What are some discoveries Lewis and Clark made?

Throughout the Corps’ more than 4,000-mile journey, Captains Lewis and Clark recorded 178 plants and 122 animals not previously known to science. Lewis recorded and pressed and preserved some 240 different plant species and brought them back to Washington, along with hundreds of animal and bird skins and skeletons.

How did Lewis and Clark prepare for the expedition?

Once the questions of manpower and skill mix were solved, Lewis turned his attention back to gathering supplies and equipment. The city of Pittsburgh would figure prominently in the preparations for the expedition by virtue of the fact that it was a nationally known shipbuilding port located on the Ohio River.

What did Lewis and Clark study in Philadelphia?

In the spring of 1803, Lewis traveled to Philadelphia to study with the leading scientists of the day. Andrew Ellicott taught Lewis map making and surveying. Benjamin Smith Barton tutored Lewis in botany, Robert Patterson in mathematics, Caspar Wistar in anatomy and fossils, and Benjamin Rush in medicine.

Why did Jefferson choose Lewis and Clark as his leader?

Jefferson’s choice of Lewis as the leader of an American expedition to the Pacific coast reflects a mix of practicality, common sense, regional alliances, and the turbulent political times in America at the turn of the nineteenth century.

Who was asked to lead the expedition to the Pacific?

In 1783 he had asked Brigadier General George Rogers Clark to lead an expedition to the Pacific, but Clark refused. Ten years later, Jefferson helped raise money for a westward expedition by botanist Andre Michaux, which was then canceled.

How did Lewis and Clark prepare for their expedition?

In preparing for the Expedition, Lewis visited President Jefferson’s scientific associates in Philadelphia for instruction in natural sciences, astronomical navigation and field medicine. He also was given a list of questions about their daily lives to ask the American Indians that they would meet.

What did Lewis and Clark make their candles out of?

Ours are made from beef tallow and paraffin (paraffin is a derivative of the petroleum industry). The paraffin is used to make the beef tallow harder. When the explorers were camped here, they made candles from elk tallow. Elk tallow is harder than beef tallow, so they wouldn’t have needed anything to make them hard.

What was the most violent episode of the Lewis and Clark Expedition?

It was the only violent episode of the expedition, although soon after the Blackfeet fight, Lewis was accidentally shot in his buttocks during a hunting trip; the injury was painful and inconvenient but not fatal. On August 12, Lewis and Clark and their crews reunited and dropped off Sacagawea and her family at the Mandan villages.

Where did Lewis and Clark camp for the winter?

Lewis and Clark reached their staging point at the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers near St. Louis in December 1803. They camped for the winter at the mouth of Wood River, on the Illinois side of the Mississippi, opposite the entrance to the Missouri River.