Lewis and Clark at the Confluence Point

Lewis and Clark at the Confluence Point. . , Preparation for Departure, The crew of the Lewis and Clark Expedition spent five months (Dec. 12, 1803 to May 14, 1804) in winter camp at the mouth of Wood River. The five months gave the captains time to ready the boats, purchase supplies and prepare the men of the Corps of Discovery for a long and grueling trip. Capt. William Clark had the keelboat retrofitted with lockers, a cannon mounted on a swivel, and two swivel blunderbusses in anticipation of potential hostilities with upriver Indian nations. A single jointed mast was fitted to the boat as well. Lewis was often away in St. Louis, gathering maps of the Missouri River and information about the Indian tribes the expedition could expect to meet as they journeyed up the river. Clark's field notes are full of lists of supplies that would be needed. Lewis and Clark also selected the permanent party that would make the trek to the Pacific. , During this cold winter, the men built wooden cabins, although the exact design of the camp is not known (only rough sketches exist in Clark's field notes). The men hunted and practiced their marksmanship. Clark, meanwhile attempted to calculate how long the journey would last, assuming a pace of 10 or 12 miles per day, but he underestimated the difficulty of crossing the Rocky Mountains. The captains relied on maps that only guessed at much of western geography. As a result, Clark underestimated the distance to the Pacific Ocean by about 1,000 miles. , During the last two weeks before departure, the men packed the cargo - probably almost 30 tons, including barrels of pork, flour and parched corn, along with bundles of Indian trade goods. On May 8, Clark took the keelboat for a shakedown: "maned her with 20 oares and went the middle of the river and up the Mississippi a few miles." Six days later, the boats crossed the Mississippi and turned into the Missouri on the way west., Departure from Wood River, On May 14, 1804, the Lewis and Clark Expedition crossed the Mississippi River and headed up the Missouri "Under a jentle brease" on their journey to explore the entire length of the Missouri River and continue on the Pacific coast. Although lively debates continue about where the journey began, Capt. Meriwether Lewis wrote in his journal that "The mouth of the River Dubois [Wood River] is to be considered as the point of departure." The two great rivers have changed course more than a mile to the east since 1804, and the location of the 1804 Wood River camp is now on the Missouri side., On departure day, Capt. William Clark wrote that "the Party Consisted of 2, self one frenchman and 22 Men in the Boat of 20 ores, 1 Serjt. [sergeant] and 7 french in a large Perogue [the red pirogue], a Corp [corporal] and 6 Soldiers in a large Perogue [the white pirogue]." This count does not appear to include the three sergeants of the expedition, or Clark's slave, York. Around 42 men are thought to have been in the departing party, Lewis was not on the keelboat when it launched at 4 p.m. on May 14. He was making final arrangements in St. Louis, where he spent much of the winter preparing for the trip. He planned to join Clark and the rest of the party in St. Charles., The first evening, May 14, the expedition moved four miles up the river and camped at the upper end of Green Island. They were "opposite a Creek on the South side, below a ledge of limestone rock Called Colewater [Coldwater Creek]. The following year, Fort Bellefontaine, an American Army post, would be erected near this location. The next day, the expedition travelled nine miles to Piper's Landing. On May 16, the party covered the nine miles to the French village of St. Charles. The village of 400 residents was the largest town on the Missouri River. There, the expedition purchased its last supplies and enlisted Pierre Cruzatte and Francois Labiche as navigators for the keelboat. On May 20, Lewis arrived from St. Louis. The next day, with "three Cheers, from the gentlemen on the bank," the expedition started for the Pacific Ocean., Return to St. Louis, On the return to St. Louis in 1806, Lewis and Clark made their final camp at Fort Bellefontaine, built only the year before. The whole garrison turned out to honor the return of the Corps of Discovery. The soldiers fired a 17-gun salute with their field pieces and the party was given a hearty welcome. Fort Bellefontaine was the first U.S. Army post west of the Mississippi River, and became a supply center as more forts were built. , During the final day of the journey, Sept. 23, 1806, the expeditions stopped briefly at Wood River. Clark's journal does not mention this visit, and Lewis was no longer keeping a journal. But Sgt. John Ordway reported: "Sooh arrived at the Mouth of the Missourie entered the Mississippi River and landed at River deboise where we wintered in 1804…We delayed a Short time and about 12 oClock we arived in Site of St. Louis fired three Rounds as we approached the Town." The inhabitants of the whole town gathered on the shore and gave three cheers. The party then landed and received a hearty welcome from the people of St. Louis. According to Ordway, the party indulged in considerable rejoicing in celebration of their enormous accomplishment. They then turned their attention to the immediate future: "and now we look for boarding in Town and wait for our Settlement and then we extend to return to our native homes to See our parents once more as we have been So long from them." , (photo caption:), This map of the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers was sketched by William Clark around Jan. 3, 1804. Clark was the mapmaker of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. This map reveals his understanding of the geography of the region surrounding the winter encampment of the expedition at the mouth of Dubois, or Wood, River.