Near Ponca in Dixon County, Nebraska — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Up the Missouri
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 17, 2025
1. Up the Missouri Marker
Captions: (upper right) William Clark's drawings (left) of the 55-foot keelboat designed and built especially for the expedition.
A large keelboat and two smaller crafts, called pirogues, carried the explorers and their supplies. When conditions were favorable, the men raised sails to assist the keelboat up the river. But usually they rowed, poled, or towed them through dangerous currents, using back-breaking labor. Here, along the lower Missouri River, the averaged about 13 miles a day.
There expedition spent almost two months in 1804 pulling its three boats up the Missouri River segment that now forms the eastern boundary of Nebraska (below). On their return downstream two years later, they canoed the same stretch of river in one week.
July-August, 1804
❶ July 11, 1894: Sixty days after leaving St. Louis, the expedition enters present-day Nebraska.
❷ July 21, 1804: Some expedition members travel a short distance up the "Great River Platt."
❸ July 30 -August 3, 1804: Lewis and Clark council with the Missouri and Oto tribes at "Council Bluff" north of present-day Omaha.
❹ August 11, 1804: Expedition visits grave of Blackbird, a former Omaha chief.
❺ August 20, 1804" Sergeant Charles Floyd dies and is buried overlooking the Missouri River.
❻ August 25, 1804: Lewis and Clark visit "Hill of Little Devils" just north of present-day Vermillion, South Dakota.
❼ August 30-31, 1804: Lewis and Clark council with a delegation of Sioux at "Calumet Bluff."
❽ September 3-10, 1806: Canoeing downriver two years later the expedition travels through present=day Nebraska, arriving in St. Louis on September 23.
Erected by Lewis
this page online
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Lewis & Clark Expedition series list.
Location. 42° 35.997′ N, 96° 42.648′ W. Marker is near Ponca, Nebraska, in Dixon County. It can be reached from State Highway 26E Spur near Highland Road. This marker is located in Ponca State Park on the Three States Overlook/Lewis and Clark Trail. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 88090 Highway Spur 26E, Ponca NE 68770, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Eastern Nebraska. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Corn Belt, and on the prairies. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Gass's Election (here, next to this marker); A Touch of the East (here,
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 17, 2025
2. Up the Missouri Marker
Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, July 17, 2025
3. Up the Missouri Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on November 1, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 1, 2026, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 8 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 1, 2026, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
