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Jefferson petitions Congress.
This is the first day that Thomas Jefferson contacts Congress about this expedition. He originally asked that 2,500 $ be allocated to the expedition. A total of 38,000 $ was the final amount used to fund it. -
Louisiana Purchase
Jefferson announced the purchase of the louisiana territory on this day. The actual purchase was made on april 30 of that year even though it was announced later. The Louisiana Purchase encompassed 850,000 square miles, and was bought from France for only 15,000,000 $. -
Lewis starts preparing
Meriwether Lewis was chosen to be the leader of the expedition. He left Whashington DC the day after the Louisiana Purchase was announced. He began to make preparations immediately. -
The Expedition Begins
This is the day that the "Corps of Explration" set off. The picture depicts the boat that they took for the journey. The official name of it is a keelboat. -
First meeting with the Native Americans
This was the first time that the Corps of Discovery met with any of the Native Americans that far west. This group was friendly to the Corps. One of the gifts that was given to the Native Americans is the peace coin pictured. -
First Casualty
Charles Floyd was the first and last casualty during the entire expedition. He is thought to have died from a burst appendix. The place where he was buried is called Floyd's bluff in honor of him. -
First Hostile Encounter
When the Corps tried to pass through the territory of the Sioux, they were stopped. The Sioux demanded that they give one of their keelboats to them as payment for passing through. The Corps refused, and there was almost open fighting. They all restrained themselves right before they would have started fighting. They were eventually able to come to an agreement and the Corps continued along their way. -
The Corps hire Charbonneau
Toussaint Charbonneau was a French fur trader that the Corps of Discovery came across during their journey. He had a wife by the name of Sacagawea that was a Shoshone Indian. The Corps thought that she would be a very valuable asset as they traveled through the unfamiliar terain, so they hired Charbonneau in order to get both of them. -
Jean Baptiste is born
Sacagawea had a child by the name of Jean Baptiste while on the trail. She carried him across the rest of the journey with the Corps. -
The group splits up
Lewis sent one of the keelboats and a dozen men back to 'civilization'. With them were many of the specimens and research that had been collected. The rest of the group continued on to the Pacific Ocean. -
The Missouri Falls
On this day, the group arrived at the Missouri Falls. Since they couldn't continue on in the boats, the Corps had to make carts and tow all of their supplies across almost 19 miles. This was one of the hardest parts of the jurney for the Corps. -
Meeting with the Shoshone
On this day, the group met with the Shoshone in order to trade for some horses. Theey found out that the chief of the Shoshone was Sacagwea's brother. They were able to negotiate for all the horses they needed because of these friendly relations. -
The beggining of the Bitteroots
The Bitteroot Mountains were the next challenge that the Corps faced. This was by far the hardest part of their entire journey. They got lost, ran out of provisions, and nearly died while in those mountains. -
The end of the Bitteroots
After 11 grueling days of travel, the Corps finally made it out of the mountains. They had to resort to eating one of the horses, and almost ate more. -
Clark hopes for the Pacific
Clark thinks that he sees the Pacific Ocean. He becomes overjoyed and gets his hopes up. He later finds out that they were still 20 miles away. He had to wait a week before he got to the Pacific Ocean. -
The Pacific Ocean
On this day, the Corps finally arrived at the Pacific Ocean. They had acheived their goal. Unfortunately though, they found that there wasn't a water route that connected the two Oceans. One of their greatest hopes ended up being false. Now, they had to worry about their return journey home, -
Only evidence of the Corps today
The Corps decided to split up so that thy could map more territories. Clark's group ended up traveling down to Yellowstone park. While there, Clark carved his name onto a rock. This is the only peuce of evidence of their expedition that survives today. -
Charbonneau and Sacagawea leave
This is when Charbonneau and Sacagawea break away from the Corps. They wanted to stay in the West, so they broke away and said their goodbyes. -
Cow is spotted
On this day, a cow is spotted by the side of the river. The men are overjoyed because that means that they are close to home. They arrive at a small town later that day. -
End of the Expedition
This is when they arrived in St. Louis. They completed the journey of a lifetime. After being gone for 2 and a half years, they were finally able to get back and see the people that they had left behind.
