Into the Wilderness: The Lewis and Clark Expedition

2 Down the Ohio

2 Down the Ohio While his letter to William Clark made its way west toward The Falls of the Ohio, Meriwether Lewis headed to Pittsburgh. The weather was warm and dry, and the young explorer made good time on the dusty roads. On the afternoon of July 15, Lewis rode into Pittsburgh. He had ordered a keelboat built for the expedition. This would be the expedition's main boat all the way to the upper Missouri River. It was 55 feet long, with a sail and oars. Upon checking, he learned it wasn't ready. Day after day the young captain urged the boat builder and his workers to work harder, but it did no good. The builder kept promising it would be ready soon, but six weeks passed before he finally finished it. Lewis was very angry and wrote the president that the boat builder was always "either drunk or sick." Lewis was so eager to leave that he left the day his boat was done. On August 31, he set out down the Ohio River. With him were crews for the keelboat and a second, smaller boat called a pirogue, which helped carry supplies. Also with him were his faithful Newfoundland breed dog, Seaman, and some young men who wanted to join the expedition. The little band's progress was slow. By late summer of 1803, the water level in the Ohio was lower than anyone could remember. In fact, it was so low in some places that Lewis had to hire horses and oxen from nearby farms to drag the boat 10 downstream. He also had to have his men pull the boat over sand bars. His smaller boat leaked. While they were stopped at Wheeling, West Virginia, he bought a red pirogue to carry more supplies. He reached Cincinnati on September 28. About a week later he collected bones of prehistoric animals at Big Bone Lick in Kentucky. They were for President Jefferson, but an accident kept them from reaching him. Slowly, day by day, the keelboat moved downstream toward The Falls of the Ohio and Louisville, where William Clark waited. The Falls of the Ohio was a series of rapids on the river. It was here that Louisville, Clarksville, and other towns had been founded. Clark had moved across the river to Clarksville, Indiana Territory, earlier that year. He had sold his farm outside Louisville to his brother Jonathan. He had called the place home since moving to Kentucky as a fourteen-year-old boy in 1785. William had spent years trying to help his brother George with his legal and money troubles. As a result he had put himself deeply in debt. To try to recover, he sold the farm. He and George settled on a farm at Clarksville, named in the old hero's honor. It would be here, at The Falls of the Ohio, that important expedition events would take place. Lewis's letter reached Clark on July 17. His invitation asking Clark to join him in the "dangers and honors" of the expedition arrived at a good time. William Clark was looking for a new start. Not only was the proposed trip to the Pacific an exciting adventure, but if they succeeded, Clark knew they would be rewarded. This trip might be just the new start he was looking for. The Kentuckian wasted no time in answering his friend's letter. Writing Lewis on July 18, he said he would 11 William Clark by Joseph Bush (The Filson Historical Society) "cheerfully join" him. He wrote about the good timing, the possible rewards, and his eagerness to undertake such a dangerous mission with his friend. He also promised that he would do as his friend asked and find young men who were the best hunters and woodsmen in the Louisville area for their "Corps of Discovery." While Lewis waited for the boat to be finished and then made his way down the Ohio, Clark was busy getting ready for his partner's arrival. He spent most of his time in Louisville. That was where almost all his business, family, and friends were. During that time, the two men wrote letters to each other giving updates of their progress and looking forward to the time they would meet in Louisville. 12 William reported that news of a western expedition was creating much interest in Louisville. A number of young men had...