PRESENTATION OUTLINE
LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION
It was May of 1804 and we set out to gain knowledge of the newly purchased Louisiana Territory. We had three main goals for this mission, one chart the land and record the newly discovered plants and animals. Two, establish relationships and knowledge about the Native Americans. And three, to discover a waterway to the Pacific Ocean from the U.S. Our mission was of dire importance to the expansion of the United States westward.
Our first day was like none other. We were all recalling ready for the journey and anxious on our potential discoveries. We wanted to find the source of the Missouri River and see if it was a lead to an all water route throughout the territory leading to the ocean. We all new the journey would be long and hard yet the sense of adventure urged us all on with the hope of expanding the U.S. And bringing settlers farther west.
During our winter we met the Mandans. They were an important trade center and brought together many different native groups. We even met some multilingual Frenchman. We established good relations and continued our journey as soon as possible.
Our first meeting with Sacajawea served as a blessing to our expedition. She helped us across the land and served as our guide. Taking us through and helping us discover new ways to use the natural recourses of the land. She helped us in interpreting and gaining fresh new knowledge and materials.
This land was unique. It had vast grassland and rolling hills as far as the eye could see. But there were also rocky mountains and plateaus. There were broad bodies of water and the lands climate was extremely bipolar in different regions.
We discovered miles and miles of forest and greens. The amount of new plants we had to chart and sample was extraordinary. We liked to send sample of things we found back to Jefferson. All across there was unknown plants and berries that could have killed us if we were foolish about it.
I'd like to thinks of the new found animals as my favorite part the entire time though. There was this one that we named a prairie dog! Natives would hunt herds of buffalo, there were so many just in the open roaming free. They were dangerous though, so we carried our rifles prepared for bear attacks and other beasts that might harm us. We skinned them and sent their pelts to Jefferson to use for studies and documents.
Though the accomplishments were great, we did have our fair share of difficulties. The winters were harsh and the summers alone could kill a man. The Native Americans were not always friendly and when resources were running low they were difficult to replenish. Good men gave their lives for the sake of this mission.
Though in the end we did not discover an all water route to the ocean. We later found out that is because there wasn't one. We did make many charts and document everything we saw. This expedition gave us a map of the land and climate expectancy. We befriended many Native American tribes but not all were as friendly as the last.
In conclusion, this was an extremely successful mission. It played a major role in the expansion of the west. In 1805 we became the first American citizens to reach the Pacific Ocean. In 1806 our mission came to an end with and extraordinary outcome.
