Exploring with Lewis and Clark
Shelly Hott
Graymont Grade School
Summer 2009
Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.
Students will walk through the Lewis and Clark expedition from start to finish looking at
various primary sources and considering the following questions:
 Why were Lewis and Clark sent on the expedition?
 Why was it so secretive?
 What was the perspective of the people in the expedition of the land they were
exploring?
 What was the perspective of the native Americans of the land the expedition was
exploring
 How did the expedition affect the future of the United States?
 How did the expedition affect the future of the Native Americans who lived in the
area explored?
Overview/ Materials/Historical Background/LOC Resources/Standards/
Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension
Overview
Objectives
Recommended time frame
Grade level
Curriculum fit
Materials
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Students will:
 Gain factual knowledge of the Lewis and Clark
expedition
 Consider different points of view of the expeditions
(those in the expedition and the native Americans
living in the area being explored)
 Infer how the expedition affected the futures of both
Native Americans and the United States
5 class periods
5th-6th
Social Studies, U.S. History
 Textbook: Our Nation – Macmillan/McGraw-Hill
or another textbook or book about the Louisiana
Purchase
 Projector/computer
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University

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Screen
Whiteboard or flipchart and marker
Map of the United states – preferably showing the
Lewis and Clark route
Handouts of 5 areas of comparison (see handout
pages)
Library of Congress: Fill up the Canvas … Rivers
of Words: Exploring with Lewis and Clark
Library of Congress: Rivers, Edens, Empires:
Lewis and Clark and the Revealing of America
Written document analysis sheet
Map analysis sheet
Photograph analysis sheet
Illinois State Learning Standards
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Social Sciences:
GOAL 16: Understand events, trends, individuals
and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the
United States and other nations.
 16.A. Students who meet the standard can apply the
skills of historical analysis and interpretation.
 16.A.2c Ask questions and seek answers by
collecting and analyzing data from historic
documents, images and other literary and nonliterary sources.
 16.B. Understand the development of significant
political events.
 16.B.2d (US) Identify major political events and
leaders within the United States historical eras
since the adoption of the Constitution, including
the westward expansion, Louisiana Purchase,
Civil War, and 20th century wars as well as the
roles of Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln,
Woodrow Wilson, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
STATE GOAL 17: Understand world geography
and the effects of geography on society, with an
emphasis on the United States.
 17.A. Students who meet the standard can locate,
describe and explain places, regions and features on
Earth.
 17.A.2b Use maps and other geographic
representations and instruments to gather
information about people, places and
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
environments.
Procedures
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Prior to beginning this lesson, students should be
familiar with the events surrounding the Louisiana
Purchase. We will do this by reading Ch. 12 Lesson 2
– The Louisiana Purchase. This lesson ends with a
primary source containing an excerpt from The
Journal of Captain Meriwether Lewis. This will serve
as our introduction to the lesson. (Any similar book or
textbook would work as well)
Day One:
 Students will be introduced to the four questions that
will be considered as we walk through the Lewis
and Clark expedition:
1. Why were Lewis and Clark sent on the
expedition?
2. Why was it so secretive?
3. What was the perspective of the people in the
expedition of the land they were exploring?
4. What was the perspective of the native
Americans of the land the expedition was
exploring?
 These questions will be written on the board or on a
flipchart (somewhere they can be kept, along with
the ideas presented by the class)
 The flash video Fill up the Canvas Rivers of Words:
Exploring with Lewis and Clark will be presented
using a projector/computer
 Each topic should be looked at in order – at the end
of each topic, students should discuss what was
presented and consider whether it gives any
information to answer any of the questions on the
question chart.
 As appropriate, locate on the U.S. map where the
expedition currently is. All primary sources can be
looked at in their entirety – as time permits feel free
to look more closely at any that seem of particular
interest to the students.
The following topics should be completed the first day:
1. Mission and Preparation
 Jefferson’s proposal to Congress
 Lewis plans from Harper’s Ferry
 Boat building problems
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
 Lewis learns more
 Dr. Rush advises
 An invitation
 Jefferson’s instructions to Lewis
 Louisiana Purchase
2. Winter in Saint Louis
 Jefferson sends Missouri map
 Jefferson advises Lewis
 Lewis describes Osage Apple
 Lewis sends specimens to Jefferson
 Expedition departs
 Wrap-up discussion and save what was added to the
chart of questions.
Day Two:
 Briefly review what was discussed the previous day
 Continue with the flash presentation beginning with
point 3 on the map – continue discussion and adding
to the chart of questions.
Cover the following entries today:
3. First council with Indians
4. Sergeant Floyd dies
5. First buffalo is killed
6. At the Sioux Camps
7. Prairie Dog Description
8. Lewis continues to describe the area…
9. Council and near run-in with the Teton Sioux
10. Winter in Fort Mandan
 October 26, 1804 journal entry
 November 2, 1804 journal entry
 November 3, 1804 journal entry
 November 5, 1804 journal entry
 February 11, 1805 journal entry
 March 29, 1805 journal entry
 April 3, 1805 letter from Clark to Jefferson
 April 4, 1805 journal entry
 April 7, 1805 Letter from Lewis to Jefferson
 Wrap-up discussion and save what was added to the
chart of questions.
Day Three:
 Briefly review what was discussed the previous day
 Continue with the flash presentation beginning with
point 11 on the map – continue discussion and
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
adding to the chart of questions.
Cover the following entries today:
11. Bear description
12. First view of Rockies
13. Lewis makes a decision
14. Lewis scouts ahead of main party and encounters
the Great Falls of the Missouri
15. Lewis goes up Lemhi Pass and looks west, but sees
more mountains
16. Meeting the Nez Perce and ascent into the
Bitterroots
17. Description of the Nez Perce
18. Entering the Columbia River
19. Maneuvering the Falls of the Columbia
20. Fort Clatsop
 Arriving at the Pacific
 Winter 1805-1806
 Lewis writes about plants and animals
 Homeward bound
 Wrap-up discussions and save what was added to
the chart of questions
Day Four:
 Introduce Rivers, Edens, Empires Lewis & Clark
and the Revealing of America using the introduction
information.
 Divide students into 5 groups
 Hand out the 5 sets of handouts (Discovering
Diplomacy, Geography, Animals, Dressed in
Courage, Plants) one to each group (if desired, this
could be done online with students looking at their
section)
 Have students analyze and discuss their set of
sources and develop a chart of similarities and
differences in how the members of the expedition
and the native Americans viewed their particular
area of focus
 Have each group share their finding with the class.
Day 5
 Review discussions of the last 4 days and have all
question charts and day 4 similarities and
differences within view.
 Based on the finding of the past 4 days, have
students consider and discuss the following
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
questions:
 How did the expedition affect the future of
the United States?
 How did the expedition affect the future of
the Native Americans who lived in the area
explored?
Evaluation
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Students will be evaluated in four areas using the rubric:
1. Respect for classmates: appropriate discussion rules
should be followed
2. Understanding of topic: are students able to
recognize the relationship between the primary
documents and the questions being considered
3. Map skills: can students locate on a current US
map, where the historical events took place
4. Historical thinking: are students able to analyze and
compare different viewpoints based on various
primary sources being considered
Extension
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Students will choose one of the primary sources that
were considered in the interactive map and do a more
in-depth analysis on it using the appropriate analysis
form.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Historical Background
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Thomas Jefferson made the Purchase of the Louisiana Territory in 1803. In January of
1803 he secretively requested Congress for permission to explore this territory. The
reason for the request being secretive was not to prevent Britain, France and Russia from
being aware of it, but to keep it from Jefferson’s enemies in the Federalist party.
Jefferson chose his personal secretary, Meriwether Lewis to lead this expedition based on
his intelligence and skills as a frontiersman. Lewis then chose William Clark (a
draftsman and even stronger frontiersman) to co-lead the expedition with him. Together
they put together a “Corps of Discovery” consisting of 42 men, about half of whom were
soldiers; the rest trappers and scouts. They were charged with mapping the route from
the Mississippi to the Pacific while making note of plant and animal life along the way.
They were also charged with making note of what tribes of Indians they encountered,
where they were located, their number, what type of trading would be available, their
culture, etc. The journey took two years (1804-1806) and was successful in navigating a
route to the Pacific while mapping the area, interacting with Native Americans, and
collecting various specimens which were sent back to Jefferson.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Primary Resources from the Library of Congress
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Image
Citation
Library of Congress,
Geography and Map
Division.
URL
http://memory.loc.gov
/cgibin/query/r?ammem/g
md:@filreq(@field(N
UMBER+@band(g41
27l+ct001114))+@fie
ld(COLLID+dsxpmap
))
Fill up the Canvas
Rivers of Words:
Exploring with Lewis
and Clark – Flash
Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/te
achers/classroommate
rials/presentationsand
activities/presentation
s/lewisandclark/
Fill up the Canvas
Rivers of Words:
Exploring with Lewis
and Clark - Resources
Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/te
achers/classroommate
rials/presentationsand
activities/presentation
s/lewisandclark/resour
ces_toc.html
Rivers, Edens,
Empires – Lewis &
Clark and the
Revealing of America
– Exhibition
Rivers, Edens,
Empires – Lewis &
Clark and the
Revealing of America
- Sources
Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/ex
hibits/lewisandclark/l
ewis-landc.html
Library of Congress
http://www.loc.gov/ex
hibits/lewisandclark/l
ewis-object.html
Description
Discovering the
legacy of Lewis and
Clark : bicentennial
commemoration
2003-2006 /
preparation route
source: Frank Muhly.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Rubric
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4
3
2
1
Respect for
classmates
All statements, body
language, and
responses were
respectful and were
in appropriate
language.
Statements and
responses were
respectful and used
appropriate
language, but once
or twice body
language was not.
Most statements and
responses were
respectful and in
appropriate
language, but there
was one sarcastic
remark.
Statements,
responses and/or
body language were
consistently not
respectful.
Understanding
of Topic
Clearly understood
the relationship
between the primary
source and the
questions being
considered
Somewhat
understood the
relationship between
the primary source
and the questions
being considered
Contributed, but did Did not contribute to
not show an
the discussion
understanding
between the primary
source and the
questions being
considered
Map Skills
always able to locate
on the current US
map the location
being discussed for
the expedition
usually able to
locate on the current
US map the location
being discussed for
the expedition
sometimes able to
locate on the current
US map the location
being discussed for
the expedition
Historical
Thinking –
Comparison of
viewpoints
Every idea/opinion
was well supported
with several relevant
facts, statistics
and/or examples.
Every idea/opinion
was adequately
supported with
relevant facts,
statistics and/or
examples.
Every idea/opinion
Every idea/opinion
was supported with was not supported
facts, statistics
and/or examples, but
the relevance of
some was
questionable.
CATEGORY
not able to locate on
the current US map
the location being
discussed for the
expedition
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Handouts
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Introduction
When Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis
and Clark into the West, he
patterned their mission on the
methods of Enlightenment science:
to observe, collect, document, and
classify. Such strategies were
already in place for the epic voyages
made by explorers like Cook and
Vancouver. Like their
contemporaries, Lewis and Clark
were more than representatives of
European rationalism. They also
represented a rising American empire, one built on aggressive territorial expansion and
commercial gain.
But there was another view of the West: that of the native inhabitants of the land. Their
understandings of landscapes, peoples, and resources formed both a contrast and
counterpoint to those of Jefferson's travelers. This part of the exhibition presents five
areas where Lewis and Clark's ideas and values are compared with those of native people.
Sometimes the similarities are striking; other times the differences stand as a reminder of
future conflicts and misunderstandings.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Handout 1
Discovering Diplomacy
One of Lewis and Clark's missions was to open diplomatic relations between the United States and the Indian nations of the
West. As Jefferson told Lewis, "it will now be proper you should inform those through whose country you will pass . . . that
henceforth we become their fathers and friends." When Euro-Americans and Indians met, they used ancient diplomatic
protocols that included formal language, ceremonial gifts, and displays of military power. But behind these symbols and
rituals there were often very different ways of understanding power and authority. Such differences sometimes made
communication across the cultural divide difficult and open to confusion and misunderstanding.
An important organizing principle in Euro-American society was hierarchy. Both soldiers and civilians had complex gradations
of rank to define who gave orders and who obeyed. While kinship was important in the Euro-American world, it was even
more fundamental in tribal societies. Everyone's power and place depended on a complex network of real and symbolic
relationships. When the two groups met--whether for trade or diplomacy--each tried to reshape the other in their own
image. Lewis and Clark sought to impose their own notions of hierarchy on Indians by "making chiefs" with medals, printed
certificates, and gifts. Native people tried to impose the obligations of kinship on the visitors by means of adoption
ceremonies, shared names, and ritual gifts.
Blunderbuss
The Lewis and Clark expedition was in many ways an
infantry company on the move, fully equipped with rifles
of various kinds, muskets, and pistols. Among the
firearms were two blunderbusses. Named after the
Dutch words for "thunder gun," the blunderbuss was
Blunderbuss, ca. 1809-1810
Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution,
National Museum of American History,
Behring Center, Washington, D.C. (53)
unmistakable for its heavy stock, short barrel, and widemouthed muzzle. Other expedition guns might be
graceful in design and craftsmanship but the stout
blunderbuss simply signified brute force and power.
Lewis and Clark fired their blunderbusses as signs of
arrival when entering Indian camps or villages.
Pipe tomahawk
Pipe tomahawks are artifacts unique to North America-created by Europeans as trade objects but often
exchanged as diplomatic gifts. They are powerful
symbols of the choice Europeans and Indians faced
whenever they met: one end was the pipe of peace, the
other an axe of war. Lewis's expedition packing list notes
that fifty pipe tomahawks were to be taken on the
expedition.
Pipe tomahawk (Shoshone), 1800s
Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian,
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (39)
Jefferson's Secret Message to
Congress
While Jefferson made no effort to hide the Lewis and
Clark expedition from Spanish, French, and British
officials, he did try to shield it from his political enemies.
By the time he was ready to request funds for the
enterprise, Jefferson's relationship with the opposition in
Thomas Jefferson
"Confidential" Message to Congress,
January 18, 1803
Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4
Transcript
Manuscript
Manuscript Division (56)
Congress was anything but friendly. When the president
suggested including expedition funding in his regular
address to Congress, Secretary of the Treasury Albert
Gallatin (1761-1849) urged that the request be made in
secret. The message purported to focus on the state of
Indian trade and mentioned the proposed western
expedition near the end of the document.
Jefferson's Instructions for
Meriwether Lewis
No document proved more important for the exploration
of the American West than the letter of instructions
Jefferson prepared for Lewis. Jefferson's letter became
the charter for federal exploration for the remainder of
the nineteenth century. The letter combined national
aspirations for territorial expansion with scientific
discovery. Here Jefferson sketched out a comprehensive
and flexible plan for western exploration. That plan
created a military exploring party with one key mission-finding the water passage across the continent "for the
purposes of commerce"--and many additional objectives,
ranging from botany to ethnography. Each section of the
document was really a question in search of a western
answer. Two generations of American explorers marched
the West in search of those answers.
Thomas Jefferson to Meriwether Lewis,
June 20, 1803
Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4
Transcript
Letter press copy of manuscript letter
[instructions for the Corps of Discovery]
Manuscript Division (57)
Jefferson Peace Medal
The American republic began to issue peace medals
during the first Washington administration, continuing a
tradition established by the European nations. Lewis and
Clark brought at least eighty-nine medals in five sizes in
order to designate five "ranks" of chief. In the eyes of
Americans, Indians who accepted such medals were also
acknowledging American sovereignty as "children" of a
new "great father." And in a moment of imperial
United States Mint
Thomas Jefferson peace medal, 1801
Reverse side of medal
Silver
Courtesy of the Oklahoma State Museum of History, Oklahoma
City (41)
bravado, Lewis hung a peace medal around the neck of a
Piegan Blackfeet warrior killed by the expedition in late
July 1806. As Lewis later explained, he used a peace
medal as a way to let the Blackfeet know "who we
were."
Making Chiefs
Lewis was frustrated by the egalitarian nature of Indian
society: "the authority of the Chief being nothing more
than mere admonition . . . in fact every man is a chief."
He set out to change that by "making chiefs." He passed
out medals, certificates, and uniforms to give power to
chosen men. By weakening traditional authority, he
sought to make it easier for the United States to
This image is not available online:
Certificate of loyalty, ca. 1803
Printed document with wax seal and ribbon
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (43)
negotiate with the tribes. Lewis told the Otos that they
needed these certificates "In order that the commandant
at St. Louis . . . may know . . . that you have opened
your ears to your great father's voice." The certificate on
display was left over from the expedition.
Making Speeches
In their speeches, Lewis and Clark called the Indians
"children." To explorers, the term expressed the
This image is not available online:
Speech to the Yellowstone Indians, 1806
Speech of Arikara chiefs, 1804
Manuscripts
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (44, 49)
relationship of ruler and subject. Clark modeled this
speech to the Yellowstone Indians on one that Lewis
gave to Missouri River tribes. In their speeches, the
Indians called Lewis and Clark "father," as in this
example made by the Arikira Chiefs. To them, it
expressed kinship and their assumption that an adoptive
father undertook an obligation to show generosity and
loyalty to his new family. William Clark recorded this
speech as it was made by the chiefs.
Making Kinship
In tribal society, kinship was like a legal system--people depended on relatives to protect them from crime, war, and
misfortune. People with no kin were outside of society and its rules. To adopt Lewis and Clark into tribal society, the
Plains Indians used a pipe ceremony. The ritual of smoking and sharing the pipe was at the heart of much Native
American diplomacy. With the pipe the captains accepted sacred obligations to share wealth, aid in war, and revenge
injustice. At the end of the ceremony, the pipe was presented to them so they would never forget their obligations.
This pipe may have been given to Lewis and Clark.
Pipe bowl [Plains/Great Lakes], ca. 1800-1850
Stone (catlinite) and lead
Courtesy of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology,
Gift of the heirs of David Kimball, 1899 (48a)
Pipe stem [Plains/Great Lakes], ca. 1800-1850
Wood, ivory-billed woodpecker head and scalp, wood duck face
patch, dyed downy feathers, dyed horsehair, dyed artiodactyls
hair, dyed and undyed porcupine quills, sinew, bast fiber cords,
glazed cotton fabric, sinew, bast fiber cords, glazed cotton fabric,
twill-woven wool tapes, silk ribbons, and shell beads (48b)
Jefferson's Cipher
While Jefferson knew that for much of the journey he
and his travelers would be out of touch, the president
thought Indians and fur traders might carry small
messages back to him. A life-long fascination for gadgets
and secret codes led Jefferson to present Lewis with this
key-word cipher. Lewis was instructed to "communicate
Jefferson's cipher for the Lewis and Clark expedition, 1803
with sample message "I am at the head of the Missouri. All well,
and the Indians so far friendly."
Manuscript document
Manuscript Division (55)
to us, at seasonable intervals, a copy of your journal,
notes & observations, of every kind, putting into cipher
whatever might do injury if betrayed." The scheme was
never used but the sample message reveals much about
Jefferson's expectations for the expedition.
Gifts with a Message
Gift-giving was an essential part of diplomacy. To Indians, gifts proved the giver's sincerity and honored the tribe. To
Lewis and Clark, some gifts advertised the technological superiority and others encouraged the Indians to adopt an
agrarian lifestyle. Like salesmen handing out free samples, Lewis and Clark packed bales of manufactured goods like
these to open diplomatic relations with Indian tribes. These beads came from Mitutanka, the village nearest to Fort
Mandan. Jefferson advised Lewis to give out corn mills to introduce the Indians to mechanized agriculture as part of
his plan to "civilize and instruct" them. Clark believed the mills were "verry Thankfully recived," but by the next year
the Mandan had demolished theirs to use the metal for weapons.
Kettle, beads, and cornmill, late 1700s
Courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society (kettles),
St. Paul; Ralph Thompson Collection of the North Dakota Lewis & Clark Bicentennial Foundation (beads),
Washburn; and the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (cornmill) (50, 51, 52)
Displays of Power
In situations when ceremonies, speeches, and gifts did not work, both the Corps and the Indians gave performances
that displayed their military power. The American soldiers paraded, fired their weapons, and demonstrated innovative
weaponry. The Indians used war clubs, like this Sioux club, in celebratory scalp dances. Three decades later, Swiss
artist Karl Bodmer accompanying naturalist Prince Maximillian, retraced Lewis and Clark's trek on the Missouri River
and vibrantly recorded a similar scene in the print displayed above.
Karl Bodmer (1809-1893)
"Scalp Dance of the Minatarres" [Hidatsa] from
Reise in das innere Nord-America
in den Jahren 1832 bis 1834.
Koblenz: 1839-41
Hand-colored lithograph
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (54C)
War club (Sioux, Cheyenne River Reservation),
pre-1870
Courtesy of the University of Pennsylvania
Museum of Archaeology and
Anthropology, Philadelphia (54)
Jefferson's Speech to a Delegation
of Indian Chiefs
Indian delegations had long been part of European
diplomacy with native people, and they came to play an
increasingly important role in U.S. Indian policy as well.
Even before leaving St. Louis, Lewis and Clark began
organizing delegations to visit the new "great father" in
Washington. Jefferson's speech to a group of chiefs from
the lower Missouri River is an arresting combination of
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
Speech to a delegation of Indian chiefs,
January 4, 1806
Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4
friendship, promises of peaceful relations in a shared
country, and thinly veiled threats if Indians rejected
Transcript
Manuscript
Manuscript Division (45)
American sovereignty. Reminding the chiefs of the
changes in international diplomacy after the Louisiana
Purchase, Jefferson insisted that "We are now your
fathers; and you shall not lose by the change." But
behind all the promises of a shared future was an
unmistakable threat. As the president said, "My children,
we are strong, we are numerous as the stars in the
heavens, & we are all gunmen."
Indian Speech to Jefferson
A delegation of chiefs from western tribes was sent by
Lewis to Washington, D.C. President Jefferson welcomed
them with words of peace and friendship. But if
President Jefferson expected his native visitors to quietly
[Speech of the] "Osages, Missouri, Otos, Panis, Cansas,
Ayowais, & Sioux Nations to the president of the U.S. & to the
Secretary of War, January [4], 1806"
Page 1 - Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4
Page 5 - Page 6 - Page 7 - Page 8
Page 9 - Page 10 - Page 11
Page 12 - Page 13 - Page 14
Page 15 - Page 16
Transcript
Manuscript document in the hand of the clerk,
endorsed by 14 tribal representatives
Courtesy of the Historical Society of
Pennsylvania Library, Philadelphia (46)
accept their status as "children" in the new American
order, he was mistaken. In their speech to Jefferson, the
chiefs raised two important concerns: the troubled
economic relations between native people and the
federally operated trading posts and the rising tide of
violence Indians suffered at the hands of white settlers
on the Missouri River frontier. These chiefs were
determined to speak the truth "to the ears of our
fathers." In return, they expected that government
officials would "open their ears to truth to get in."
Handout 2
Geography
In the exploration instructions prepared for Lewis, Jefferson directed that his explorers record "the face of the country."
Geography, especially as recorded on maps, was an important part of the information collected by the Corps of Discovery. In
planning the expedition, Lewis and Gallatin collected the latest maps and printed accounts portraying and describing the
western country. This visual and printed data was incorporated into a composite document--the Nicholas King 1803 map-which the expedition carried with them at least as far as the Mandan villages. As Lewis and Clark traversed the country, they
drew sketch maps and carefully recorded their astronomical and geographic observations. Equally important, they gathered
vital knowledge about "the face of the country" from native people. During winters at Fort Mandan on the Missouri in 18041805 and at Fort Clatsop on the Pacific Coast in 1805-1806 the explorers added new details from their sketch maps and
journals to base maps depicting the course of the expedition. The first printed map of the journey did not appear until 1814
when Nicholas Biddle's official account of the expedition was published in Philadelphia and London.
Euro-American explorers were not the only ones to draw maps of the western country. As every visitor to Indian country
soon learned, native people also made sophisticated and complex maps. Such maps often covered thousands of miles of
terrain. At first glance Indian maps often appear quite different from those made by Euro-Americans. And there were
important differences that reflected distinctive notions about time, space, and relationships between the natural and the
supernatural worlds. William Clark was not the only expedition cartographer to struggle with those differences. But the
similarities between Indian maps and Euro-American ones are also worth noting. Both kinds of maps told stories about
important past events, current situations, and future ambitions. Both sorts of maps used symbols to represent key terrain
features, major settlements, and sacred sites. Perhaps most important, Euro-Americans and Native Americans understood
that mapping is a human activity shared by virtually every culture.
Nicholas King's 1803 PreExpedition Map
In March 1803, War Department
cartographer Nicholas King
compiled a map of North
America west of the Mississippi
in order to summarize all
available topographic information about the region.
Nicholas King, with annotations by Meriwether Lewis
"Tracing of western North America showing the Mississippi, and
the Missouri for a short distance above the Kansas, Lakes
Michigan, Superior, and Winnipeg, and the country onwards to
the Pacific" with annotations in the hand of Meriwether Lewis,
1803.
[carried as far as Mandan village]
Engraved map with annotations in pen and ink
Geography and Map Division (64)
Representing the federal government's first attempt to
define the vast empire later purchased from Napoleon,
King consulted numerous published and manuscript
maps. The composite map reflects Jefferson and
Gallatin's geographical concepts on the eve of the
expedition. It is believed that Lewis and Clark carried
this map on their journey at least as far as the MandanHidatsa villages on the Missouri River, where Lewis
annotated in brown ink additional information obtained
from fur traders.
Source Map for the Bend of the
Missouri River
One of the sources for Nicholas
King's 1803 map was this sketch
of the Great Bend of the Missouri
River (north of present-day
Bismarck, North Dakota). Copied
by Lewis from a survey for the British North West
Company by David Thompson, this map provided the
exact latitude and longitude of that important segment
of the Missouri. Thompson, traveling overland in the
dead of winter, spent three weeks at the Mandan and
Pawnee villages on the Missouri River, calculating
Meriwether Lewis after David Thompson (1770-1857)
[Bend of the Missouri River] 1798
Manuscript map
Geography and Map Division (64A)
astronomical observations. He also recorded the number
of houses, tents, and warriors of the six Indian villages
in the area.
Fort Mandan Map
Throughout the winter of 18041805 at Fort Mandan, William
Clark drafted a large map of the
West --what he called "a
Connection of the country." That
map, recopied several times by Nicholas King, provided
the first accurate depiction of the Missouri River to Fort
Nicholas King (1771-1812) after William Clark
"A Map of Part of the Continent of North America : Between the
35th and 51st Degrees of North Latitude, and Extending from 89
Degrees of West Longitude to the Pacific Ocean."
Washington, 1805
Manuscript map
Geography and Map Division (62)
Mandan based on the expedition's astronomical and
geographical observations. Drawing on "information of
Traders, Indians, & my own observation and idea," Clark
sketched out a conjectural West--one characterized by a
narrow chain of mountains and rivers with headwaters
close one to the other, still suggesting an easy water
passage to the Pacific Coast.
Indian Map of Columbia and Snake Rivers
Although there are journal notes stating that Indians provided geographical information for
Lewis and Clark and drew maps on animal skins or made rough sketches in the soil, no original
examples survive. However, there are several collaborative efforts in which members of the
Corps redrew Indian sketches often combining their own observations with Indian information.
This sketch map found in one of William Clark's field notebooks is a good example of a map
derived from Indian information. It is a diagram of the relative location of tributaries of the
Columbia and Snake (Lewis) rivers in present-day eastern Washington and Oregon.
William Clark.
[Drawing of Northwest Coast canoe
with carved figures at each end,]
February 1, 1806.
Transcript
Copyprint of journal entry
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St Louis (68)
[William Clark]
"This Sketch was given to me by a Shaddot, a Chopunnish & a
Shillute at the Falls of Columbia,
18 April 1806"
Manuscript map in field notebook
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (59)
Field Maps of the
Fort Clatsop Area
This pair of maps is from a
collection of manuscript field
maps drafted by Clark as the
Corps descended the Columbia
River and wintered on the Pacific
Coast at Fort Clatsop. On the left,
William Clark
[Draft of the Columbia River, Point Adams, and South Along the
Coast] and [Map from a "Clott Sopp Indn."], 1806
Copyprint of manuscript maps
Courtesy of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library,
Yale University, New Haven (59A)
Clark drew a rough sketch of the mouth of the Columbia
River, oriented with south at the top of the sheet. The
other is one of the cruder examples of a map derived
from Indian information, with Clark noting "This was
given by a Clott Sopp Indn." It shows a small portion of
the Pacific Coast and locates several tribes and villages.
Sitting Rabbit's Map of the Missouri
River
Displayed here is a portion of a 1906-1907 map
depicting the Missouri River through North Dakota to the
mouth of the Yellowstone River. It was prepared by
Sitting Rabbit, a Mandan Indian, at the request of an
official of the State Historical Society of North Dakota.
Although it uses a Missouri River Commission map as its
base, the content provides a traditional Indian
perspective of the river's geography, especially noting
former Mandan village sites with earthen lodges. The
portion of the river shown here corresponds to the same
Sitting Rabbit (I Ki Ha Wa He, also known as Little Owl)
[Map of Missouri River from South Dakota-North Dakota
boundary to mouth of Yellowstone River], 1906-1907
Copyprint of painting on canvas
Courtesy of the State Historical Society of North Dakota, Bismark
(59C)
stretch of river delineated on Clark's route map (below).
Missouri Route Map near Fort
Mandan
Throughout the expedition,
William Clark prepared a series of
This image is not available online:
[Route Map about October 16-19, 1804],
copy of original map made in 1833
Copyprint of manuscript copy
Courtesy of the Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha (59D)
large-scale route maps, with each
sheet documenting several days'
travel. On these sheets he
recorded the course of rivers navigated, mouths of
tributary streams, encampments, celestial observations,
and other notable features. Big River on Sitting Rabbit's
map (above) is identified as Cannon Ball River on Clark's
map and Beaver Creek is recorded as Warraconne River
or "Plain where Elk shed their horns," by Clark.
Fort Clatsop Map
This post-expeditionary map
prepared by Washington, D.C.,
cartographer Nicholas King,
probably in 1806 or 1807, most
likely incorporates information
from a map prepared by Lewis and Clark in February
1806 at Fort Clatsop on the Oregon coast. Although the
original map no longer exists, such a map is mentioned
in the expedition's journals. Using King's 1805 base
map, which records information observed as far as Fort
Mandan, this present copy adds geographical
observations from Fort Mandan to the west coast, as well
as data from the return trip.
Nicholas King after Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.
"Map of Part of the Continent of North America . . . as Corrected
by the Celestial Observations of Messrs. Lewis and Clark during
their Tour of Discoveries in 1805." Washington, D.C., 1806?
Copyprint of manuscript map
Courtesy of the Boston Athenaeum, Boston (70)
Clark's Map of Midwestern Indian Settlements
Following his appointment as governor of the Missouri Territory in 1813, William Clark
sketched this map of various Indian tribes and villages throughout the Missouri and Illinois
territories, showing the locations of numerous forts and settlements. He prepared it in
response to British incursions on the frontier during the War of 1812, when it was feared that
the Indians, many of them allied with the British, would attack white settlements. The map also reflects Clark's
continuing post-expedition interest in Indian activities having been appointed superintendent of Indian affairs at St.
Louis in 1807.
William Clark (1770-1838)
"Plan of the N.W. Frontier from Governor Clarke,"
[St. Louis], ca. 1813
Manuscript map
Geography and Map Division (67A)
William Clark's compass on chain
Brass, jasper, glass, paint
William Clark's magnet, ca. 1802
Iron, paint
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (65, 66)
Frazer's PostExpedition Map
Private Robert Frazer was the
first member of the Lewis and
Clark party to announce
publication of an expedition
journal. His account never reached print, and the original
journal was lost. This manuscript map is the only
remnant of that initial publishing attempt. Since Frazer
had little or no knowledge of surveying or natural
sciences, the map is a strange piece of cartography. He
traces the expedition's route, but continues to depict
older views of the Rocky Mountains and western rivers.
Sometimes ignored, the Frazer map was one of the first
to reveal the course of the journey and some of its
geographic findings.
Robert Frazer (d. 1837)
"A Map of the Discoveries of Capt. Lewis & Clark from the
Rockey Mountain and the River Lewis to the Cap of
Disappointment or the Columbia River at the North Pacific
Ocean,"
1807 Manuscript map
Geography and Map Division (69)
First Published Map of Expedition's
Track
This was the first published map
to display reasonably accurate
geographic information of the
trans-Mississippi West. Based on
a large map kept by William
Clark, the engraved copy accompanied Nicholas Biddle's
History of the Expedition (1814). As the landmark
William Clark
"A Map of Lewis and Clarks Track" from History of the Expedition
under the Command of Captains Lewis and Clark, to the Sources
of the Missouri, thence Across the Rocky Mountains and Down
the River Columbia to the Pacific Ocean, 1814
Samuel Lewis, copyist; Samuel Harrison, engraver
Engraved map
Geography and Map Division (67)
cartographic contribution of the expedition, this "track
map" held on to old illusions while proclaiming new
geographic discoveries. Clark presented a West far more
topographically diverse and complex than Jefferson ever
imagined. From experience, Clark had learned that the
Rockies were a tangle of mountain ranges and that
western rivers were not the navigable highways so
central to Jefferson's geography of hope.
History of the Expedition
After Lewis's death in September 1809, Clark engaged
Nicholas Biddle to edit the expedition papers. Using the
captains' original journals and those of Sergeants Gass
and Ordway, Biddle completed a narrative by July 1811.
After delays with the publisher, a two-volume edition of
the Corps of Discovery's travels across the continent was
finally available to the public in 1814. More than twenty
editions appeared during the nineteenth century,
including German, Dutch, and several British editions.
[Nicholas Biddle and Paul Allen, eds.]
History of the Expedition under the command of Captains Lewis
and Clark, to the Sources of the Missouri, then across the Rocky
Mountains and down the River Columbia to the Pacific Ocean.
Performed during the years 1804-5-6. By order of the
Government of the United States.
Page 2
Philadelphia: Bradford and Inskeep; New York: Abm. H. Inskeep.
J. Maxwell, Printer, 1814
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (67B)
Calculating Distance
In order to make astronomical observations that would aid in calculating distances, the Corps took a sextant on their
journey. On July 22, 1804, while the expedition was above the mouth of the Platte River in eastern Nebraska, Lewis
gave a detailed description of the operation of the sextant and other tools that reveals his struggle to use the
complicated instruments. A select number of books were taken on the expedition including British astronomer Nevil
Maskelyne's Tables Requisite to be Used with the Nautical Ephemeris for Finding the Latitude and Longitude at Sea.
W. & S. Jones Holburn, London [patented 1788]
Sextant
Brass, wood, silver
Courtesy of the National Museum of
American History, Behring Center (60)
Nevil Maskelyne (1732-1811).
Tables Requisite to be Used with the Nautical Ephemeris for
Finding the Latitude and Longitude at Sea.
Page 2
London: William Richardson, 1781
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (61)
Handout 3
Animals
Jefferson subscribed to the eighteenth-century Enlightenment notion that assembling a complete catalog of the Earth's flora
and fauna was possible. In his instructions, he told Lewis to observe "the animals of the country generally, & especially
those not known in the U.S." The Corps of Discovery was the first expedition to scientifically describe a long list of species.
Their journals, especially those kept by Lewis, are filled with direct observations of the specimens they encountered on the
journey. Through objective measurements and anatomical descriptions, they defined various species previously unknown to
Euro-Americans.
Indians studied animal behaviors to understand moral lessons. Animals were beings addressed respectfully as "grandfather"
or "brother." Because animals intersected the worlds of the sacred and the profane, Indians regarded them as intermediaries
between the human and spiritual realms.
Lewis's woodpecker
The woodpecker displayed above may be the only
specimen collected during the Lewis and Clark expedition
to survive intact. Lewis first saw the bird on July 20,
1805, but did not get a specimen until the following
spring at Camp Chopunnish on the Clearwater River in
Idaho. Lewis's description of the bird's belly is still
Specimen of a "Lewis woodpecker" [Asyndesmus lewis, collected
Camp Chopunnish, Idaho, 1806]
Preserved skin and feathers
Courtesy of Harvard University Museum of Comparative Zoology,
Boston (71)
accurate when examining the specimen today: "a
curious mixture of white and blood red which has much
the appearance of having been artificially painted or
stained of that colour."
Observing "the animals of the country generally"
Lewis covered pages with descriptions of animals and plants during the winter of 1805-1806. This particular journal
kept during that period contains abundant zoological notes in Lewis's hand. The journal is open to a description of the
Corps first encounter with a white-tailed jack rabbi--an animal considered so impressive that both Lewis and Clark
wrote extensive descriptions of it. On selected occasions both captains illustrated their notes. In the reproduction
above Clark sketched the now-endangered condor. Lewis had correctly observed in his journal: "I bleive this to be the
largest bird of North America."
Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809)
"Shield killed a hare of the prarie . . ."
Journey entry, September 14, 1804
Courtesy of the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia (40)
William Clark (1770-1838)
Head of a Vulture (California condor),
February 17, 1806
Copyprint of journal illustration
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St Louis (74A)
Representing Beings
The Indian sense of "personhood" extends far beyond the western conception of human beings. In Indian culture
animal people, plant people, sky peopleCall are beings in their own right. Indian art portrays a being's inner essence,
not its physical form. The Columbia River artist who created this twined circular basket decorated it with images of
condors, sturgeons, people, and deer -- abstractions that are given equal importance in the woven pattern. This
nineteenth-century Sioux clay and wood pipe portrays a buffalo, whose spirit, or Tananka, cares for children, hunters,
and growing things. It may have be created as a presentation pipe.
Sally bag with condors (Wasco), pre-1898
Twine, corn husk
Courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society, Portland (75)
Buffalo effigy pipe (Sioux), pre-1872
Catlinite, wood
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (76)
Hunting Bear
Patrick Gass was one of the three sergeants in the Corps of Discovery. His account, first printed in 1807, was the only
one available to curious readers until the official publication appeared in1814. This Gass edition contains six woodcuts,
two of which depict encounters with bears. The image above may have been based on Corps member Hugh McNeal's
experience on July 15, 1806. Lewis records: ". . .and with his clubbed musquet he struck the bear over the head and
cut him with the guard of the gun and broke off the breech, the bear stunned with the stroke fell to his ground. . .this
gave McNeal time to climb a willow tree."
Patrick Gass.
"Bear Pursuing his Assailant"
in A Journal of the Voyages and
Travels of a Corps of Discovery . . .
Philadelphia: Mathew Carey, 1810
Wood engraving
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (72A)
Patrick Gass.
"Captain Clark and his men shooting bears,"
in A Journal of the Voyages and
Travels of a Corps of Discovery . . .
Philadelphia: Mathew Carey, 1810
Copyprint of wood engraving
Rare Book and Special Collections Division(72B)
The Power of the Bear
Artist George Catlin painted the scene of a dance held in preparation for a traditional Sioux bear hunt in 1832. These
dances were performed in order to communicate with "the Bear Spirit." According to Catlin, the Sioux believe this
spirit "holds somewhere an invisible existence that must be consulted and conciliated." This clay Sioux pipe bowl
probably depicts the bear's role as teacher and transmitter of power.
George Catlin (1796B1872)
Bear Dance of the Sioux,
1832 [printed 1844]
Hand-colored lithograph
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (74)
Bear effigy pipe bowl
(Sioux, Osage or Pawnee),
pre-1830s
Catlinite
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (72)
Handout 4
Dressed in Courage
In both Euro-American and native cultures, clothing communicated messages about the wearer's biography, rank, and role
in society. In both cultures, a warrior's clothing was his identity and men entered battle dressed in regalia that displayed
their deeds and status. Symbolic insignia revealed a complex code about who a man was and what he had accomplished.
But differences did exist. For instance, Plains Indian men wore clothing that incorporated symbols of their spirit visions,
tribal identity, and past deeds as manifestations of the spiritual powers that helped them in battle. European soldiers wore
similar symbols but as a way to display and inspire uniform loyalty to their nation.
Wearing Achievement
The U.S. Army lavished effort on the details of uniforms, increasing the psychological impact on the wearer and his
opponent. Military insignia were designed to prevent any ambiguity about chains of command, so that a soldier could
instantly tell whom to obey. The U.S. Army was so small in 1804 that no complete uniforms survive. This reproduction
portrays a captain in the full-dress uniform of the 1st U.S. Infantry Regiment, to which Lewis belonged. The
"Kentucky" rifle shown below--a .45 caliber flint lock--was passed down through William Clark's family.
Infantry captain's uniform, bicorne hat [not shown]
Reproduction by Timothy Pickles, 2003
Textile
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (79)
Rifle, post 1809,
lock by Rogers & Brothers, Philadelphia
Steel barrel, iron fittings, German silver plates,
tiger maple stock
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (73)
The Plains Warrior
A Plains Indian warrior relied on personal power in
battle, and his dress incorporated symbols of his spirit
visions, his tribal identity, and his past deeds. The leader
of a war party often wore a painted shirt that detailed
his war record. On such shirts made from animal skins,
the contours of the pelt were left intact in the belief that
the animal would lend its qualities to the wearer. The
most powerful shirts were fringed with locks of human
hair provided by relatives and supporters to represent
War shirt, 1843
Antelope skin, quill work
Courtesy of the Alabama Department of Archives and History,
Montgomery (80)
the man's responsibilities to his relations. This shirt,
probably Blackfeet, has buffalo-track symbols on the
neck flap that evoke the power of the bison to aid the
warrior in battle.
Images of Heroism
Plains Indian men wore painted skin robes that told of
their achievements. This image of Shoshone Chief
Washakie's war robe shows a series of diagrammatic
battle scenes. Here, events happen not in a landscape
but in a symbolic realm of deeds. Depictions of his
enemies are not individualized, but are instead given
costumes, hairstyles, or equipment that represent tribal
affiliation, society membership, and past deeds. Warriors
are sometimes represented by disembodied guns or
Washakie war robe (Shoshone),
pre-1897
Paint on deer hide
Copyprint of artifact
Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian,
Washington, D.C. (81)
arrows.
The Ideal Military Hero
In 1759, at the height of the French and Indian War,
General Wolfe led a British-American assault on the
French outside Quebec. The print, based on a painting
by Benjamin West, shows the wounded general dying
just as a messenger brings news that the enemy is
retreating. In the moment of both victory and death,
William Woollett, after a painting by Benjamin West
The Death of General Wolfe.
London: Woollett, Boydell & Ryland, 1776
Engraving
Prints and Photographs Division (81B)
Wolfe achieves transcendent glory. His uplifted eyes
suggest both sacrifice for the nation and triumph over
death--not through faith but through fame. This was an
idealized image to which military men of Lewis and
Clark's generation aspired.
Coyote Headdress
Coyote, the mythic trickster of the Plains Indians, was
the protector of the scouts who spied on the enemy for a
war party. This nineteenth-century Teton headdress
from the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota was
meant to summon and symbolize Coyote's craftiness.
Coyote headdress (Teton Sioux), nineteenth century
Pelt, feathers, canvas, wool, hawk bell
Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian,
Washington, D.C. (78)
Spontoon and Gorget
The spontoon, a long wooden shaft with a spear at one end, became popular with the American army during the
Revolutionary War. Although it was required equipment that signified an officer's rank, these pikes were commonly
abandoned for more practical weapons in battle. Lewis used his as a walking stick, a grizzly-bear spear, and a gun
rest, but never to rally troops in battle. The origins of the gorget can be traced to the chivalric armor. American army
officers wore these ceremonial insignia high on the chest. Lewis presented gorgets (which he called "moons") to
Indian leaders to symbolize rank.
Spontoon (American/Fort Ticonderoga),
late eighteenth century
Iron, wood
Courtesy of the Collection of
Fort Ticonderoga Museum, New York (81A)
Richard Rugg
Gorget, London, ca. 1783
Silver
Courtesy of William H. Guthman
Collection (47)
Bear Claw Necklace
To wear a bear claw necklace was a mark of distinction
for a warrior or a chief, and the right to wear it had to be
earned. These powerful symbols were a part of the
culture of the Great Lakes, Plains, and Plateau tribes. On
August 21, 1805, Lewis wrote in this journal that
Shoshone "warriors or such as esteem themselves brave
men wear collars made of the claws of the brown bear. .
. . These claws are ornamented with beads about the
thick end near which they are pierced through their sides
and strung on a throng of dressed leather and tyed
about the neck . . . . It is esteemed by them an act of
equal celebrity the killing one of these bear or an
enimy."
Animal claw necklace (Teton Sioux),
mid-nineteenth century
Bear claws, hide
Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian,
Washington, D.C. (82)
Handout 5
Plants
In his instructions to Lewis, Jefferson directed the party to observe and record "the soil & face of the country, it's growth &
vegetable productions, especially those not of the U.S. . . . the dates at which particular plants put forth or lose their flower,
or leaf . . . ." The study and collection of plants was one of Jefferson's life-long pursuits. When he instructed the Corps in
their approach to cataloging the country's flora, Jefferson again set the pattern for subsequent explorations. Jefferson,
however, was not purely motivated by science; plants thought to have medicinal properties, like tobacco and sassafras,
were important to the U.S. economy. As the Napoleonic Wars swept Europe and affected exports to the United States, there
was a call to reduce America's dependence on foreign medicine and find substitutes on native soil.
Indians and Europeans had been exchanging knowledge about curing and health for three centuries, yet they still held very
different beliefs. Indian doctors focused on the patient's relationship to the animate world around him. Euro-American
doctors saw the body as a mechanical system needing regulation. Meriwether Lewis, instructed by America's foremost
physician Dr. Benjamin Rush, University of Pennsylvania botanist Benjamin Barton, and his own mother, a skilled herbalist,
was to serve as the Corps doctor, but William Clark also became adept in treating various illnesses. Though Clark rejected
Indian explanations, he often turned to Indian techniques when members of his own party became ill.
Curing the Corps
Lewis and Clark were not persuaded by Indian
explanations of why illness occurred but often used
Indian cures in preference to their own. The Corps began
its journey stocked with traditional western medicinal
treatments and tools. Lewis used lancets to let out blood
in such dangerous conditions as heat exhaustion and
pelvic inflammation, and tourniquets to stop blood flow.
Tourniquet, early nineteenth century
Brass, leather, iron
Lancet, early nineteenth century
Tortoise shell, steel
Clyster syringe, late eighteenth century
Pewter, wood
Courtesy of the Mütter Museum, The College of Physicians of
Philadelphia (86, 87, 88)
Bleeding was thought to relieve congestion in internal
organs. Lewis originally thought he would need three
syringes for enemas but settled for one. There is no
further mention of its use. Laxatives, derived from plant
sources, were also used to purge the body of impurities.
Rules of Health
Thomas Jefferson asked Benjamin Rush, a noted
physician and professor of medicine at the University of
Pennsylvania, to "prepare some notes of such particulars
as may occur in his journey & which you think should
draw his attention & enquiry." Dr. Rush restricted his
advice to practical hints for maintaining health in the
field--some of it unwelcome like using alcohol for
Benjamin Rush (ca.1745-1813) to Meriwether Lewis (17741809), June 11, 1803
cleaning feet instead of for drinking. Many Americans did
not trust professional medicine and instead used folk
cures like these written down by Clark after the
expedition. Many folk cures originally came from Indian
sources.
"Rules for Preserving his Health"
Manuscript
Manuscript Division (91)
This image is not available online:
William Clark
Cures for toothache and "whooping cough," early nineteenth
century
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis (92)
Summoning the Spirits
An Indian doctor's job was to identify the being that had caused an illness, then overcome or placate it. An Indian
patient lived in an animate world, surrounded by entities who could make him ill. Medicinal herbs and roots were
powdered and mixed in a mortar like this one from the Northern Plains. Drums and herbs were used to summon
helpful spirits as aids in healing. Fragrant herbs pleased and attracted good influences and drove away evil ones. This
sweetgrass braid was used as an incense to purify implements, weapons, dwellings, and people.
Mortar and pestle (Plateau),
prehistoric Stone
Courtesy of the Maryhill Museum of Art,
Goldendale, Washington (89a,b)
Sweetgrass braid (Lakota), 1953
Sweetgrass, string
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (93)
Drum (Northern Plains),
nineteenth century
Wood, hide
Courtesy of the Missouri Historical
Society, St. Louis (94)
A Botanical Specimen
While admitting that Lewis was "no regular botanist,"
Jefferson did praise "his talent for observation." And on
June 11, 1806, during an extended stay with the Nez
Perce people, Lewis showed that talent. Camas,
sometimes known as quamash, was an important food
plant for the Nez Perces. Lewis carefully described the
plant's natural environment, its physical structure, the
ways women harvested and prepared camas, and its role
in the Indian diet. Some days later Lewis gathered
samples of camas for his growing collection of western
plants.
Camassia quamash (Pursh), ["Collected by Lewis at Weippe
Prairie, in present-day Idaho, June 23, 1806."] Herbarium sheet
Courtesy of Academy of Natural Sciences, Ewell Sale Stewart
Library, Philadelphia (84)
Flora Americae Septentrionalis
Frederick Pursh, an emigrant from Saxony who worked with botanist Benjamin Smith Barton in Philadelphia, published
the first botanical record of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Pursh received a collection of dried plants from Lewis,
which he classified and incorporated into his Flora Americae Septentrionalis. The volume is open to Clarkia pulchella, a
member of the evening primrose family, which Pursh named in honor of William Clark. Pursh took some of the Lewis
and Clark specimens to London to finish the book, including the silky lupine specimen to the far left.
Frederick Pursh (1774-1820).
Clarkia pulchella
in Flora Americae Septentrionalis: or a
Systematic Arrangement and Description
of the Plants of North America. 2 vols.
London: White, Cochrane, and Col., 1814
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (85)
Lupinus sericens, Pursh, [silky lupine]
[collected by Lewis at Camp Chopunnish, on the Clearwater
River, Idaho, June 5, 1806]
Herbarium sheet
Courtesy of the Royal Botanic Gardens,
Kew, England (83)
Root Digging Bag
Among the Nez Perce, only women harvested plant
foods. A man doing so risked derision and contempt. A
Nez Perce woman's year was structured around plants.
As each new food plant matured, its arrival was
welcomed in a first fruits feast. Root bags were used in
gathering, cooking, and for storage. An industrious
woman could dig eighty or ninety pounds of roots in a
day.
Root digging bag (Plateau), pre-1898
Wild hemp and bear grass or rye grass, with dyes of alder,
Oregon grape root, wolf moss, algae, and larkspur
Courtesy of the Maryhill Museum of Art,
Goldendale, Washington (95)
A Gathering Basket
The cedar bark basket was used across the Plateau for
gathering berries, nuts, and roots. Bark baskets could be
made easily when a person came across some forest
food by stripping off a piece of cedar bark and folding it.
Basket (Plateau), pre-1940
Cedar bark
Courtesy of the Maryhill Museum of Art,
Goldendale, Washington (97)
A Sally Bag
Plateau tribes gathered wild hemp and beargrass, then
traded it to the Wishram and Wasco Indians at The
Dalles in Oregon, the dividing line between North Coast
and Plateau Indians. The traded raw materials would
then be made into finished products like this sally bag,
used for packaging food.
Sally bag, pre-1898
Corn husk, dogbane [wild hemp]
Courtesy of the Maryhill Museum of Art, Goldendale, Washington
(96)
Storing Roots
Among the Shoshone, Lewis noted that dried roots were
stored by being "foalded in as many parchment hides of
buffaloe." Hide bags, like the one on display, were made
by cleaning and sizing rawhide so that it had a smooth,
Parfleche bag (Sahaptin), early nineteenth century
Hide, pigment
Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian,
Washington, D.C. (90)
paintable surface. This bag is decorated in a distinctive
Plateau style.
Photo Analysis Worksheet
Step 1. Observation
Study the photograph for 2 minutes. Form an overall impression of the photograph and then examine individual
items. Next, divide the photo into quadrants and study each section to see what new details become visible.
Use the chart below to list people, objects, and activities in the photograph.
Activities
People
Objects
Step 2. Inference
Based on what you have observed above, list three things you might infer from this photograph
1.
2.
3.
Step 3. Questions
What questions does this photograph raise in your mind?
Where could you find answers to them?
Map Analysis Worksheet
TYPE OF MAP (Check one):
Raised Relief Map
Bird’s-eye Map
Topographic Map
Artifact Map
Political Map
Satellite photographic/mosaic
Contour-line Map
Pictograph
Natural Resource Map
Weather Map
Military Map
Other
UNIQUE PHYSICAL QUALITIES OF THE MAP (Check one or more):
Compass
Name of mapmaker
Handwritten
Title
Date
Legend (key)
Notations
Other
Scale
DATE OF MAP:
CREATOR OF THE MAP:
WHERE WAS THE MAP PRODUCED?
MAP INFORMATION
List three things in this map that you think are important.
1.
2.
3.
Why do you think this map was drawn?
What evidence in the map suggests why it was drawn?
Does the information in this map support or contradict information that you have read about this event? Explain.
Write a question to the mapmaker that is left unanswered by this map.
Written Document Analysis Worksheet
TYPE OF DOCUMENT (Check one):
Newspaper
Map
Advertisement
Congressional Record
Letter
Telegram
Patent
Press Release
Census Report
Memorandum
Report
Other
UNIQUE PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DOCUMENT (Check one or more):
Interesting Letterhead
Notations
Handwritten
“Received” stamp
Typed
Seals
Other
DATE(S) OF DOCUMENT:
AUTHOR (OR CREATOR) OF THE DOCUMENT:
POSITION (TITLE):
FOR WHAT AUDIENCE WAS THE DOCUMENT WRITTEN?
DOCUMENT INFORMATION (There are many possible ways to answer A-E.)
A. List three things the author said that you think are important:
B. Why do you think this document was written?
C. What evidence in the document helps you know why it was written? Quote from the document.
D. List two things the document tells you about life in the United States at the time it was written.
E. Write a question to the author that is left unanswered by the document: