:meadgZgh=ZVYLZhi he saw. With Clark, Lewis carefully selected about 50 skilled frontiersmen to join the Corps Americans knew little about western Native of Discovery, as they called their group. Americans or the land they lived on. Presi- In May 1804 the AZl^h VcY 8aVg` dent Jefferson wanted to learn more about ZmeZY^i^dc began its long journey to the people and land of the West. He also explore the Purchase. The Corps wanted to see if there was a river route that of Discovery traveled up the River could be taken to the Pacifi c Ocean. to the village of St. Charles. Once past this village the men would receive no more let- AZl^hVcY8aVg`:meZY^i^dc ters, fresh supplies, or reinforcements. In 1803 the president asked Congress to fund Lewis and Clark used the Missouri an expedition to explore the West. To lead River as their highway through the unknown it, he chose former army captain BZg^lZi]Zg lands. As they moved upstream, a look- AZl^h. Lewis then chose his friend Lieuten- out on the boats kept a sharp eye out for ant L^aa^Vb8aVg` to be the co-leader of the sandbars and for tree stumps hidden expedition. underwater. When darkness fell, the weary To prepare for the journey, Lewis spent explorers would pull their boats ashore. They weeks studying with experts about plants, cooked, wrote in their journals, and slept. surveying, and other subjects. This knowledge Swarms of gnats, fl ies, and mosquitoes often would allow him to take careful notes on what interrupted their sleep.

The explorers paddled down the Columbia River toward The expedition relied on the Pacific in five canoes. 24 horses to cross the .

:n`nlm*+%*1). L^im^f[^k*1). Gho^f[^k0%*1). E^pbl\ebf[lma^_bklmkb]`^ Ma^^qi^]bmbhgg^ZkerlmZko^l' Ma^^qi^]bmbhgk^Z\a^lZ[Zr mhma^

ANALYSIS SKILL READING TIME LINES On what date did the explorers reach the westernmost point of their journey?

THE JEFFERSON ERA 275

6-8_SNLAESE484693_C08S1-4.indd 275 7/2/10 1:24:03 PM Primary Source a Shoshone from the Rocky Mountains, accompanied the group with her husband, a JOURNAL ENTRY French fur trader who lived with the Mandan September 17, 1804, Indians and served as a guide and interpreter. Sacagawea helped the expedition by naming plants and by gathering edible fruits and veg- While traveling across the Great Plains, Meriwether Lewis etables for the group. At one point, the group marveled at the richness of the land. met with Sacagawea’s brother, who provided horses and a guide to lead the expedition “The shortness . . . of grass gave the plain the across the mountains. appearance throughout its whole extent of beau- After crossing the Rocky Mountains, tiful bowling-green in fine order . . . this scenery, Lewis and Clark followed the Columbia already rich, pleasing, and beautiful was still River. Along the way they met the powerful Nez Percé. Like the Shoshone, the Nez Percé farther heightened by immense herds of Buffaloe, provided the expedition with food. At last, deer Elk and Antelopes which we saw in every in November 1805, Lewis and Clark reached direction feeding on the hills and plains. I do not the Pacifi c Ocean. The explorers stayed in think I exaggerate when I estimate the number the Pacifi c Northwest during the rough win- ter. In March 1806 Lewis and Clark set out of Buffalo which could be compre[hend]ed at one on the long trip home. view to amount to 3000.” Lewis and Clark had not found a river route ÉF^kbp^ma^kE^pbl%jnhm^]bg Hkb`bgZeChnkgZelh_ma^E^pblZg] across the West to the Pacifi c Ocean. But they qi^]bmbhg%^]bm^][rK^n[^g;he]Ma^kZbm^l ANALYSIS had learned much about western lands and SKILL ANALYZING PRIMARY SOURCES paths across the Rockies. The explorers also What did Lewis find so impressive about the Great Plains? established contact with many Native Ameri- can groups and collected much valuable infor- Insects were not the only cause of sleep- mation about western plants and animals. lessness for the . As weeks passed without seeing any Native Ameri- E^`Z»h:meadgVi^dc cans, the explorers wondered what their fi rst In 1806 a young army offi cer named encounter would be like. OZWjadcE^`Z was sent on another mission to the West. He was ordered to fi nd the start- 8dciVXil^i]CVi^kZ6bZg^XVch ing point of the Red River. This was impor- During the summer of 1804 the Corps of tant because the considered Discovery had pushed more than 600 miles the Red River to be a part of the Louisiana upriver without seeing any Native Ameri- Territory’s western border with . cans. But when the men spotted huge buf- Heading into the Rocky Mountains, in falo herds in the distance, they guessed that present-day , Pike tried to reach Indian groups would be nearby. Many Indi- the summit of the mountain now known an groups depended on the buffalo for food, as . In 1807 he traveled into clothing, and tools. Spanish-held lands until Spanish cavalry Lewis used interpreters to talk to the lead- arrested him. They suspected Pike of being ers of each of the peoples they met. He told a spy. When he was fi nally released, he them that the United States now owned the returned to the United States and reported land on which the Native Americans lived. Yet on his trip. Despite his imprisonment, he the explorers relied on the goodwill of the peo- praised the opportunities for doing business ple they met. HVXV\VlZV (sak-uh-juh-WEE-uh), with the Spanish in the Southwest. Pike’s

276 CHAPTER 8

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The Natural Resources oil, natural gas, coal, gemstones, copper, iron ore, lead, zinc, Pa^gma^

ah06se_c07scl005ba Louisiana Purchase Locator Middle School -– American History report offered many Americans their fi rst HRW description of the Southwest. NFF:KRL :G= IK>OB>P The Louisiana F1 proof: 10/29/04 Purchase nearly doubled the size of the Approved: 11/11/04 READING CHECK Supporting a Point of View United States. In the next section you will What would you do if you were Pike and found learn about increasing tensions between yourself in Spanish territory? the United States and Great Britain.

Section 2 Assessment ONLINE QUIZ

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People Critical Thinking 1. a. Identify What new states were added to 4. Sequencing Review your notes on the Louisiana the Union by the early 1800s? Purchase. Then copy the graphic organizer below b. Explain Why were New Orleans and the Missis- and use it to rank the three most important effects of sippi River important to settlers in the West? the Louisiana Purchase, from most important to least 2. a. Recall What two reasons did Napoléon have for important, and explain why you chose that order.

selling Louisiana to the United States? Importance Why b. Summarize Why was the Louisiana Purchase 1. important to the United States? 2. c. Predict What are some possible results of 3. expansion into the Louisiana Purchase? 3. a. Describe What areas did the Lewis and Clark FOCUS ON WRITING expedition and the Pike expedition explore? b. Draw Conclusions Why were Meriwether 5. Gathering Information about a Person’s Actions Lewis and William Clark chosen to lead the Make a list of Jefferson’s actions—the ones that exploration of the Louisiana Purchase? would put him on that top-ten list. Add any new character traits you have discovered.

THE JEFFERSON ERA 277

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