One of the two captains of this expedition was named Meriwether Lewis. Lewis was born in Albemarle County, Virginia, on August 18, 1774. He was the second child of William and Lucy Meriwether. His father, William Meriwether, had served as a lieutenant in the Continental Army. He had died in November 1779 when his horse fell into an icy stream while he was making his way home. His mother remarried another officer, Captain John Marks, six months after. They raised their children while managing a 1,000-acre plantation. In 1794, Lewi joined the US Army where he served six years in the Frontier Army. In early 1801, Lewis was appointed by President Jefferson to be his personal secretary. Lewis was a childhood protege of Jefferson’s, and they renewed their bond years later while Lewis was on army duty in Charlottesville, Virginia.

     In September 1809, after much difficulty in trying to mediate between the Natives and commercial interests, Lewis fled St. Louis for Washington to plead his case before the new administration. He caught a riverboat to Memphis, during which his feelings of melancholy were enhanced by his continued drinking, and he twice attempted to take his own life. Later, while staying in a roadhouse along the Natchez Trace, Lewis took his own life by shooting himself first in the forehead then in the breast. He was buried next to the tavern, and today the site is marked by a monument that was erected in his honor in 1846.


                                                                            Private
     William Bratton was enlisted as a member of the expedition by Captain William Clark, October 20, 1803, at Clarksville, Indiana Territory. He was born July 27, 1778, in Augusta County, Virginia. Bratton’s family migrated to Kentucky about 1790, qualifying him as one of the “Nine young men from Kentucky.” Bratton, considered by Clark to be one of “the best young woodsmen & Hunters in this part of the Country,” was apprenticed as a blacksmith at an early age. He also became an excellent gunsmith. All of these qualities made him a very useful man in the Corps.

     Bratton’s health began to deteriorate during the Corps’ stay at Fort Clatsop from December 1805 through March 1806. Aside from surviving outbreaks of influenza and the maddening presence of fleas, Bratton suffered extreme lower back pains, which stayed with him for the remainder of the journey home. By the time the Corps reached the Great Falls of the Columbia, near modern The Dalles, Oregon, in April, 1806, Bratton was semi-paralyzed. He was the only member to ride horseback while all the others walked, leading pack horses. When the Corps reached the Nez Perce tribal lands in May 1806, Bratton was treated in a sweat house. There, he received a sweat bath treatment similar to the kind used by most tribes in North America at that time. Inside, water was poured over heated rocks to produce steam, and Bratton was given copious amounts of strong mint tea to drink. Later, he was removed twice from the sweat house to be dunked in cold water. This treatment was most effective in easing Bratton’s suffering. He walked with little pain afterwards.


                                                                       Non-Military
     

One non-military member of the Corp is Sacagawea. Sacagawea was the wife of Toussaint Charbonneau and has a baby boy named Jean Baptiste. When she was 12 Sacagawea was kidnapped and sold as a slave to Toussaint. Lewis and Clark found her village and they joined them on their journey. Sacagawea became one of most important people on their exploration. 

     Sacagawea was a translator for the men, a symbol of peace, a guide for what you can and can’t eat or touch. Lewis and Clark's research almost was destroyed by a river if Sacagawea never saved their work. During this journey she traveled with thirty three white men and an infant child, which has never been done before. Knowing that Sacagawea kept these men safe, traveled with bravery, and brought hope to many men and women today. Sacagawea was a good member for the Corps of Discovery because there would have been a lot less men coming home if she was never there. 

 Pink Clarkia

Another plant that the explorers had come across was a purple botanical specimen. It was named after Clark, the pink Clarkia pulchella, which is translated to pink fairies. They also found another type of this species called Philadelphus lewisii, which is translated to Lewis's mock orange, and the state flower of Idaho. These flowers grow in large groups together and normally have 4-5 petals for each flower. 

                                                               Grizzly Bears
          One type of animals that Lewis and Clark discovered was a grizzly bear. Lewis a Clark were fascinated by how tough its skin was and that several bullets wouldn’t kill the animal. These men both implied that grizzly bears were the kings of the western plains. Grizzly bears can come in black or brown fur with a huge tough figure. These beasts were very unusual to Lewis and Clark, both men were interested in the fact these bears wouldn’t die after one shot. A benefit that these bears had on Americans, is that they can help spread seeds throughout the forest from their diet.



Prairie Dog                                                           Another type of animal that the explorers had come across in their journey was the prarie dog. Prairie dogs are small and look like a cross between a dog and a squirrel or chipmunk. They have a rodent body shape, but is slightly bigger than normal rodents. They look similar to gophers or smaller beavers as well. Most of them have a light brown color with a flat tail and a light stomach. 

          Another one of the places the corps stopped at along their journey was Beaverhead Rock. It is located near Dillon, Mt and it's coordinates are 45.3854° N, 112.4585° W. This place is a very large rock that was, like Spring Mound, very hot. With Beaverhead Rock as their landmark, the explorers were confident they would soon find the Shoshone Indians. Lewis, Drouillard, John Shields and Hugh McNeal set out for Beaverhead Rock over land on August 9, 1805, to find the Shoshones while Clark and the rest of the men continued down the river. Contact between the Americans and Shoshone Indians was made three days later when Lewis stumbled upon an old Shoshone woman and two teenage girls.