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This is Mary Tillotson with the VOA Special English programExplorations.
A celebration has begun in theUnited States that will continue until September oftwo-thousand-six. The celebration honors the two-hundredthanniversary of the most famous exploration in American history.Today, and for the next two weeks, Shirley Griffith and Steve Embertell the story of a group of explorers. They left their families andfriends to enter unexplored areas of the American Northwest.
These explorers faced heat, cold,lack of food, dangerous rivers and fierce Indian tribes. Theytraveled almost thirteen-thousand kilometers across areas that wouldlater become the northwestern United States. Their trip is stillknown by the names of the two men who led the group — Lewis andClark.
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VOICE ONE:
The story of the Lewis and Clark exploration begins back in timeon June twentieth, eighteen-oh-three. A young man, Meriwether Lewis,has just received a letter from the president of the United States,Thomas Jefferson. Meriwether Lewis is a captain in the United Statesarmy. He also serves as President Jefferson’s private secretary. Heis twenty-eight years old. The letter from President Jefferson saysCaptain Lewis will lead a group of men to explore the area from theMissouri River to the Pacific Ocean.
VOICE TWO:
President Jefferson’s letter is long. It tells Captain Lewis todraw maps of the areas in which he travels. It tells him to record aday-by-day history of his trip. And it tells him to collect plantsand animals he finds. President Jefferson says Mister Lewis is towrite about the different tribes of Indians he meets. Lewis is toreport about their languages, their clothing and their culture. Theletter asks Lewis to return with as much information as possibleabout this unknown land.
VOICE ONE:
In the early eighteen-hundreds, much of the land that would laterbecome the United States was unexplored. Many people believed thatancient animals like huge dinosaurs could still live in the farWest. Other stories told of strange and terrible people in theseunexplored areas. President Jefferson wanted Lewis to confirm orprove false as many of these stories as possible. The president alsowanted him to find the best and fastest way to travel across the farwestern lands.
President Jefferson wanted many other questions answered. Lewiswas to learn if it was possible to send trade goods by land to thePacific coast. He was to learn if it were possible to take a boatwest across the country to the Pacific Ocean. Many people believedthis was possible. This idea was called the northwest passage.People thought the northwest passage would be a river or severalrivers that linked the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Explorers justhad to find it.
VOICE TWO:
President Jefferson knew that any trip to the far West would beextremely dangerous. Those taking part could expect years of hardwork. They would lack food and water. They would face dangerousIndians and have little medical help. There would be severe weather.It was possible that such a group of explorers would never return.President Jefferson chose Lewis to lead the trip because he was sureLewis would succeed.
Meriwether Lewis and President Jefferson had spent a lot of timetogether. President Jefferson had great respect for Lewis. He knewCaptain Lewis was a strong man who had a good education. Lewis wasalso a successful army officer and a good leader. And, probably mostimportant, he was a skilled hunter who was used to living outdoorsfor long periods of time.
VOICE ONE:
Lewis knew that such a trip would be extremely difficult anddangerous. He knew that he needed another person who could lead thegroup if he became injured or died. He requested PresidentJefferson’s permission to ask a friend to help him. Lewis’ friendwas William Clark. Clark was an excellent leader, and was good atmaking maps. Lewis wrote a letter to Clark and offered him the job.Clark accepted. The two men decided to share the responsibility ofcommand.
They decided to be equal in all things. Lewis and Clark had knowneach other for several years. They had served in the army together.Each trusted the other’s abilities.
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President Jefferson then sent Lewis to the city of Philadelphia.There, scientists began to teach him about modern scientificmethods. He learned about plants. He learned how to tell where hewas on the planet by using the stars and the sun. He learned aboutthe different kinds of animals. He also studied with a doctor,Benjamin Rush, who taught him about emergency care of the sick orwounded and about different kinds of medicine. Doctor Rush helpedLewis gather the medical supplies that would be needed for the trip.
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William Clark began to choose the men they would lead across thecountry to the Pacific Ocean. He made sure the men understood thedangers they would face. Clark and Lewis agreed that they needed menwho could add some skill to the group. They agreed they wanted menwho had lived much of their lives outdoors. They wanted some goodhunters. They needed others who knew how to use small boats. Theyalso needed some men who could work with wood, and others who couldwork with metals. They needed a few who could repair weapons andsome who could cook.
Most importantly, they looked for men who could best survive thehard days ahead. Most of the men Clark chose were soldiers. Each manprepared for the trip with five months of training. In the winter ofeighteen-oh-three, the group came together at a place they calledCamp Wood. Camp Wood was north of a small village named Saint Louisin what would later become the state of Missouri. They began buyingthe last of the supplies they would need. And they began preparingthe three boats they would use on the first part of their trip.
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VOICE TWO:
Lewis and Clark called their group of thirty-two men the Corps ofDiscovery. Their exploration began May fourteenth, eighteen-oh-four.Another group of soldiers would join the Corps of Discovery for thefirst part of their trip. The soldiers would return after the firstwinter with reports for President Jefferson about what the explorershad discovered.
They left Fort Wood and traveled north on the Missouri River. Itwas extremely hard work from the very beginning. Their three boatswere not traveling with the flow of the river, but against it. Attimes, they passed ropes to the shore and the men pulled the boats.Several times the ropes broke. It was difficult and dangerous work.The largest of their three boats was almost seventeen meters long.This boat was called the Discovery. It carried most of theirsupplies, including medicine, food, scientific instruments, weaponsand gifts of friendship for the Indian tribes the explorers hoped tomeet.
VOICE ONE:
Lewis and Clark and the men with them immediately saw the greatbeauty of the land. This great natural beauty was something theywould write about time and again each day during their travels.Slowly, the explorers made their way north up the Missouri River.They passed the area that in the future would be Kansas City. Theycontinued north and passed the area that would become the city ofOmaha, in the future state of Nebraska. As each day passed, bothLewis and Clark wrote about what they saw. Clark made maps of theland and the river.
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Near the present city of Sioux City, in the state of Iowa,Sergeant Charles Floyd became sick and within a few days died. Themembers of the Corps of Discovery buried him not far from the river.Today, a monument stands where he was buried.
The Corps of Discovery again continued north in their boats onthe Missouri River. They passed through what would become the stateof South Dakota. Here, for the first time they met members of theLakota called the Teton Sioux. The Teton Sioux were very fierce andwar like. They demanded Lewis and Clark give them one of the boats.The two leaders refused.
The Sioux threatened to kill all of the group. The Corps ofDiscovery prepared for a fight. But it never came. The Sioux changedtheir minds. Clark wrote of the Teton Sioux that they were tall andnice- looking people. He said their clothing was beautifully madewith many colors and designs. He said the men were proud and fierce.
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Soon, the Corps of Discovery passed into what would become thestate of North Dakota. It was now growing late in the year. Theweather was becoming colder. At a place they named Fort Mandan theyquickly cut trees and made temporary homes for the winter. TheMissouri River began to turn to ice. Some days it was too cold tohunt animals for food.
On the seventeenth of December, eighteen-oh-four, William Clarkwrote in his book, “At night the temperature fell to seventy-fourdegrees below freezing.” The Corps of Discovery would stay in FortMandan for five months. During the winter the explorers planned fortheir trip to the Pacific. That will be our story next time.
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VOICE TWO:
Our program today was written and produced by Paul Thompson. Thisis Steve Ember.
VOICE ONE:
And this is Shirley Griffith. Join us again next week when wecontinue our story of Lewis and Clark on the Explorations program,in Special English, on the Voice of America.