The Lewis and Clark Expedition, by Noah Brooks (1901)

Based on the journals of the 1804 - 5 - 6 Corps of Discovery, better known as the "Lewis and Clark Expedition," author Noah Brooks made a readable narrative from the notes of the explorers.

The introduction establishes that the first authoritative work on the Expedition was published in 1814, by Biddle. By that time many, many accounts had been published, which Brooks has no problem branding as fraudulent - a thought I've also had in relation to our current news media. Incidentally, the spelling is creative and might enchant you as you see how words were originally spelled.

The purpose of the expedition was set forth by President Thomas Jefferson, who had just convinced the Congress to nearly bankrupt the infant country by buying 800,000 square miles of territory belonging to the French. In his commission to Lewis, Jefferson wrote:

"The object of your mission is to explore the Missouri River, and such principal streams of it, as, by its course and communication with the waters of the Pacific Ocean, whether the Columbia, Oregan [sic], Colrado [sic], or any other river, may offer the most direct and practible [sic] water-communication across the continent, for the purposes of commerce."

Meriwether Lewis, leader of the expedition, began his trip from Pittsburgh down the Ohio River to the Mississippi. On the way, he recruited men and was met by William Clark with his recruits, as previously arranged.

The total expedition consisted of 42 men, including soldiers, French voyageurs, and Clark's slave, York. The formal jumping off point was on the western side of the Mississippi near St. Louis. The large Gateway Arch erected at St. Louis commemorates the Louis and Clark Expedition.

Because the expedition was long and the account is somewhat repetitious, I will give you my impressions rather than a blow-by-blow account of what the book contains.

The management of the journey was draconian with military discipline continually exercised. Offenses were dealt with harshly, although the book does not over emphasize that aspect.

Only one man died during the 28-month journey, and he died on the outward bound leg, of what they assumed was appendicitis.

An outstanding feature I noted was the singular lack of violence. On only a few occasions did the explorers have to even prepare to defend themselves and only once did they actually resort to violence against the Indians, killing two.

The explorers did, however, threaten the Indians several times with murderous violence when confronted with thievery or even sullen attitudes. This would be a real problem with some readers today, realizing that the explorers threatened to kill those who did not cooperate.

There were fewer Indian tribes mentioned than I would have expected, and nearly all had tongue-twisting names that you might not be familiar with. Minnetarrie = Blackfoot, and Choppunish = Nez Perces, for example.

As you might expect, a large proportion of the journey was devoted to obtaining food and hunters were continually on the lookout for game. Once on the western side of the Bitterroot Mountains, game was extremely scarce and the explorers suffered greatly from hunger. The Indians taught the explorers to eat roots and the explorers supplemented their diet with dog whenever they could obtain them. Some Indian tribes ate dog, while others derided the explorers, for eating pets.

The expedition finally returned to St. Louis in September 1806.

The book is well written, but a bit archaic in the writing style. Those who are interested in the history of America or the beginning of the wild west are encouraged to read the book, which will prove an eye opener, as I'm sure some new impressions, like I’ve detailed above will be instilled in the reader.

Recommended: Yes