Essential Question

•What were the major effects of the exploration of the territories west of the Mississippi River?

The Lewis & Clark Expedition

CH 10 Sec 2 PT II

TJ’s Plan•Since 1802, TJ had planned an expedition,

or journey of discovery, to explore the LA territory▫There were several objectives TJ wanted

accomplished 1. Establish peaceful trade relations w/ the

Natives 2. Detailed reports on the plant & animal life 3. Maps of important geographical features 4. Search for the possibility of a NW Passage

▫Now, TJ simply needed to find someone he trusted to lead the expedition

Summary/Quiz QuestionWhat was TJ’s plan on how to deal with the Natives in the LA Territory?

a. treat them in a friendly & peaceful manner

b. treat them as if they were American citizens

c. treat them as enemies

d. treat them as slaves

Lewis & Clark• To lead the mission, TJ chose

Meriwether Lewis▫Lewis was a young military

officer, who had also served as TJ’s private secretary

▫Lewis chose William Clark as his 2nd in command Clark had military experience,

was a mapmaker, and was an accomplished outdoorsman He was also the younger

brother of Revolutionary War hero George Rogers Clark

The Corps of Discovery• L & C then

gathered a group of volunteers to aid them in their journey▫Known as the

Corps of Discovery, this group of 50 men included an assortment of skilled individuals

Summary/Quiz Question•Why did TJ send the Corps of Discovery

into the LA Territory?a. To find out if there was an all-water route

to the Pacific Oceanb. To determine if the land was worth what

France was asking for itc. To convince the British to leave forts in

the Pacific Northwestd. All of the Above

The Journey Begins•L & C set out in the summer of 1803

▫By winter, they had reached their first destination St. Louis, MO

▫St. Louis, located on the west bank of the Miss. R., became the gateway to “The West”

▫L & C spent the winter there, waiting for the official transfer of LA to the U.S. (March 1804)

•In May 1804, the Corps began sailing up the Missouri R.▫After reaching modern-day ND, L & C decided to

winter w/ natives known as the Mandan

Fort Mandan• L & C were allowed by the

Mandan to establish a fort on their lands

• 2 very fortunate outcomes of this stay were:1.While wintering, L & C

established positive relations w/ the Natives

2. They also met a French Canadian & his Shoshone wife, both of whom spoke multiple languages, who agreed to join their party

Sacagawea Sacagawea and her

husband decided to go west w/ the Corps to see her brother Their skill as interpreters

and knowledge of the land was invaluable to L & C

L & C were eventually able to trade for horses w/ Sacagawea’s brother This allowed L & C to

travel through the Rockies and on to the last part of the journey to the Pacific

Summary/Quiz Question•What special contribution did Sacagawea

make to the L & C expedition?a. She cooked for the explorers during the

first winterb. She married one of the explorersc. She guided the explorers and acted as a

translator for themd. She helped them escape from an

unfriendly tribe