The Influence Of The Lewis And Clark Expedition

The year of 1803 significantly changed our nation eternally. It stunned many people. In no way, shape or form, did we ever believe that our nation would expand so rapidly. What started with the small purchase of New Orleans led into the substantial purchase of the Louisiana Territory. This was a purchase that will make Thomas Jefferson a man to be remembered. Although, he wasn’t the only man who impacted the United States during this time period. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark are the two men that are greatly known for their expedition across the Louisiana Territory. These two subjects, the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark Expedition, altered our nation immeasurably.

Lewis couldn't go alone, however, even though he was known for being an intelligent, and literate man, as well as being an experienced frontiersman. Therefore, Lewis asked Jefferson if a man known as William Clark could be a part of the exploration. Clark was an even more experienced draftsman and frontiersman than Lewis. Jefferson approved of the duo and believed that the men would find Wolly Mammoths, volcanoes, and a mountain of salt. Thus, Jefferson initiated a military Corps of

Meriwether Lewis was a confidant of Thomas Jefferson, who was the 3rd President of the United States. When Jefferson bought Louisiana from Bonaparte, the federal government thought that the land purchased was a “worthless desert.” To prove them wrong, Jefferson commissioned Lewis and Clark’s Mission of Discovery. The expedition went on for 2 years with 3 goals in mind. When Lewis and Clark came back from the expedition, Jefferson put Lewis as the governor of upper Louisiana. Lewis also informed Jefferson of the expedition, and attempted to publish his book. Coming back into Louisiana as the governor, he dealt with financial issues. In D.C., it was rumored that he was embezzling money from Louisiana.

The Lewis and Clark expedition, or Corps of Discovery, began with the Louisiana Purchase. After the Louisiana Territory was in the possession of the United States, President Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark on a trip west to learn more about the new area. The goals of the expedition were to study the Native Americans living in the area as well as the plants, animals, and land of the region. Most importantly, Jefferson wanted the expedition to find out if there was a river that connected the Pacific Ocean to the eastern states. The Corps of Discovery set out on their mission in May 1804 and traveled up the Missouri River.

The expedition of Lewis and Clark began on May 21,1804. Meriwether Lewis was born on August 18, 1774 in Albemarle County, Virginia. Lewis met Clark in 1795 in the army. Lewis was asked to be Thomas Jefferson’s private secretary in 1801. Clark was born on August 1, 1770 near Caroline County, Virginia. Clark first entered the military at age 19 and served in the militia. Lewis asked Clark for help on the exploration and made him co-captain. With purchasing land from France called the Louisiana Purchase in April 1803, Jefferson wanted to find a water route that linked Columbia and the Missouri river, connected Pacific Ocean with the Missouri river system, and gave Western land access to port out of Mexico to the East. President also wanted to know what the land he recently bought was like. Lewis and Clark’s expedition immediately got easier with the help of Toussaint Charbonneau and his wife, Sacagawea on November 4, 1804. Sacagawea and her husband helped the exploration run more smoothly without the chance of misunderstanding with the Native American tribes. When Lewis and Clark returned to president Jefferson, they were treated as national heroes. They received gifts such as double pay. The men on the expedition

Thomas Jefferson promises in 1787 that the territories in the northwest would not be forgotten. He stated that the Indians would be given good faith that their land would not be taken from them unless they agreed to give it up. Thomas Jefferson also stated that the rights, liberty, and their property would be set in good faith. The problem with this is that Congress could take their lands if it was needed for a war. Thomas Jefferson wanted to keep the peace with the Indians and he did his best to keep those promises, but unfortunately, it didn’t always happen in 1801, Thomas Jefferson set up the Lewis and Clark Expedition in which he sent explorers to map out the transcontinental routes to study the natural resources that could be used in the

Meriwether Lewis led the expedition. Their mission was to find a way to water. They brought 43 men on their mission, which was called the Corps of Discovery (The Kansas Journey, pg. 74). Clark sucked at spelling and Lewis was good at spelling (The Kansas Journey, pg 74). After Lewis and Clark got back, Zebulon Pike went to explore Kansas.

Lewis and Clark’s influence on western expansion In 1803 the land west of the Mississippi was a vast unknown world ripe for exploration. Western expansion was the movement of Americans from the well mapped eastern states to the unknown land west of the Mississippi river. Lewis and Clark mapped the Exploration’s path and camp sites into deep details. Lewis and Clark recorded and influenced relations with Native Americans they encountered.

In January 1803, Thomas Jefferson sent a confidential message to Congress asking for approval and funding of the exploration of the Westward part of the continent and was granted 2500-dollar budget for the expedition. Captain Meriwether Lewis was chosen as the expeditions’ leader because of his previous experience with the west and because he was an experienced

Exploration has always been a central theme in the development of the United States. The Louisiana Purchase, in 1803, made the government more eager to expand west. The newly acquired lands were in need of exploration. A team needed to be established to survey and document the new territory. The Lewis and Clark expedition would answer the unknown questions of the west. The expedition would not have been successful without the leadership, determination, discipline of the Corps of Discovery, and the cooperation of the Native Americans. President Jefferson wanted the leader to have the same passion and intensity toward the discovery of the west as he possessed. Jefferson hand-

On February 28, 1803, President Thomas Jefferson, with the approval of congress, created the Corps of Discovery. Their mission was to map the newly acquired western lands of the Louisianna Purchase, almost 1803—828,000 square miles of unexplored territory, as well as find a route to the Pacific Ocean. This expedition was led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. During their adventure, the group encountered many hostile Native American groups, and if not for Sacagawea, these tribes would have surely jeopardized their operation. Due to her role as a helpful guide, Sacagawea was crucial in the encounter between the Corps of Discovery and the Native Americans because she negotiated and traded between the groups, functioned as a peace token, and served as an interpreter.

In May of 1804, two men set out on an important journey that would take them across the country and discover new land, but none of it would have been possible without the aid of one woman. The Lewis and Clark Expedition was planned by Thomas Jefferson, in order to explore the unknown in the newly purchased Louisiana Territory, and also to find a water route across the continent. Along the way the group of men met a quiet native, named Sacagawea, whose impact would later have a large effect on the success of their important journey.

From 1801 to 1809 Thomas Jefferson was the U.S president. Meriweather Lewis was Thomas Jefferson’s secretary whom was commissioned in 1803 to explore the territory of the Louisiana Purchase. William Clark was also a part of this expedition which resulted

William Clark, and the Corps of Discovery Company. The purpose of this valiant mission was

In 1800 Thomas Jefferson was elected president. With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, Jefferson had the vision of the United States growing from sea to sea. However, it was unknown what was out there. Jefferson planned an exploratory expedition and called upon Meriwether Lewis to lead it. Jefferson was very interested in what was in the west lands. Much was involved in the carrying out of this expedition; the preparations for this trip, what happened during their long journey west, and the return home. This expedition was very important in the development of the United States.