Who were Lewis and Clark and what did they do?

Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–06) was a U.S. military expedition, led by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant William Clark, to explore the Louisiana Purchase and the Pacific Northwest. The expedition was a major chapter in the history of American exploration.

Why are Lewis and Clark so famous?

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark are best known for their expedition from the Mississippi River to the West Coast and back. The expedition, called the Corps of Discovery, was President Thomas Jefferson’s visionary project to explore the American West. He also served in the military, where he met Clark.

Did Lewis or Clark ever marry?

Clark was a devoted family man and a valued friend. He and his wife, Julia Hancock, had five children. (He named his eldest son Meriwether Lewis.) The year after his wife’s death in 1820, Clark married Harriet Kennerly Radford, a widow with three children, and fathered two more sons.

Where was the first place Lewis and Clark went?

A map depicting the route taken by Lewis and Clark on their first expedition from the Missouri River (near St. Louis, Missouri) to the mouth of the Columbia River (at the Pacific Ocean in Oregon), and their return trip, 1804 – 1806.

What were 3 goals of the Lewis and Clark expedition?

The expedition, which began in 1804 and took more than two years to complete, had three purposes: to chart a route that would be part of a passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; to trace the boundaries of the territory obtained in the Louisiana Purchase; and to lay claim to the Oregon Territory.

Did Lewis and Clark have slaves?

York was born enslaved, the son of Old York and Rose, who were owned by John Clark III, William Clark’s father. William inherited York from his father in 1799….York (explorer)

York
Died	After 1815
Occupation	Body servant (enslaved) Explorer
Employer	Enslaved by William Clark
Known for	Participating in the Lewis and Clark Expedition

Did Lewis and Clark love each other?

Lewis was obsessed — the term is not overstated — obsessed with defining his relationship to Clark. In a society that held back from discussing male-male intimacy, there was no way of labeling this thing that had so intensely developed between them during the brief six months they had served together.

Did William Clark have a wife?

Harriet Radfordm. 1821–1831
Julia Hancockm. 1808–1820
William Clark/Vrouw

What did they find on the Lewis and Clark expedition?

But during their 8,000-mile journey from Missouri to the Pacific Ocean and back between 1804-1806, Lewis and Clark discovered 122 animal species, including iconic American animals like the grizzly bear, coyote, prairie dog and bighorn sheep.

Who funded the Lewis and Clark expedition?

Thomas Jefferson
On January 18, 1803, Thomas Jefferson requests funding from Congress to finance the Lewis and Clark expedition. Jefferson officially asked for $2,500 in funding from Congress, though some sources indicate the expedition ultimately cost closer to $50,000.

Did Lewis and Clark sleep together?

Meriwether Lewis, Clark, York, Toussiant Charbonneau, Sakakawea and her son slept together in a tepee the expedition carried. And after the expedition dropped Charbonneau, Sakakawea and her son off at the Knife River Indian villages on the way back to St. Louis and bring Sakakawea and the child with him.

What bad things did Lewis and Clark do?

One of the worst injuries came during the trip home, when an enlisted man accidentally shot Lewis in the buttocks after mistaking him for an elk. Though not seriously wounded, the explorer was forced to spend a few miserable weeks lying on his belly in a canoe while the expedition floated down the Missouri River.