3415 Entries
Journal Entries
Original journal entries from all six expedition journalists: Lewis, Clark, Floyd, Ordway, Gass, and Whitehouse. Sourced from the Thwaites Edition (1904-1905).
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Dec
24
1804
Chiefs Prize Sheepskin Fillets as Hair Ornaments
At Fort Mandan on a fine day, several chiefs along with men, women, and children visited—some to trade, most to observe. The captains presented two-inch strips of sheepskin…
Dec
24
1804
Christmas Eve; Blacksmith Shop Erected at Fort
On Christmas Eve 1804, the expedition continued fortifying their winter quarters by setting pickets and erecting a blacksmith's shop. The afternoon turned pleasant. Native visitors came to the…
Dec
24
1804
Fort Mandan Completed; Christmas Provisions Prepared
The weather cleared and turned pleasant on this December day at the expedition's winter quarters. The party completed construction of their fortification, marking an important milestone in establishing…
Dec
25
1804
Christmas Celebrated with Cannon Fire and Dancing
On Christmas Day, the party celebrated at their winter quarters. Clark was awakened before dawn by three platoon volleys fired by the American men and the French in…
Dec
25
1804
Christmas Celebrated with Brandy and Cannon Fire
Christmas Day at the expedition's winter quarters was marked with celebration. The party greeted the morning by firing the swivel gun and a round of small arms, followed…
Dec
25
1804
Christmas Celebrated with Rum, Salutes, and Dancing
The expedition celebrated Christmas Day at their winter quarters with festivities and ceremony. The men marked daybreak by each firing a round, and the officers issued a ration…
Dec
25
1804
Christmas Celebrated with Cannon Salute and Dancing
At Fort Mandan, the expedition celebrated Christmas Day with a swivel gun salute and small arms volley by the entire corps. Captain Clark distributed brandy, and the American…
Dec
26
1804
North West Company Seeks Expedition's Interpreter
A mild, temperate day at the winter camp with no Indigenous visitors arriving, as had also been the case the previous day. A representative from the North West…
Dec
26
1804
Quiet Day Noted at Fort Mandan Winter Quarters
A brief journal note marking the expedition's location at the Mandan Villages in present-day North Dakota, where the Corps of Discovery had established Fort Mandan as their winter…
Dec
26
1804
Dancing with Mandan Visitors at Second Village
Members who had stayed overnight at the village returned in the morning. Captain Lewis, Gass, and others traveled to the second village, where they spent much of the…
Dec
27
1804
Indians Marvel at Blacksmith's Bellows and Watch
On this Thursday, light snow fell and temperatures dropped slightly colder than the previous day, with strong winds blowing from the northwest. Several Indians visited the expedition's camp…
Dec
27
1804
Interpreter's Room Floored; Blacksmith Shop Completed
On this day at the expedition's winter quarters, the men worked on construction tasks around the fort. Crew members laid a floor in the interpreter's room and completed…
Dec
27
1804
Hunters Bring Buffalo, Elk, Deer, and White Hare
During a stretch of generally very cold weather, the expedition's hunters were active and brought in a small buffalo, three elk, four deer, two or three wolves, and…
Dec
28
1804
Snow Drifts from Plains into Hollows; Frost Falls Heavy
Strong winds from the previous night continued, with heavy frost falling like snow. Clark notes nothing particularly remarkable occurred during the day. Snow drifted across the landscape, blowing…
Dec
28
1804
Native Villagers Pay a Brief Visit to Camp
On this day, members of nearby Native American villages came to visit the expedition's camp. The journal entry is extremely brief and provides no further details about the…
Dec
28
1804
Interpreter Returns Severely Frostbitten from Assiniboin Country
Patrick Gass and several men went down the river to hunt. That evening, one of the expedition's interpreters returned to Fort Mandan along with another Frenchman who had…
Dec
29
1804
Quarter-Inch Frost Overnight; Nine Below at Dawn
On Saturday, December 29, 1804, William Clark recorded that a heavy frost nearly a quarter inch deep had fallen overnight and continued falling into the morning until the…
Dec
29
1804
Blacksmith Shop Opens; Mandans Pay Repairs with Corn
A steady stream of Mandan men, women, and children visited Fort Mandan throughout the day. With the blacksmith shop now set up, the natives brought axes and a…
Dec
29
1804
Hunter Frostbitten; Buffalo and Porcupines Killed
Hunters set out to join others already hunting with local Native people. One hunter returned in the evening reporting a successful kill of a buffalo, a wolf, and…
Dec
30
1804
Twenty Below Zero; Indians Astonished by Bellows
On Sunday, December 30, 1804, the weather was bitterly cold, with the thermometer reading 20 degrees below zero. A number of Indians visited the camp during the day…
Dec
30
1804
Hunters Return with Wolves and a Prairie Badger
Hunters returned to the fort with four deer, four wolves, and an animal the French called a prarow or brarow. Two men from the North West Company, who…
Dec
30
1804
Mandans Trade Provisions and Describe Sweet Corn Variety
Mandans visited the expedition's camp to trade, bringing corn, beans, squash, and a traditional bread made from parched corn and beans rolled into balls. The journal also notes…
Dec
31
1804
Indians Bring Axes and Kettles for Blacksmith Repairs
A fine day at Fort Mandan following a windy night that swirled snow and sand together in the river bend, creating small hillocks atop the ice. Frost from…
Dec
31
1804
Hunters' Camp Located Thirty Miles Downriver
This brief entry from Patrick Gass notes the distance to the hunters' camp, located thirty miles down the river. The fragment offers little additional detail about activities, weather,…
Dec
31
1804
Scouting Timber at Second Mandan Village for Pirogues
The party traveled up to the second Mandan village to scout the bottomland there for timber suitable for making pirogues.
Jan
1
1805
New Year's Cannon Fire; Men Dance in Mandan Village
New Year's Day at Fort Mandan was marked by firing two cannons in celebration. Sixteen men with musical instruments visited the first Mandan village at the chiefs' request…
Jan
1
1805
Whitehouse Returns to Fort on Mending Feet
The day was unusually warm and pleasant for the season, causing the snow to melt rapidly. Whitehouse, accompanied by two other men, traveled to the fort. He noted…
Jan
1
1805
Mandan Buffalo Head Ceremony Observed at Feast
At the Mandan villages, the party was welcomed warmly and offered food. After the meal, their hosts placed a bowl of food before a buffalo head and invited…
Jan
1
1805
New Year's Music and Salutes at Mandan Village
On New Year's Day 1805, fifteen members of the expedition fired a swivel gun, drank a toast, and around 9 a.m. traveled to the first Mandan village at…
Jan
2
1805
Expedition Members Dance at Second Mandan Village
On a snowy, very cold Wednesday, a party of expedition members traveled to the second village to dance with the local inhabitants. Captain Lewis and the interpreter also…
Jan
2
1805
North Wind Brings Sharp Cold Before Dawn
Around 3 a.m. the wind shifted to come from the north and the temperature dropped below freezing. The cold weather and northerly wind persisted throughout the entire day,…
Jan
2
1805
Dancing at Second Mandan Village; Corn for Blacksmith
Most of the party traveled to the second Mandan village to socialize and dance, much as they had done the previous day at the first village. Meanwhile, a…
Jan
3
1805
Gros Ventre Man Reclaims Abused Wife from Camp
On a snowy Thursday, eight men set out to hunt buffalo but returned with only a hare and a wolf. Several Indians visited the camp during the day.…
Jan
3
1805
Mandan Horsemen Scatter Buffalo Before Hunters Arrive
A hunting party set out after Native informants reported buffalo were moving toward the river. However, the Native hunters reached the herd first on horseback, killed five animals,…
Jan
4
1805
Little Crow Visits; Friendly Chief Given Gifts
At Fort Mandan on this warm, snowy Friday morning, the temperature stood at 28 degrees above zero under cloudy skies. Three men were sent downriver to hunt. Several…
Jan
4
1805
Repacking Stores as Winter Ends at Mandan
With winter ending at the Mandan villages, the expedition began loading the boat to resume their voyage. On January 5th, a hard, cold northwest wind blew as they…
Jan
4
1805
Rough Winds Yield One Buffalo Calf and One Wolf
On this blustery winter day, Ordway and others traveled down the river to hunt. The afternoon turned windy and rough. Some of the hunting party returned to camp…
Jan
5
1805
Indians' Axes Repaired; Buffalo Dance Recorded
On a cold, snowy Saturday, several Indians visited the camp to have their axes repaired while Clark worked on compiling a map of the region from gathered information.…
Jan
5
1805
Hunters Survive Two Days on a Single Wolf
A cloudy, cold day at the winter camp. The three hunters who had set out down the river hunting on January 4th returned on the 7th. They reported…
Jan
5
1805
Bitter Cold Keeps Three Hunters Overnight in Field
The day brought very cold weather, continuing into a frigid morning. Three of the expedition's hunters did not return to camp and spent the night out in the…
Jan
6
1805
Brutal Cold Confines Men at Fort Mandan
At Fort Mandan, the day brought brutally cold weather with temperatures well below zero, keeping the men confined near the fort. They occupied themselves tending fires and maintaining…
Jan
6
1805
Fox Trapped After Gnawing Through Fort Pickets
On a blustery day at the winter garrison, Private Bratton caught a fox in a steel trap. The fox had gnawed a hole through the pickets of the…
Jan
7
1805
Big White Sketches Western Country at 22 Below
A bitterly cold, clear day at Fort Mandan, with temperatures at 22 degrees below zero and a northwest wind. The river dropped an inch. Several Indian hunters returned,…
Jan
7
1805
Dancing and Entertainment Delight Mandan Villagers
Light snow fell in the morning, and the remaining men returned from the village. Around 10 o'clock, Captain Lewis and those who had not yet visited went up…
Jan
7
1805
Departure from Fort Mandan with Thirty-One Men
The commanding officers conferred with Arikara Indians visiting the Mandan villages, arranging for some to travel down to St. Louis. Around 5 p.m., the expedition departed Fort Mandan…
Jan
7
1805
Hunters Forced to Eat Wolf for Lack of Provisions
The wind blew from the northwest. In the evening, three men who had been hunting downriver returned to camp. They had killed one wolf, which they were forced…
Jan
8
1805
Bitter Northwest Wind; Few Visitors at Fort
The day was cold with the wind blowing from the northwest. Few Native Americans visited the fort, and one of the expedition's men was at the nearby village.…
Jan
8
1805
Buffalo Escape; White Hare Taken Near Fort
Some buffalo approached the fort, prompting nine men to set out after them, but they failed to kill any. One of the hunters did manage to shoot a…
Jan
8
1805
Brief Entry Noting Only Northwest Wind
The day's entry is extremely brief, noting only that the wind came from the northwest. No other events, activities, or observations were recorded for this date.
Jan
9
1805
Little Crow Breakfasts; Indians Nearly Frozen Arriving
On a bitterly cold Wednesday, with the thermometer reading 21 degrees below zero, many Indians traveled out to hunt buffalo. The chief known as Little Crow ate breakfast…
Jan
9
1805
Frostbitten Hunter Returns in Bitter Storm
On a bitterly cold and stormy day, two inexperienced hunters left the fort. One returned around 8 p.m. with a frostbitten foot, while the other stayed out overnight…
Jan
9
1805
Passing Gros Ventres Hunters on the River
The party traveled about twenty-two miles before making camp on the north side of the river. Around ten o'clock, they passed a group of Gros Ventres who were…
Jan
9
1805
Two Young Men Frozen to Death on Prairie
A blustery, bitterly cold afternoon kept the expedition members close to the fort. Several Indigenous hunters returned in the evening with horses loaded with buffalo meat, but reported…
Jan
10
1805
Forty Below Zero; Frostbitten Boy Reaches Fort
On an extraordinarily cold morning at Fort Mandan, with the thermometer reading 40 degrees below zero (72 below freezing), the party accounted for hunters who had been caught…
Jan
10
1805
Hunter Reports Three Elk Killed Downriver
One of the expedition's hunters returned to the fort with news that he had killed three elk, dressed them, and brought the meat back to their hunting camp.…
Jan
10
1805
Rough Rapids and Sandbars Slow River Progress
Patrick Gass records a day of difficult travel on the river, contending with rough rapid water and numerous sandbars. Despite these challenges, the weather was fine and pleasant.…
Jan
10
1805
Lost Man Returns; Native Boy Arrives with Frozen Feet
A search party prepared to look for a man who had stayed out overnight, but he returned safely, reporting he had built a fire and was reasonably comfortable.…
Jan
11
1805
Black Cat and Coal Chiefs Stay the Night
On a very cold Friday, Clark sent three men out to join three others already hunting downriver. Two Mandan chiefs visited and stayed the night: Black Cat (Pose-cop-se-ha)…
Jan
11
1805
Sled Sent to Retrieve Meat from Hunt Camp
The day was clear and cold at the expedition's winter quarters. Some of the men set out with a sled to retrieve meat from a previous hunt, while…
Jan
11
1805
Indians Spotted on Shore but Not Approached
The day was clear and pleasant, allowing the expedition to make good progress. The party spotted some Indians on the south side of the river but did not…
