his grave. The U.S. Army was represented by the 101st Airborne Infantry Band and its Army chaplain. The National Park Service announced that it would rehabilitate the site.

For many years, Lewis's legacy was overlooked and inaccurately assessed. Yet his contributions to science, the exploration of the Western U.S., and the lore of great world explorers, are considered incalculable.

Jefferson wrote that Lewis had a "luminous and discriminating intellect". William Clark's first son Meriwether Lewis Clark was named after Lewis; the senior Meriwether Clark passed the name on to his son, Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr.

Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant (de facto co-captain and posthumously, officially promoted to captain in advance of the bicentennial) William Clark commanded the Corps of Discovery to map the course of the Missouri River to its source and the Pacific Northwest overland and water routes to and from the mouth of the Columbia River. They were honored with a 3-cent stamp July 24, 1954 on the 150th anniversary. The 1803 Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the United States. Lewis and Clark described and sketched its flora and fauna and described the native inhabitants they encountered before returning to St. Louis in 1806.

Both Lewis and Clark appear on the gold Lewis and Clark Exposition dollars minted for the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition. Among the early United States commemorative coins, they were produced in both 1904 and 1905 and survive in relatively small numbers.

Postage stamps

The Lewis and Clark Expedition was celebrated on May 14, 2004, the 200th anniversary of its outset, by depicting the two on a hilltop outlook: two companion 37-cent USPS stamps showed portraits of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. A special 32-page booklet accompanied the issue in eleven cities along the route taken by the Corps of Discovery. An image of the stamp can be found on Arago online at the link in the footnote.

Flora and fauna

The plant genus (family Portulacaceae), popular in rock gardens and which includes the bitterroot ( Lewisia rediviva), the state flower of Montana, is named after Lewis, as is Lewis's woodpecker ( Melanerpes lewis) and a subspecies of the cutthroat trout, the westslope cutthroat trout ( Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi). Also named after him in 1999, is Lewisiopsis tweedyi which is a flowering plant and sole species in genus Lewisiopsis (in the family Montiaceae). In 2004, the American elm cultivar Ulmus americana 'Lewis & Clark' (selling name Prairie Expedition) was released by North Dakota State University Research Foundation in commemoration of the Lewis & Clark expedition's bicentenary; the tree has a resistance to Dutch elm disease.

Geographic names

Geographic names that honor him include:

Lewis County, Kentucky

Lewis County, Tennessee

Lewis County, Missouri

Lewis County, Idaho

Lewis County, Washington

Lewisburg, Tennessee

Lewiston, Idaho

the U.S. Army fort Fort Lewis, Washington, the home of the US Army 1st Corps (I Corps)

Lewis and Clark County, Montana, the home of the capital city, Helena

Lewis and Clark Pass (Montana)

Lewis and Clark National Forest

Lewistown, Montana

the Lewis Range of Montana's Glacier National Park

Lewis Avenue in Billings, Montana

Gates of the Mountains Wilderness, a day use campground north of Helena, Montana's Meriwether Picnic site

Lewis and Clark Caverns, a cave between Three Forks and Whitehall, Montana

Seaside, Oregon has numerous landmarks, museums, and a "Lewis and Clark Avenue" devoted to both of the explorers. This small city is also known as being the end of their journey to the Pacific Coast.

Fort Clatsop, Oregon was the encampment of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in the Oregon Country near the mouth of the Columbia River during the winter of 1805-1806. Located along the Lewis and Clark River at the north end of the Clatsop Plains approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) southwest of Astoria, the fort was the last encampment of the Corps of Discovery, before embarking on their return trip east to St. Louis. An exceptional reproduction of the fort and museum now resides on the site. See more ar the Wikipedia article titled"Fort Clatsop".

Lewis and Clark State Park, a state park located in Williams County, North Dakota near Williston which is a part of the North Dakota Parks and Recreation Department system.

Three U.S. Navy vessels have been named in honor of Lewis: the Liberty ship SS Meriwether Lewis, the Polaris armed nuclear submarine USS Lewis and Clark and the supply ship USNS Lewis and Clark.

Academic institutions

Lewis & Clark College, Portland, Oregon, was named for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

Lewis-Clark State College, Lewiston, Idaho, was named for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

Lewis and Clark Community College, Godfrey, Illinois, was named for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The campus lies about 11 miles upstream from the Corps of Discovery's departure point.

Lewis & Clark High School, Spokane, Washington, was named for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

Meriwether Lewis Elementary School, Albemarle County, Virginia was named for Meriwether Lewis, who was born nearby. The school board voted to rename the school in early 2023, despite 85% of community members voting to retain the name.

Meriwether Lewis Elementary School, Portland, Oregon was named for Meriwether Lewis.

Lewis and Clark Elementary School, Missoula, Montana was named for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.

Halls of fame

In 1965, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

Descendants

The Arquette acting family claims to be descended from Meriwether Lewis.

In Spanish: Meriwether Lewis para niños

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On a gloomy December afternoon in 1803, a boat crept along the banks of the Mississippi River and landed at the mouth of the Wood River in what is now the state of Illinois. A group of men climbed out and began to set up camp under a dark canopy of oak trees. Suddenly a violent storm moved in, pelting the area with snow and hail.

The men didn't turn back though. Instead, they hunkered down and spent the next five months here preparing for the trip they were about to embark on,in which poor weather would be one of the many dangers they'd face.

Among these men were Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, co-leaders of an expedition tasked with exploring land that the United States had recently acquired. Their trip would turn into an epic 8,000-mile-long trek-and the first big step in the United States' westward expansion.

LET'S MAKE A DEAL

When Thomas Jefferson became the third president of the United States in 1801, the country basically stopped at the Mississippi River. France controlled much of the land to the west of this waterway.

President Jefferson wanted to acquire the Port of New Orleans, in what is now the state of Louisiana, from the French. Its prime location made it a key spot for trade. In 1803, Jefferson made what's known as one of the greatest real estate deals in history: the Louisiana Purchase.

After negotiations, France agreed to sell the entire city of New Orleans, which included the port, to the United States for $10 million; they threw in the rest of the territory they owned for an additional $5 million. The agreement-which gave the United States approximately 828,000 square miles of land-almost doubled the size of the nearly 30-year-old nation.

The United States only paid about three cents an acre for the land, which stretched from the Mississippi River in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west and from the Gulf of Mexico in the south to the Canadian border in the north. Spain still owned much of the southwestern part of what's now the United States, stretching from the area that would become Texas to present-day California.

Purchasing this enormous amount of land was one thing, but exploring it was another. Jefferson wanted to plan an expedition to investigate the territory. He called the proposed mission the Voyage of Discovery and began assembling a team of explorers called the Corps (KOR) of Discovery. The president chose Captain Meriwether Lewis and Captain William Clark to lead the expedition. Lewis, President Jefferson's personal secretary, was an officer in the United States Army and spoke several Native American languages. Lewis recommended Clark-a retired officer who had served alongside him in the Army-as the expedition's co-leader.

WAY OUT WEST

In the spring of 1804, Lewis, Clark, and dozens of other men left St. Louis, Missouri, by boat. They traveled westward through what is now Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota.

In November they reached Knife River Village in present-day North Dakota. There they met a young Shoshone Native American woman called Sacagawea (Sa-kuh-juh-WEE-uh) and her fur-trader husband, Toussaint Charbonneau (Too-SAHNT SHAR-bon-oh). The couple joined the expedition as interpreters, translating the language of the local tribes for Lewis and Clark's men.

Sacagawea didn't just serve as an interpreter during the trip, however. She helped Lewis and Clark's men obtain essential supplies and horses, identified edible plants and herbs, and prevented hostile relations with other tribes simply by being with the group-all while carrying her newborn baby on her back.

After meeting Sacagawea and her husband, the Corps traveled west from North Dakota, 15 to 20 miles a day on foot and by boat, toward the mountains. Day after day, the exhausted, freezing team braved rough rivers and perilous peaks, getting by on very little food. They wouldn't see the Pacific Ocean until November 1805-over a year after they first left Missouri.

COMING HOME

After a long winter waiting out the bad weather, the Corps was able to start making their way back east in March 1806. After returning Sacagawea and her husband to North Dakota, the remainder of the Corps arrived back in Missouri in late September, more than two years after they started their expedition.

Lewis and Clark's team mapped uncharted land, rivers, and mountains. They brought back journals filled with details about Native American tribes and scientific notes about plants and animals they'd never seen before. They also brought back stories-tales that made other Americans dream about heading west.

Many Americans did more than dream. The great westward expansion was about to begin.

Text adapted from The Journals of Lewis and Clark; The Mississippi and the Making of a Nation: From the Louisiana Purchase to Today; and Sacagawea

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How Lewis and Clark-along with a Native American guide, Sacagawea-explored the newly expanded United States

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Kids.Net.Au - Encyclopedia > Meriwether Lewis

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Kids.Net.Au - Encyclopedia > Meriwether Lewis

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Lewis and Clark for Kids | Learn about the Louis and Clark expedition and the Louisiana Purchase

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The History of the Lewis and Clark Expedition!

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History for kids - Free history network for kids

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William Clark

Born: 1770

Birthplace: Virginia

Died: 1838

William Clark is most noted for being part of the famous Lewis and Clark expedition of the 1800s.

This group explored all of the land west of the Mississippi River and was responsible for returning to Thomas Jefferson with information, land descriptions, and a catalog of plants, animals, and Natives in the vast expanse.

The journey took the team and their crew over two years, and they covered and mapped around 8,000 miles by foot, boat, and horseback.

William Clark was born in 1770 in Virginia to parents who were both of English and Scottish ancestry. Clark had a large family with ten brothers and sisters. His brothers served in the American Revolutionary War. Clark was 19 when he joined the military, and it was during this time that he met and became friends with Meriwether Lewis in 1795. Clark had to leave the army the next year to take care of his family's estate.

In 1803, Lewis had been offered the chance to lead an expedition across the west, and he sent his friend Clark a letter asking him if he wanted to share the command. Lewis was an experienced outdoorsman, and Clark was an experienced soldier as well as a mapmaker. Along with a few other members, the two set off in St. Louis, Missouri, to begin the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

The journey was incredibly treacherous as they experienced exhaustion, bad weather, hunger, and horrible never-before-seen terrain. They met a number of Native Indians on their trip and were helped out by the Mandan village their first winter. They added a Shoshone Indian named Sacagawea and her husband Toussaint Charbonneau to act as interpreters.

The group on the expedition was called the "Corps of Discovery," and in 1805, they finally arrived at the Pacific Coast in what is known today as Oregon. They had a rough winter ahead of them, so they decided to build a fort for protection. They called it Fort Clatsop, and when winter was over, they started preparations for their return trip. In July, Lewis and Clark split up to see if they could find a faster route back.

Clark took some of the group with him to explore along the Yellowstone River. When Clark arrived at a rock formation he decided to name it after Sacagawea's son and called it "Pompy's Tower" This rock is in what is known today as Billings, Montana. The rock has the only trace that Clark was ever there with a carving on it that says "W Clark July 25, 1806."

Lewis and Clark met up at the Missouri River, and it took them a month to get to St. Louis. The entire trip had taken them two years, covering over 8,000 miles. When they reached Washington, they were met with celebrations and called national heroes. Clark was appointed as the Indian Affairs agent in the west and was given the military title of brigadier general of the militia.

In 1808 Clark married Julia Hancock. In addition to his own family, he took care of Sacagawea's children after she had died in 1812. He served as the Missouri governor for seven years, and when it became an official state, he ran for the governor's office and lost. His work with Indian affairs was hailed, and he was known for his fairness and good treatment of Native Indians.

Clark died on September 1, 1838, in St. Louis, Missouri. The maps that he was responsible for drawing while he was on the expedition assisted the U.S. government and other expedition in understanding the American West geography. Both he and Lewis kept journals that offered information into the west's lands, animal life, and the Native peoples.

Q&A:

Where did Clark first meet Meriwether Lewis?
In the military

How did Lewis invite William Clark to be part of the westward expedition?
In a letter

What was the name of the Shoshone Indian that Lewis and Clark had on their trip as a translator?
Sacagawea

What talent did Clark have that was of great benefit for the expedition?
Mapmaker

What job was Clark given after his return from the expedition?
Indian Affairs agent in the west

What is the only land-based physical proof of the Lewis and Clark expedition?
A carving on a rock in Billings, Montana

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Born: 1770 Birthplace: Virginia Died: 1838 William Clark is most noted for being part of the famous Lewis and Clark expedition of the 1800s.

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Clark was best known early in his life as the younger brother of Revolutionary War hero

William Clark William George Rogers Clark. He served in the Virginia militia in the 1770s, where he met Meriwether Lewis.
Clark was a mapmaker. He carried with him a map of North American and drew on it as the journey progressed. He also took measurements of river miles, speed, and depth. He labeled mountains, bluffs, islands, creeks and rivers. In doing so, he created a master map that is a historical marvel.

He and Lewis shared the duties of command of the expedition. On the way back, they split up. Clark and several men went southeast, to the Yellowstone River, and followed it to the Missouri. Lewis took Sacagawea and several men and went northeast. They met again in the Dakota Territory, where they had first met Sacagawea.

They returned to St. Louis on Sept. 22, 1806. In the more than two years of their journey, they had covered 8,000 miles and discovered 173 new plants and 122 species and subspecies of animals.

The following year, Clark married Julia Hancock. They had five children, the first son of whom was named Meriwether Lewis Clark.

In 1813, he became governor of the Missouri Territory and Superintendent of Indian Affairs. In 1820, his wife died. The following year, he married again. They had two children.

Clark died in 1838, a famous man.

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William Clark was a co-leader of the Corps of Discvoery, which explored the Louisiana Territory and the West.

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Updated: August 6, 2020

Portrait of William Clark by Charles Willson Peale, 1810

Almost immediately after his appointment by President Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis wrote a letter to his longtime friend William Clark asking him to be the expedition's co-leader.

Clark was four years older than Lewis and a seasoned frontiersman. Like Lewis, Clark was also from Virginia. Clark had spent a good deal of his life in the Ohio and Kentucky wilderness where he gained an understanding of and appreciation for Indians.

Clark was less formally educated than Lewis, but his practical experience in the woods was exactly what Lewis was looking for. And he was an experienced boatman and navigator as well.

The two met when Lewis served under Clark in the Army. The young officers saw action during the Indian Campaigns in the Ohio Valley some eight years before they shoved off the sandy shore of the Missouri River on May 14, 1804 and headed upstream.

Clark's signature at Pompeys Pillar, 1806

In the field, the Lewis and Clark complemented each other in nearly every way. Clark's easygoing, practical manner balanced Lewis' somewhat moody and inflexible personality. Their journals never mention any conflict between the two.

Shortly after returning safe and sound to St. Louis, Clark married his long-time sweetheart Judith Hancock. They continued to live in St. Louis where Jefferson appointed Clark the U.S. Superintendent of Indian Affairs.

Clark named his first son Meriwether Lewis after his friend. He continued as an unofficial ambassador to West's first people. Clark's compassion was known throughout the various tribes, and he was well respected among the Indians, who called him their "red-headed chief." Clark died of natural causes at age 68 at the home of his oldest son.

Updated: August 6, 2020

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Updated: August 6, 2020 Portrait of William Clark by Charles Willson Peale, 1810 Almost immediately after his appointment by President Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis wrote a letter to his longtime friend William Clark asking him to be the expedition's co-leader. Clark was four years older than Lewis and a seasoned frontiersman.

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The History of the Lewis and Clark Expedition!

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Lewis and Clark for Kids | Learn about the Louis and Clark expedition and the Louisiana Purchase

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(1770?-before 1832). Enslaved from birth, York was owned by American frontiersman and explorer William Clark. Clark brought him along on the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-06. York was the only African American member of the expedition. He became the first Black man north of Mexico to travel over land to the Pacific Ocean.

York was born about 1770, probably on the Clark tobacco plantation in Caroline county, Virginia. His parents were enslaved people of the Clark family from birth. As a youngster York was William Clark's companion and when he was older his manservant. When the Clarks relocated to Louisville, Kentucky, in 1785, York and several other enslaved people went with the family. Clark became the owner of York and the others upon his father's death in 1799. At some point York married, and he may have had a family.

In 1803 Meriwether Lewis invited Clark to help lead an expedition through uncharted American territory west to the Pacific Ocean. The party began the journey in May 1804. Clark brought York along. According to expedition journals, York performed the same tasks as the other members. He did manual labor, such as building shelters and carrying supplies. He also was a caregiver when anyone grew ill. Soon he had more responsibilities, such as scouting trails and hunting. When the expedition members were deciding where to spend the winter of 1805-06, York got an equal vote. Several of the Native American tribes that the expedition encountered were fascinated by his dark skin, which they had never seen before. At the end of the expedition, Congress rewarded the white members of the party with double pay and grants of public land. As an enslaved person, however, York received no pay for his services.

After the expedition Clark married and moved to St. Louis in Louisiana Territory (later Missouri Territory). York wished to return to his wife, who was also enslaved but living with her owner in Kentucky. He asked for his freedom, but Clark refused. This caused tension between the two men, and eventually Clark sent York to work for another slave owner in Louisville. Clark finally gave York his freedom about 1815. At that time Clark helped him get started in a freight-hauling business operating in Tennessee and Kentucky. However, the business eventually failed. According to Clark, York died of cholera in Tennessee before 1832.

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(1770?-before 1832). Enslaved from birth, York was owned by American frontiersman and explorer William Clark. Clark brought him along on the Lewis and Clark Expedition of...