Lewis and Clark's Travel Preparations
The 55 foot, 22-oarsman keelboat used for the
expedition left Pittsburgh, PA, on August 31 1803, and descended down the Ohio River
with Meriwether Lewis and perhaps 11 men. By mid October 1803, the keelboat landed at
Clarksville, a town in Indiana Territory, where William Clark
and a few woodsmen from Kentucky came aboard. Read about previous explorations of the Missouri River, from the on-line book Exploring the West from Monticello. | ||||||||
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In December 1803 the boat reached the mouth of
the Ohio River and traveled up the Mississippi River to the mouth of the
Wood River, in what is now Illinois, across the Mississippi from the Missouri River
and the town of St. Louis.
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Traveling the Lewis and Clark Trail * IL * MO * KS * NE * IA * SD * ND * MT * ID * OR * WA * |
If you plan to start your exploration of the Lewis and Clark Trail around St. Louis, consider a side trip east across the Mississippi River on Hwy 270 to Rt 3 heading north in Illinois. |
ILLINOIS Official IL travel guides
* IL databases
* IL newspapers
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Turn north from I-270 to Illinois Highway 3 to the
Lewis and Clark State Historic Site, commemorating Camp Wood, near Mitchell, IL Side trip: Cahokia Mounds Historic Site. |
The Missouri River empties into the Mississippi
River north of St. Louis, MO on the west bank. From December 1803 through early May 1804, the men
camped on the Illinois (east) side of the Mississippi, opposite the mouth of the Missouri River. This early delay gave the men time to work out personality and work
habit differences. While exploring this area, Clark saw the remains of a pre-historic Mississippian
Indian village. A few miles further south, near Collinsville, are the Cahokia Mounds, the largest pre-historic (from 700 AD) Indian city north of Mexico. * Historical marker text | ||||||||
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Suggestion: avoid driving through or trying to find a motel in St. Louis during rush hours. St. Charles is much easier to navigate, and is on the Missouri River. | |||||||||
St Louis to KC by train |
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I-70 west crosses the Missouri River at
St. Charles, MO Take Hwy 94 west
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* Lewis & Clark in Missouri
* Lewis & Clark Center * More on St. Charles MO | ||||||||
Katy Trail for hiking, biking Cars take Hwy 94
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The Katy Trail starting in
St. Charles, MO, closely
follows Hwy 94, just north of the Missouri River, and heads toward
Weldon Spring, then
Defiance. The town of
Augusta was once on the river.
Marthasville was the last white
settlement Lewis & Clark passed in Missouri. Turning south on Highway 19 goes into Hermann with several
bed and breakfasts along the Missouri River. Back north of the river, when 94 ends across from state capitol Jefferson City, take 54 into Jeff City, then west on 50 and north on 179 which follows the river northwest, then 87 north to Boonville. Consider a side trip east on I-70 to Rocheport, just north of the river. There was flood damage in this area along the Katy Trail during the spring of 2002. | ||||||||
Boonville old Santa Fe Trail Boone's Lick, side trip Arrow Rock
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At Rocheport or Boonville, go to
New Franklin, just north of the river on the
Katy Trail and near the start of the Santa Fe Trail, a commercial trail which opened to Santa Fe (NM) in 1821. The DAR marker is on Broadway, east of Hwy 5.
On the way back south toward Boonville, take Hwy 87 west past Boonesboro to Hwy 187 and Boon's Lick, where the Boone families later settled and processed salt. The salt springs and salt well here are just across the Missouri River from Arrow Rock, but there is no bridge link.
Back south in Boonville, the Missouri River and remnants of the Santa Fe Trail head northwest toward Arrow Rock but the Katy Trail heads
southwest to Clinton, MO. There are Bed and Breakfasts in Boonville.
The historic sites and buildings and
State Park at Arrow Rock are worth a stop.
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Marshall Rt 41 north to Rt 65 (west) Waverly Rt 65 to Rt 24 Lexington
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Marshall, MO Marshall Chamber of Commerce Lexington Virtual Field Trip | ||||||||
Buckner north on Rt BB to Ft. Osage back to Buckner Rt 24 west into Independence
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* Independence, MO, tourism * Bed and Breakfasts along the Missouri River | ||||||||
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Kansas City
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Parkville, MO |
June, 1804
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Leavenworth, KS
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July 2 1804 Lewis and Clark came to their first Kansa village near Leavenworth, KS on July 2, 1804. On the way back home in 1806, the expedition camped near the mouth of the Three Mile Creek flowing into the Missouri River.
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Weston, MO * Camp site map, interactive |
July 3, 1804? On the Missouri River when Lewis and Clark went by, what is now Weston, MO had spring water that the expedition gathered and stored.
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Atchison, KS
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July 4, 1804 The expedition spent their first Independence Day where the current city of Atchison now is. They named the Independence Creek and Fourth of July 1804 Creek there.
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Hwy 7 north to Troy, KS Hwy 36 east to St. Joseph, MO
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* Brief histories of Doniphan County KS,
Buchanan County MO, and
Andrew County MO On their return trip, Lewis and Clark met an old army friend, Robert McClellan whose descendant has his cane (PDF from 2004 PBS program).
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Return west on Hwy 36 then north on Hwy 7 to Highland and White Cloud, KS
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