The Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804—1806 is arguably one of the most important moments in the creation of the superpower known as the United States of America. Lewis and Clark’s expeditions of the Louisiana Territory and western territories are highly well-known and are considered to be the reason for the growth in American populace in all areas west of the Mississippi River. If it weren’t for President Thomas Jefferson’s decision to buy the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon Bonaparte and to support the expeditions of the land, it is possible that migration in the western regions of the North American continent would be fairly different than it had already transpired. The Lewis and Clark Expeditions mainly saw the rise of American dominance …show more content…
Throughout 1803, Jefferson had talked with Meriwether Lewis, a young army veteran and his private secretary, about the Louisiana Territory. Jefferson wanted Lewis to lead a group of people out into the west to explore as much land as he could. Lewis, an adventurer at heart, accepted Jefferson’s request, and in early 1804, went to Philadelphia to recruit the men he wanted to accompany him on his journey. Among the men that were recruited was William Clark, an old friend of Lewis and the man that would share command of the band of explorers with Lewis. Together, Lewis and Clark decided to call their group “The Corps of Discovery.” Altogether, Lewis managed to recruit up to fifty men to join him in his journey into the west. “While in Philadelphia, Lewis also received a letter from the President with detailed instructions for the upcoming expedition: ‘The object of your mission is to explore the Missouri River, and such principal stream of it, as, by it’s course and communication with the waters of the Pacific Ocean…may offer the most direct and practicable water communication across this continent for the purposes of commerce’” (Snyder 16). With this letter, The Corps of Discovery were taken from Philadelphia to St. Louis, where they would be dropped off to begin their search of the land west of the Mississippi …show more content…
Before The Corps of Discovery’s journeys in the west, no country, not even France or Spain who previously owned the land, had any idea what exactly was in the Louisiana Territory. Everyone knew that new land, resources, and people awaited them, but no one was really sure of the certainties. Thanks to The Corps of Discovery, the western frontier was finally mapped and completed documented in every way possible. This would lead to the migration of Americans from the eastern seaboard to the Mid-West, the Rocky Mountains, and the western seaboard. Cities such as San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, and Kansas City slowly started to develop throughout the west. The migration of Americans to the west was a good thing for innovation and building up the United States as a country, but the Native Americans who lived in these lands were changed forever. Any Native Americans found in lands where United States citizens wanted land was immediately excavated from their land and brought to an Indian reservation of some kind. Overtime though, these Indian reservations began to limit due to the rising population in Americans during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. “They [Lewis and Clark] provided valuable information about the topography, the biological sciences, the ecology, and ethnic and linguistic studies of the American Indian. The mysteries of
Lewis and Clark had a profound impact on the historical development of the United States, expanding the nation's understanding of its geography, and shaping the country's connection with Native Americans. The Geography of the Louisiana Purchase led to the development of many things. After realizing that the Northwest Passage didn’t exist, they
It kindled westward expansion, started the disposition of American Indians and changed nature. It was more than removal of Indians, but becoming familiar with this new purchase of land. It was a turning point from the “Euro-American” perspective. Previous to the Exhibition the united states was only 17 states and 4 territories. During the adventure Clark drew maps of the west and Lewis recorded details about mammals and plants they encountered.
On May 14, 1804 William Clark and his four dozen men left their St. Louis camp to meet with Meriwether Lewis. The men met going upstream the Missouri river on May 20, 1804 starting the Lewis and Clark expedition. Clark would stay aboard the keelboat to chart the course and make maps when Lewis went to study the different rock formations, soil, animals, and plants on land. They tried to make camp along the river when they could and used night guards in case they encountered any Indians. Lewis and Clark, along with their men, traveled more than 600 miles up the Missouri by the end of July.
(59). Living with Jefferson the two learn of the British explorer Alexander Mackenzie’s trip to the pacific by land across Canada. Later that year Jefferson would send an expedition of his own, Meriwether Lewis being the head of it. Lewis recruits a personal friend, William Clark, to be second on the team known as the Corps of Discovery.
Both of them were involved in the corps of discovery. On June 20, 1803 the same year when the Louisiana purchase happened Thomas Jefferson asked Lewis to lead an expedition from the Mississippi to the west coast he chose William Clark to go on the expedition as his partner. Throughout their journey Lewis and Clark would find ways to make the fur trade more successful, find a water route across the states to travel on, and find more about the animals on the plains. They even found some new animals and discovered and studied land on their expedition. They learned more about the Indians in the west and how they lived there.
After this, America’s interest were provoked when Alexander Mackenzie reached the beyond the Rockies all the way till the Pacific (Innis 5). This led to the appreciation of the value of the western area by the United States and with their influence it lead it to the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 (Innis 5). When territory along this area started to be acquired in bringing in more interests than it allowed for establishments of posts and the beginnings of settlement near the lakes and streams where furs could be collected; food and fish could be acquired; agriculture produce could be obtained more efficiently (Innis
It was on February 28, 1803 that President Thomas Jefferson won Congressional approval for the expedition of the Western lands that would become the adventures of Merriwether Lewis and William Clark.(1) A budget of $2,500 was allotted for the expedition of the group who were dubbed “The Corps of Discovery” by Jefferson. Jefferson was extremely interested in the western lands, so much so that his personal library at his home, Monticello, had more books on the subject than any other library in the world. (2) The group were to be led by Jefferson’s secretary, Merriwether Lewis, and Lewis’ friend William Clark.
Lewis served as Jefferson’s private secretary for about a year and a half when Jefferson asked Lewis to lead the expedition through the Louisiana Territory, Lewis gladly accepted and asked William Clark to serve as co-captain whom also accepted (Harper). Together Lewis and Clark gathered over thirty men and created The Corps of Discovery (Harper). Lewis and Clark along with The Corps of Discovery successfully Navigated and Documented the Louisiana Territory (Harper). After the expedition Jefferson made Lewis the governor of the Louisiana Territory (Harper). During his time as governor Lewis did many things, he oversaw the creation of the Territory of Arkansas, and he ordered for the creation of a road connecting St. Louis and New Madrid, Missouri (Harper).
Have you ever wondered about all of the important contributions that The Corps of Discovery made towards the United States? The Corps of Discovery were led by two important people Lewis and Clark. Throughout the journey Lewis and Clark made several great achievements that include: mapping the west, befriending the indians, and valuing cooperation. The Corps of Discovery led by Lewis and Clark was held to explore the Louisiana Purchase.
The Lewis and Clark expedition was the first America expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States which making their way westward through the continental divide to Pacific Coast. The expedition was commissioned shortly after the Louisiana purchase and was led by Jefferson and the journey lasted from May 1804 to September 1806. The purpose of the expedition was to explore and map newly acquired territory and find a practical route across the Western had of the continent and establish an American presence in the territory before Britain and European powers tried to claim
Envisaging the West: Thomas Jefferson and the Roots of Lewis and Clark." Envisaging the West: Thomas Jefferson and the Roots of Lewis and Clark. Ed. Douglas Seefeldt. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.
The Corps of Discovery was a group of the United States' army that was specifically opted for exploration. The leaders of this branch consisted of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. Thomas Jefferson started this association with aim to receive knowledge of the newly purchased Louisiana Purchase and establish relationships with the Native Americans of the region. The president also wanted to start stacking U.S presence in the Northwest and Oregon territory. The party of 45 men set out on May 14th, 1804 after Lewis and Clark had separated to gather supplies and train the participates.
President Thomas Jefferson commissioned the Corps of Discovery to have the Lewis and Clark expedition find a waterway that could connect the United States for transportation because he had aspirations to expand to the Pacific and Northwest making the expedition important to his agenda for the United States. (The Corp of Discovery, 2016). Another reason for the important expedition was to create a relationship with the American Indians, and the American fur trade, while learning the North American topography and geography of the land which was also important to the exploration (Corps of Discover, 2016). Thomas Jefferson was important to the Lewis and Clark expedition because he organized the journey, sought funding and made Lewis and Clark head
P1 Did you know the westward expansion impacted the US greatly in many positive and negative ways? The Louisiana Purchase, Lewis, and Clark, Trail of Tears, Commercial Agriculture, Mexican American war, And relationships between North and South all made it possible for the US to grow 4x its original size. This paper will teach you all about manifest destiny and how it happened. P2 The Louisiana Purchase had a huge impact on the U.S because it double the size of the U.S.
Clark responded saying that he would join Lewis. Along with Lewis and Clark there were thirty to forty men who joined. These men ranged from soldiers to average men. The journey started at present day St. Louis. They traveled 3,700 miles in non-motorized boats, horseback, and on foot over a span of two years, four months, and ten days.