Lewis and Clark were the two men who led the corps into the uncharted abyss of the American west, looking for a "northwest passage" that did not exist. Lewis and Clark... when people speak of them, it's almost like it's a single name: Lewisandclark. Rarely mentioned separately, the contrast between them is striking.
Among the things they had in common, both were Freemasons. Meriwether Lewis (1774-1809) received his degrees at Door to Virtue Lodge #44 in Virginia January 28-29, 1797. Door to Virtue Lodge closed in 1801, with Lewis and others probably transferring to Widow's Son Lodge #60, in Charlottesville. He was also a member of Staunton Lodge #13, Staunton, Virginia, where he received the Royal Arch Degree. In 1808, Lewis was a signatory on an application for dispensation leading to the formation of St. Louis Lodge #111, where he became its first Master.i
William Clark (1770-1838) was also a member of St. Louis Lodge #111, although the records of his initiation have been lost. There is some speculation he elected to become a member at the urging of Worshipful Brother Lewis and, unlike Lewis, was most likely not a Mason during their historic voyage. Records show Clark requested and obtained a traveling certificate from the Lodge on September 18, 1809. He was not as active in Lodge attendance as Lewis but his public service and charitable acts exemplify his dedication to its principles. When St. Louis Lodge #111 returned its warrant to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania in 1815, Clark transferred his membership to Missouri Lodge #12 and allowed it to meet for several years in one of his houses. Upon his death Brother Clark received a Masonic funeral and a monument at his grave in Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, bears an engraving of the square and compasses.ii
Born August 18, 1774, Meriwether Lewis was a boyhood neighbor of Thomas Jefferson. During the time Lewis knew him as a young boy, Jefferson, in his thirties, was serving as Governor of Virginia and, in 1783, became a member of congress. In 1784, after the death of his father, Lewis moved to Georgia with his mother and stepfather. There he developed a love of the outdoors and learned trapping and hunting skills and developed an interest in natural history. He also had an opportunity to become acquainted with the Native Americans in the area. In 1787, Lewis' brother Nicholas, now his guardian, sent him back to Virginia for an education.iii There, through a teacher, he renewed his contact with Jefferson. Lewis graduated in 1798 and the following year joined the militia as an ensign. In the military, he was in a division led by General "Mad Anthony" Wayne under the direct command of Lieutenant William Clark. Although Clark was his commander and Lewis only served with him for about six months, it was here that Lewis and Clark formed their lifelong friendship.iv
Upon becoming President of the US, one of the first things Jefferson did was to appoint Lewis as his personal secretary and aide. At the same time, Jefferson became increasingly aware of the importance of the western lands and was certain his young country should explore them. He was convinced his diligent young secretary was just the man for the job and put him in charge of the expedition. Lewis convinced him the undertaking needed a second leader and recommended his old friend Clark.
Born on August 1, 1770, also in the state of Virginia , Clark had the same sort of genteel upbringing in his early years as Lewis. He was the younger brother of famed American Revolution General George Rogers Clarkv. In 1785, Clark moved to Kentucky with his family, settling in an area near present-day Louisville. Clark had no formal education, but was home-schooled and considered well-read. At the age of 19, he began his military career. He served in various capacities and was mainly involved in Indian wars, until 1792, when he became a lieutenant under General Anthony Wayne, where he met Lewis. In 1796, although only 26, Clark resigned his commission citing poor health, and moved back to Kentucky with his family, where he managed the family's estate.vi He stayed there until Lewis picked him for the Voyage of Discovery.
The journey itself was so dangerous, so difficult and so uncertain that when the men had not returned two years after it began, most, including President Jefferson himself, thought they had perished.vii But the men were well-prepared and well disciplined. Lewis had even taken what today would be called a crash course in life sciences to prepare him for documenting the wildlife along the way. Local trappers and guides schooled them in Native American customs and protocols. And, above all, the expedition was well-supplied and well-fortified for the voyage.
Lewis, Clark and the band of men they had hand picked, spent the winter prior to the journey making preparations at Camp DuBois (Camp Wood) on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River. In the spring, they traveled across the Mississippi to St. Charles, in what is now Missouri, and began the adventure in earnest from that point on May 21, 1804.
The first part of the trip, lasting the entire summer, took them up the Missouri River to Ft. Mandan, near present-day Washburn, North Dakota. Along the way, Sergeant Charles Floyd fell ill and died on August 20. They buried him at Floyd's Bluff, near present-day Sioux City, Iowa. He was the only member of the expedition to lose his life on the trip. He died of appendicitis (or, as Lewis called it, "Biliose Chorlick")viii, and given the medical technology of the day, had he been in St. Louis, Sergeant Floyd would have died anyway.
During that first summer, Lewis and Clark dealt with a few incidents of insubordination among the men, were introduced to the grueling task of navigating the unpredictable Missouri River and had a few skirmishes with Native Americans. The most notable conflict took place with the Lakota Sioux, who demanded one of the Corps' boats in exchange for passage. Instead of responding with force, which would have been suicide, Lewis and Clark, for lack of a better term, put on a show. They put on fancy dress uniforms, held a flag-raising ceremony and demonstrated a repeating air rifle they had brought along. Corps member John Ordway described the rest of it (sic):
"Gave the 3 Chiefs 3 niew meddals & 1 american flag Some knives & other Small articles of Goods— & Gave the head chief the Black Buffalow a red coat & a cocked hat & feather &.C— likewise Some Tobacco.— We had no good interpreter but the old frenchman could make them understand tollarable well. but they did not appear to talk much untill they had got the goods, and then they wanted more, and Said we must Stop with them or leave one of the pearogues with them, as that was what they expected. Capt. Lewis Shewed them the air Gun. Shot it Several times. then the Captains brought the 3 chiefs [10] and one warrier they had with them. Gave the warrier a Sertifficate. then Shewed the chiefs Some curioussities.ix"
The demonstrations had little effect. The Lakota were not impressed by the trinkets or the ceremonies. They were certainly amazed by the airgun and probably wanted it, but it did not intimidate them at all. Only a lot of diplomacy, a little liquor and some cordiality saved the expedition.
Once settled in for the winter at Ft. Mandan, they met the person generally regarded as the key to the success of the journey; not the Frenchman Touissaint Charbonneau, whom they hired as an interpreter, but a sixteen year old girl, his wife, Sacagawea.
Although it was a rather cold winter, the men spent the time in the relative warmth and comfort of the fort they constructed there. In the spring, they began what would be one of the most brutal journeys ever undertaken.
On April 7, 1805, thirty-one explorers including Clark's African American slave named York, one woman, her baby and a dog might as well have stepped off the face of the earth as they set out west on the Missouri River into completely uncharted territory.
From Ft. Mandan into Montana it was relatively easy going until June 21 when the party reached the Great Falls of the Missouri River. They had assumed the portage around the falls would take no more than a couple of days but in reality it took 12. The men had to construct makeshift wagons to push their boats around the falls and uphill over rough terrain in the summer heat. This grueling job paled in comparison to their next obstacle – the Rocky Mountains.
As they left the Great Falls behind, Sacagawea began to recognize the territory. They were in the area from which she had been abducted five years earlier, and her value as a guide became priceless. Recognizing landmarks, she assured them they would soon run into her people. Finding the area's Native Americans was crucial to the journey's success, since the explorers needed to trade for horses to make it over the mountains.
Buoyed by this news, Lewis scouted ahead and encountered a band of Shoshone led by Chief Cameahwait. What followed was a coincidence straight out of a modern day soap opera. While Lewis attempted to negotiate for the horses, the expedition caught up with him, and Sacagawea recognized Cameahwait — her brother. The reunion with his sister sealed the deal for Cameahwait, who helped Lewis and Clark get the horses they needed.x
By now the Corps thought it was nearing the end of its journey. Lewis, Clark and the rest of the party figured they would get to the top of the approaching mountain range and sight the Columbia River, which would take them downstream to the coast. However, on August 12, Lewis climbed to the top of Lemhi Pass and peered over. What he saw must have made his blood run cold. Instead of a river he saw miles and miles... and even more miles... of mountains. He realized now, with fall approaching, the expedition had a nearly impossible task ahead – to cross the mountains before winter set in.
They didn't make it. Early winter snows, beginning in September, slowed the expedition. The group ultimately got lost, resorted to eating dogs, horses and even wax before emerging from what one explorer called, "The most terrible mountains I ever beheld."xi In late September, with the mountains finally behind them, they found the Columbia River, built canoes and were once again able to travel by water. On November 15, 1805, the party finally reached its destination, the Pacific Ocean.
The explorers set up camp at what they called Ft. Clatsop on the coast of present-day Oregon and stayed there from December, 1805 through mid-March, 1806. This second winter was not as pleasant as the previous one at Ft. Mandan. Lewis and Clark had difficulty adjusting to the customs of the Native Americans there, especially their tedious bargaining techniques. This made it difficult for the Corps to negotiate for supplies they would need for the trip back. As a result, they were anxious to begin the return voyage. They left too early, and once again encountered brutal snows as they headed back toward the Rockies.
They had difficulties on the trip home, to be sure, but it was an easier voyage and on September 15, 1806, they triumphantly returned to St. Louis. The people there received them as national heroes.
The journey had changed their lives. After it was over their lives took separate paths and the differences between the two men became more apparent.
Jefferson appointed Lewis Governor of Louisiana Territory. The same Meriwether Lewis who had successfully led one of the most difficult and dangerous undertakings ever, did not adapt well to the adversities of politics. Jefferson had also assigned him the job of reporting on the Voyage of Discovery by transcribing and summarizing its notes, a task which seemed to burden him and which he never finished.xii Finally, Lewis' personal finances unraveled.
His political enemies, including his own Lt. Governor, took quick advantage of Lewis' financial predicament and pounced on his handling of government funds, accusing him of fraud. Lewis became depressed (Jefferson noted Lewis' lifelong battle with depression, calling it "melancholia") and began drinking too much. He became obsessed with clearing his name and set out on an arduous trip to Washington to do just that.
He never completed the journey. On October 11, 1809, 35-year old Meriwether Lewis' body was discovered in a cabin along the Natchez Trace, having been shot once in the head and once in the chest. There is some speculation he was killed by his political enemies or robbed by highwaymen. However, given his drinking, depression and overwhelming personal problems, most historians believe he committed suicide.xiii He was buried near the spot where he died in what today is Lewis County, Tennessee. A broken column, a Masonic symbol of a life cut short, marks his grave.
After the journey, the life of Brother William Clark was a different story. Just as Jefferson had rewarded Lewis with an important job after the voyage, he appointed Clark a Brigadier General in the militia and agent for Indian affairs in the West. Clark married Julia Hancock two years later. Together, they not only raised a family, but also took in Sacagawea's children when, at the age of only 24, she died in 1812. The Clarks had five children, the first of whom they named Meriwether Lewis Clark, after Clark's good friend. In 1813, the Missouri Territory was carved out and President James Madison appointed Clark its Governor. Unlike Lewis, he was a successful administrator and President Madison re-appointed him to the position in 1816, as did President Monroe in 1820. That year, when Missouri became a state, friends urged a reluctant Clark to run for governor. When Clark was unsuccessful in that campaign, President Monroe appointed him Superintendent for Indian Affairs, a position he held until his death, September 1, 1838.xiv
For several years, the mystery surrounding Lewis' death and his lack of success after the expedition somewhat overshadowed the accomplishments of the Corps of Discovery. Over time, however, that story subsided and the accomplishments of the men became more apparent. Cities, counties, schools, even plants and animals have been named after both Lewis and Clark. In 2004-2006 a complete re-enactment of their journey took place along its route and both men were honored at their grave-sites. In 2001, President Bill Clinton posthumously promoted Clark to the rank of Captain in the US army.xv And Lewis is regarded not as the troubled soul he became, but as the leader of the nearly impossible expedition that opened the west, something President Thomas Jefferson knew from the start and confirmed after Lewis' death:
Of courage undaunted, possessing a firmness and perseverance of purpose which nothing but impossibilities could divert from its direction, ... honest, disinterested, liberal, of sound understanding and a fidelity to truth so scrupulous that whatever he should report would be as certain as if seen by ourselves, with all these qualifications as if selected and implanted by nature in one body for this express purpose, I could have no hesitation in confiding the enterprise to him.xvi
iDenslow, William R., and Harry S. Truman. 10,000 Famous Freemasons. Richmond, Virginia: Macoy & Masonic Supply, 1957.
iiLibert, Laura. "Pa Freemason May 03 - Treasures of the Temple." The Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Pennsylvania. Web. 28 June 2011. <http://www.pagrandLodge.org/freemason/0503/tot.html>.
iii"Find A Grave - Cemetery Records and Online Memorials." Findagrave.com. Web. 28 June 2011. <http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr>.
ivTreutelaar, Ty G. "Meriwether Lewis - A Commemoration of a Life." Missouri Feemason Magazine 55.2 (2010): 42-44.
vGeorge Rogers Clark was also a Freemason. His Lodge is unknown, but upon his death February 13, 1818, he received a Masonic funeral courtesy of Abraham Lodge No. 8, Louisville.
vi"William Clark Biography." Biography.com. Web. 29 June 2011. <http://www.biography.com/articles/William-Clark-9542620>.
viiDr. Paul A. Hutton, Professor, University of New Mexico, Lewis & Clark: Explorers of the New Frontier. A&E Television Networks, 1993. DVD.
viii"Lewis and Clark Promote Patrick Gass to Sergeant — History.com This Day in History — 8/26/1804." History.com. The History Channel. Web. 30 June 2011. <http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/lewis-and-clark-promote-patrick-gass-to-sergeant>. Upon Floyd's death, Lewis and Clark appointed Patrick Gass as his replacement. Gass lived to the age of 99, and was the last surviving member of the Corps of Discovery. He died in 1870.
ix"The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition." University of Nebraska. Web. <http://lewisandclarkjournals.unl.edu/read/?_xmlsrc=1804-09-25.xml&_xslsrc=LCstyles.xsl>.
xLewis & Clark: Explorers of the New Frontier. A&E Television Networks, 1993. DVD.
xiLewis & Clark: Explorers of the New Frontier. A&E Television Networks, 1993. DVD.
xiiSome speculate Lewis took the manuscript with him on his final journey to Washington. There is no evidence to support this, however.
xiii"Meriwether Lewis Biography." ScienceViews. Web. 09 July 2011. <http://www.scienceviews.com/historical/meriwetherlewis.html>. An account by the landlady (Priscilla Grinder) at Grinder's cabin where he died seems to support the fact he died by suicide, if it is to be believed: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=623
xiv"William Clark Biography." Biography.com. Web. 11 July 2011. <http://www.biography.com/articles/William-Clark-9542620>.
xv"President Clinton: Celebrating the Legacy of Lewis and Clark and Preserving America s Natural Treasures." Welcome To The White House. Web. 11 July 2011. <http://clinton5.nara.gov/WH/new/html/Wed_Jan_17_101131_2001.html>. In the same ceremony, President Clinton also bestowed the title of Honorary Sergeant, Regular Army to both Sacagawea and York, Clark's African American slave, who accompanied them.
xviAmbrose, Stephen E. Undaunted Courage Meriwether Lewis Thomas Jefferson and the Opening of the American West. Simon & Schuster, 2008. Print.
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