A few years ago, I was kind of idly looking into a little something of the story of the American Frontier, how the West was won and all of that which I guess you Americans get stuffed down your throat from day one in elementary school, but which isn't a part of the national curriculum here in Sweden. And I was totally, totally astonished when I found a historical map marked with something called the "Lewis and Clark trail" or something. Lewis and Clark???? Well, I knew zilch about these two people, except that they were obviously explorers and trailblazers and that they've gone down in history having their names linked together. Wow. Double wow.

Just today, I bought a magazine called Lewis & Clark, The Corps of Discovery. I'm sure you Americans know all about them already, but I can tell you non-Americans that in 1803 Meriwether Lewis was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson to explore what I think was called the Louisiana purchase, basically the western half (or three fifths or something) of present-day U.S.A., to follow the Missouri river to see if it led all the way to the Pacific Ocean. So along with Captain William Clark Meriwether Lewis did just that, and the two of them sure got all the way to the Pacific Ocean, too.

Just a few thoughts here. According to a map on page 8 in my magazine, Lewis and Clark briefly passed into Kansas on their way west. Perhaps they passed Smallville?

Captain Clark looks pretty handsome in several of the paintings made of him, but Meriwether Lewis can't hold a candle to Lois, I can tell you.

Did you ever wonder why ABC called their TV series Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman? Guess I've finally figured it out.

And, you know... Meriwether Lewis? Meriwether? Where have I seen that name before, maybe spelled a little differently? Okay, spill it, you people in charge of these boards. What else have you been keeping from us? Who the heck was (is?) Kerth?

Ann

During the run of the series, Elisabeth and I would find ourselves constantly mis-pronouncing 'Lewis' as Lois when referring to the trail, which starts here in St. Louis. We'd be talking to some hapless tourist and get our tongue tied and start laughing, with the tourist looking at us like we needed to find a nice padded room...
James

A non-American, I know all about Lewis and Clark from my interest in the American west when I was deep into watching The Young Riders (my all time favourite show prior to LNC).

And, yes, I've been there, catching a glimpse of a documentary on Lewis and Clark while channel hopping and briefly pausing to go, "Oooooh, something about LNC!' before realising my mistake.

LabRat

an american history major checking in....

um....a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I was told that the title of the show was actually kind of....well, there's nothing included in the show about exploring a vast amount of real estate purchased for $24 in trinkets, but they were partly thinking of Lewis and Clark when they named the show Lois and Clark. it was kind of meant as ....well, not a pun, but.... I dunno. I have no recall as to where I heard/read this, or I'd cite my source, but....

(but I think it's clear the main reason the show got that name was because it was about Lois and Clark, primarily. some guy in blue tights interfered enough to make the romance complicated. but it's about lois and clark.)

Wasn't that Manhattan Island that was purchased for the beads? The Louisiana Purchase was aquired from France for considerably more than $24. Still probably a good deal.

Oddly enough, while we were visiting my parents over Christmas, we went down to Lewis and Clark State Park, just north of St. Louis, on the Illinois side of the river, where they started from. In addition to the museum, they have a copy of camp River DuBois, where the team spent the winter before they started. They built it to match the drawings in Lewis's notes. The little fort is an amazing place. Make sure to see it if you get the chance.


Frank

Here's some more info for those of you who are interested. (I teach 8th grade US History and am, believe it or not, teaching this topic right now!)

The US bought the Louisiana Purchase from France for $15 million dollars. The deal essentially doubled the size of the US, but generated controversy at the time because some believed the deal was unconstitutional (the US Constitution did not specifically grant the power to buy land to either the president or Congress). Today, the Louisiana Purchase is acknowledged as the greatest land deal in our history.

Lewis, Clark, and the Corps of Discovery explored the territory, bringing a great deal of information back about the flora, fauna, and geography of the American West. They nearly starved to death in the mountains, but through it all, only one member of the expedition passed away.

In addition to the Corps of Discovery (a group of working men who helped with the boats, hunting, etc.), Lewis and Clark brought York, a slave, and Seaman, a dog. Some Native Americans who had never seen an African before tried to rub the black "war paint" off York's skin. The group also picked up a French fur trader along the way, who didn't contribute much. However, his teenage wife Sacagawea helped guide the group westward and enabled L&C to negotiate for horses with the Shoshone (Sacagawea had been taken from her people when she was younger, but recognized her brother when they met). The youngest member of the group was Sacagawea's son, whom she had just given birth to.

In the end, Clark went on to become a territorial governor and Lewis died penniless. Some believe that Lewis was murdered, but most evidence points to suicide. One member of the Corps lived until age 99!

The story of the Lewis and Clark expedition is actually really exciting and interesting to learn about (which is good, because it's always on the state testing). A really excellent site for more info is http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/ , which goes along with an excellent documentary on the subject.

Susan (who, every year, accidentally refers to the Lois and Clark expedition at least once)