But they were no match for the military might of the Corps, and soon moved on. In late September, however, they encountered the Teton Sioux, who werenвЂ™t as accommodating and tried to stop the CorpsвЂ™ boats and demanded a toll payment. In August, Lewis and Clark held peaceful Indian councils with the Odo, near present-day Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the Yankton Sioux at present-day Yankton, South Dakota. Others were wary of Lewis and Clark and their intentions and were openly hostile, though seldom violent. Some Indians had met вЂњwhite menвЂќ before and were friendly and open to trade. They also told the Indians that America owned their land and offered military protection in exchange for peace. They bartered goods and presented the tribeвЂ™s leader with a Jefferson Indian Peace Medal, a coin engraved with the image of Thomas Jefferson on one side and an image of two hands clasped beneath a tomahawk and a peace pipe with the inscription, вЂњPeace and FriendshipвЂќ on the other. Lewis and Clark developed a first contact protocol for meeting new tribes. In fact, the Corps encountered around 50 Native American tribes including the Shoshone, the Mandan, the Minitari, the Blackfeet, the Chinook and the Sioux. Most of the land Lewis and Clark surveyed was already occupied by Native Americans. Lewis and Clark: Native American Encounters He was the only member of the Corps to die on their journey.

On August 20, 22-year-old Corps member Sergeant Charles Floyd died of an abdominal infection, possibly from appendicitis. To maintain discipline, Lewis and Clark ruled the Corps with an iron hand and doled out harsh punishments such as bareback lashing and hard labor for those who got out of line. Heat, swarms of insects and strong river currents made the trip arduous at best. Charles, Missouri and headed upstream on the Missouri River in the keelboat and two smaller boats at a rate of about 15 miles per day.

On May 14, 1804, Clark and the Corps joined Lewis in St. The expedition party included 45 souls including Lewis, Clark, 27 unmarried soldiers, a French-Indian interpreter, a contracted boat crew and a slave owned by Clark named York. At age 27 he became personal secretary to President Thomas Jefferson. He then joined the Virginia state militia-where he helped to put down the Whiskey Rebellion-and later became a captain in the U.S. He returned to Virginia as a teenager to receive his education and graduated from college in 1793. Meriwether Lewis was born in Virginia in 1774 but spent his early childhood in Georgia. Nevertheless, the approximately 8,000-mile journey was deemed a huge success and provided new geographic, ecological and social information about previously uncharted areas of North America. The excursion lasted over two years: Along the way they confronted harsh weather, unforgiving terrain, treacherous waters, injuries, starvation, disease and both friendly and hostile Native Americans. Lewis chose William Clark as his co-leader for the mission. The Lewis and Clark Expedition began in 1804, when President Thomas Jefferson tasked Meriwether Lewis with exploring lands west of the Mississippi River that comprised the Louisiana Purchase. Lewis and Clark Cross the Continental Divide.

Lewis and Clark: Native American Encounters.Preparations for the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Lewis and clark corps of discovery fort