 Article
From River Life, Volume 6, No 03, September 2, 2004
Up The River
With Lewis and Clark
Part 6, August 20, 1804-September 6,1804
By Bill Markley
August 20, 1804, the Corps
of Discovery was in the area of present-day Sioux City, Iowa. They had
concluded a positive meeting with Oto and Missouri chiefs the day
before.
Twenty-two-year-old
Sergeant Charles Floyd had developed a severe case of bilious colic,
violent stomach pains with severe vomiting of bile. The men cared for
him through the night of August 19. Meriwether Lewis tried all the
medical procedures he had been taught. William Clark, York, and others
spent the night nursing Charles; but his condition only grew worse.
In the morning, Lewis and
Clark gave the Otos, Missouris, and Faufon, the French trader, gifts as
they rode off on their horses. The Corps of Discovery set out upriver
under a gentle breeze.
Charles was no better.
They pulled over to a bluff to make a warm bath for him. He said to
Clark, “I am going away. I want you to write me a letter.” He then died
with a great deal of composure. Current thinking is he may have had
appendicitis which could not have been diagnosed or treated at that
time. They buried Charles on top of what is now Floyd’s Bluff with the
Honors of War. Clark wrote, “This Man at all times gave us proofs of his
firmness and Deturmined resolution to doe Service to his Countrey and
honor to himself.”
A sad Corps of Discovery
sailed a mile further upriver and camped on the north side of a steam
they named Floyd River.
The next morning, the
Corps set out early with a gentle breeze from the southeast.
Approximately three miles from their camp, they passed the mouth of the
Big Sioux River and were now traveling between the present-day states of
Nebraska and South Dakota. They traveled more than 22 miles on this day.
On August 22, they stopped
at a bluff that contained a variety of minerals. Lewis pounded on the
rocks, smelling and tasting them. He became sick apparently poisoned by
the rock. Lewis and Clark thought the rock might have contained arsenic,
so Lewis took a dose of “salts” to counteract the arsenic. After
traveling 19 miles this day, Lewis and Clark held an election for
sergeant to replace Charles Floyd. Patrick Gass received the majority
vote.
August 23, the Corps set
out early in the morning. Joe Field killed their first buffalo. Lewis
and twelve men went out to drag the buffalo back to the river where they
butchered it. The wind blew so hard from the west that fine sand made it
hard to see and covered everything. They made ten miles this day.
It rained during the night
and into the following morning. The Corps came to a bluff that is called
today Ionia Volcano in Nebraska. They found the clay was so hot that
they could not hold their hands to it. Apparently the heat is generated
from chemical reactions in the shale.
Clark, York, and a French
boy, hiked along the shore. Clark killed two buck elks and York and the
French boy each shot an elk.
The boats passed the
Vermillion River and made camp for the night. The French members of the
expedition who had been in this area before told Lewis and Clark a
strange tale about a hill called today Spirit Mound in Clay County,
South Dakota. None of the local tribes would approach the mound because
a tribe of spirit people lived there. These people were 18 inches tall
with large heads. They had sharp arrows that could kill people at long
distances. Several years ago, three Omahas had been killed by the little
spirit people. Lewis and Clark decided to visit Spirit Mound.
August 25, the keelboat
and one pirogue under the command of Sergeant Pryor continued upriver
six miles as Lewis, Clark, ten men, and Seaman, Lewis’ Newfoundland dog,
set off on a hike to climb Spirit Mound about eight miles north of the
Missouri River.
They left early in the
morning. As the day wore on it became increasingly hot. After seven
miles, Seaman gave out and was sent back to the pirogue. As the men
approached Spirit Mound, a huge flock of birds swarmed around the top of
the hill. By noon, the men reached the top. The birds moved off. They
must have been after flying ants that now bit the men on their exposed
skin. Other than that there were no little people. From on top of the
mound, they had a great view of the entire area and saw large herds of
elk and buffalo.
Lewis, York, and some of
the men were very tired and thirsty. They made their way to a stream and
drank from a beaver pond. Later they took a forty minute rest in a small
grove. Clark found “Great quantities of the best largest grapes I ever
tasted.”
They reached the pirogue
at sunset and set fire to the prairie to inform the Yanktons of their
presence. Pryor and the rest of the Corps of Discovery further upriver
saw their fire and did the same. Lewis, Clark, and the men ate supper
and slept that night on a buffalo robe. They saw bats for the first time
on the trip.
August 26, Lewis, Clark,
and their men reached the keelboat at 9 a.m. In their absence the horses
had wandered off. George Drouillard and Private George Shannon were left
behind to search for them and then join the Corps further upriver.
Nineteen-year-old George
Shannon was the youngest member of the expedition. He was born in
Pennsylvania and moved with his family to Ohio in 1800. He was part of
the group of nine that Clark brought with him from Kentucky. Clark did
not consider him a first-rate hunter; but he did bring in his fare share
of the game.
At 10 a.m. the Corps of
Discovery proceeded on upriver for nine miles and made camp. Lewis and
Clark formally appointed Patrick Gass as Sergeant replacing Charles
Floyd.
After searching all night,
Drouillard arrived in camp the next morning to report that he could not
find the horses and had become separated from Shannon. Lewis and Clark
sent Privates John Shields and Joe Field back to look for Shannon and
the horses.
The Corps continued on.
Several miles upriver, they set the prairie on fire to let the Yanktons
know that they wanted to meet with them. At 2 p.m., they reached the
mouth of the James River. A boy swam out to one of the pirogues which
followed him to shore where two more boys stood. They told the Corps
that the Yanktons were camped upstream on the James River. Lewis and
Clark sent two of the boys with Sergeant Pryor, a Frenchman, and Pierre
Dorion who had been living with the Yanktons to go to the Yankton
village and invite the chiefs to a council at Calumet Bluffs further
upstream on the south side of the Missouri River. The third boy who was
an Omaha wanted to stay for a while with the Corps. They made 14 miles
this day.
August 28, a stiff breeze
blew from the south. The river was wide, shallow, and full of sandbars.
After four miles of travel, the Omaha boy left the Corps to return to
the Yankton village. Clark wrote, “Capt. Lewis & my Self much indisposed
– I think from the Hominy we Substitute in place of bread (or Plums).”
After over eight miles
they reached Calumet Bluff and made camp on the present-day Nebraska
side of the river. Just before landing, a snag pierced a pirogue and
almost sank it. The men unloaded the gear, most of which had become wet,
into the other boats and got the pirogue to shore where they were able
to repair it. The wind blew hard from the South.
Shields and Field caught
up with the Corps. They did not find the horses or Shannon; but from the
signs, it appeared Shannon had found the horses and was traveling to
catch up with the Corps. The only problem was that somehow Shannon had
passed the Corps without seeing them and was now upriver of them trying
to catch up but only getting further ahead.
The next morning they sent
John Colter after Shannon with food since Clark did not consider Shannon
that good of a hunter. John was also one of the nine Kentuckians that
Clark had brought to the expedition. He was born in Virginia and moved
west with his family. At 29 years old, John under Drouillard’s training
had become one of the Corps better hunters.
At 4 p.m., Sergeant Pryor,
Dorion, the Frenchman, and seventy Yankton men arrived on the opposite
shore. Lewis and Clark sent them gifts—cooking kettles, corn, and
tobacco with the message that they would meet with them tomorrow.
Sergeant Pryor reported
that when they first approached the village, the Yanktons wanted to
carry Dorion and him on a buffalo robe into camp, an honor due a leader.
They declined saying they were not the Corps leaders. The Yanktons were
very hospitable, feeding Dorion and Pryor and providing a teepee for
them to stay in for the night.
The morning of August 30,
started out foggy, but soon burned off. Lewis and Clark sent Dorion in a
pirogue to the other side of the river to invite the Yankton chiefs and
warriors for a meeting at noon. After everyone was assembled, Lewis and
Clark gave their speech about coming in friendship and the change in
government. They gave the chiefs peace medals and the warriors
commissions and other presents. They gave the principal chief a set of
military clothes and an American flag. The Yankton chiefs said they
needed to talk among themselves and then would respond to Lewis and
Clark’s speeches tomorrow. Everyone then smoked the pipe of peace. Lewis
shot the air gun for everyone’s entertainment.
That evening, the Yanktons
formed a circle around three fires and danced late into the evening.
This including recounting their deeds in battle and horse stealing
raids. Dorion explained to Lewis and Clark that it was the custom to
throw presents to those who danced the best. So they threw knives,
tobacco, and other items to the best dancers. After the dance, the
Yanktons camped alongside the Corps of Discovery that night.
The next morning after
breakfast, the chiefs sat in a row each holding his pipe of peace. Shake
Hand, the principal chief, spoke first. He said he was glad to hear the
words of President Jefferson. He was interested in having St. Louis
traders come among them. He was also interested in taking Lewis’ offer
to travel to Washington D.C. to meet with the president. The other
chiefs, White Crane, Struck by the Ree, and Half Man all agreed and were
impressed that the Americans were more generous than the Spanish and
British. After the speeches, they again smoked the pipe of peace.
Lewis and Clark asked
Dorion and his sons who had been living with the Yanktons to stay with
the Yanktons. They commissioned Dorion to act as the United States
representative in the area. He was to attempt to make peace between the
various tribes and to arrange for the principal chiefs to travel
downstream to St Louis and then on to Washington D.C. to meet with
President Jefferson. They gave Dorion an American flag, presents, and
trade goods as well as a parting bottle of whisky as he crossed to the
north side of the river with the Yanktons.
September 1, the Corps of
Discovery set out on a cloudy rainy day. The men were catching large
amounts of catfish every day. Drouillard killed a buck elk and a beaver.
They made 16 miles upriver this day.
The Corps set out early
the next morning; but only made four miles. A strong wind blew from the
northwest. It was cold and rainy with thunder and lightning. They came
to under a yellow bluff which is in present-day Bon Homme County, South
Dakota. They shot and killed four elk making jerky out of the meat and
using the hides to cover the pirogues. The sky cleared up in the evening
and the men were all in high spirits.
September 3, the Corps
continued upriver another 15 miles. They stopped at Plum Creek where
they found great quantities of delicious plums. Clark liked them so much
he collected seeds to send back to his brother.
They saw herds of elk and
buffalo; and for the first time they saw “wild Goats … they are wild and
fleet.” This was their first sighting of antelope. There were now few
trees. They did find signs of Colter and Shannon. It looked like Colter
had not yet caught up with Shannon.
The Corps set out early on
the morning of September 4, a very cold wind blew from the southeast.
They made eight miles this day and camped above the mouth of the
Niobrara River. Clark explored the Niobrara for about three miles and
located an old abandoned Ponca town site.
The wind was blowing hard
from out of the south the morning of September 5 as the Corps sailed
upriver. They saw large flocks of turkeys and grouse. More antelope were
sighted on the hills and for the first time, they saw mule deer. They
came to Ponca Creek in what is now Knox County, Nebraska and sent
Privates John Shields and George Gibson to the Ponca town located two
miles up the creek. The Poncas were not home; they were out buffalo
hunting. Ironically, John and George killed a buffalo that was wandering
through the town. The Corps made over 13 miles this day.
September 6, the wind was
now blowing out of the northwest after an early morning storm. The Corps
made over eight miles before stopping to camp. John Colter rejoined the
group. He was unable to catch up with Shannon who continued to travel
rapidly upriver ahead of the Corps of Discovery.
Up The River With Lewis and Clark
Part 7, September 7, 1804-September 28, 1804
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