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Lewis & Clark and the Corp of Discovery

The years 2003-2006 marked the celebration of the bicentennial of Lewis and Clark’s epic journey with the Corps of Discovery. At President Thomas Jefferson’s behest, the Corps traveled over 8000 miles, seeking a water route to the Pacific Ocean while making contact with Native American tribes and collecting scientific data. Although the Corps failed to find the water route they expected, the experiences they recorded in their journals and diaries continue to thrill us. Compiled here are print and web resources, along with some interesting facts, to help you discover more about their amazing trip.

A map of Lewis and Clark’s track, across the western portion of North America from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean: by order of the executive of the United States in 1804, 5 & 6

Quick Facts

  1. Only one man died on the journey-from a ruptured appendix.
  2. Meriwether Lewis was accidentally shot by one of his own men.
  3. Corps member Patrick Gass lived to be 100 years old.
  4. Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, Sacagawea’s son, is buried near Jordan Valley, OR.¬ Sacagawea was only 19 years old when she assisted the Corps members.
  5. The Corps first entered what is now Idaho at Lemhi Pass on August 12, 1805.
  6. Lewis’ dog Seaman accompanied the Corps on their journey.

Books on Lewis and Clark 

  • This is just a small sample of the Lewis and Clark books available
  • Across the Snowy Ranges: The Lewis and Clark Expedition in Idaho and WesternMontana, by James R. Fazio
  • Bitterroot Crossing: Lewis and Clark Across the Lolo Trail, by Gene and Mollie Eastman
  • Hike Lewis and Clark’s Idaho, by Mary Aegerter
  • The Journals of Lewis and Clark, edited by Bernard De Voto
  • Journals of Patrick Gass: Member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by Carol Lynn Macgregor
  • The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by Gary E. Moulton
  • Lewis and Clark Among the Indians, by James P. Ronda
  • Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of theAmerican West, by Stephen E. Ambrose
  • Voyages of Discovery:  Essays on the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by James P. Ronda

Books about York

  • In Search of York: The Slave Who Went to the Pacific With Lewis and Clark, by Robert B. Betts 
  • York: The Slave Who Helped Explore America, by R.W. Gustafson

Books about Sacajawea

  • Bird Woman:  Sacagawea’s Own Story, as recorded by James Willard Schultz
  • The Lemhi: Sacajawea’s People, by Brigham D. Madsen
  • Sacajawea, by Harold P. Howard
  • Sacajawea of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, by Ella E. Clark and Margot Edmonds
  • Sacagawea Speaks: Beyond the Shining Mountains With Lewis and Clark, by Joyce Badgley Hunsaker
  • The Shoshone, by Kim Draper

Seaman

Even Seaman, Lewis’ dog, has been written about in these children’s books:

  • Dog of Discovery: A Newfoundland’s Adventures With Lewis and Clark, by Laurence P. Pringle  
  • Lewis and Clark and Me:  A Dog’s Tale, by Laurie Myers
  • Seaman, the Dog Who Explored the West With Lewis and Clark, by Gail Karwoski
  • The Captain’s Dog:  My Journey With the Lewis and Clark Tribe, by Roland Smith

Videos

  • Echoes of a Bitter Crossing: Lewis and Clark in Idaho
  • Lewis and Clark at Fort Mandan
  • Lewis and Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery
  • Nez Perce: Portrait of a People

Lewis and Clark and Native Americans on the Web

Compiled by Ellen Druckenbrod, Boise Public Library. updated 3/13/2018 Ronnie Joiner