Chartering the Expedition
In a letter dated June 20, 1803, Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, gave the explorers Lewis and Clark a mission: discover a route across the continent from a starting point near St. Louis, Missouri, out to the Pacific Ocean.
Jefferson’s letter goes on for pages and in great detail. In it, he specified these points:
-
Where they were to explore: the Missouri River and connecting waterways
-
The resources they would have: equipment such as boats, tents, surveying tools, weapons, and even presents for the natives they would encounter
-
The information they were to seek: trading routes. Jefferson explicitly directed Lewis and Clark to seek “direct and practicable water communication across ...
Get Explore It! now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
