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Lewis and Clark: Fort Mandan

Summary: This article about the Lewis and Clark Expedition provides interesting facts about the building and wintering at Fort Mandan. The Corps of Discovery built Fort Mandan as a winter base in 1804 - 1805 alongside the Missouri River, near modern day Washburn, North Dakota. During their time at Fort Mandan the members of the Lewis and Clark expedition  spent six months in close proximaty of the Hidatsa and Mandan Native American Indian Tribes.

Lewis and Clark Expedition: Fort Mandan
 
Lewis and Clark Expedition: Fort Mandan

In late October 1804 the Lewis and Clark expedition arrived at the earthlodge villages of the friendly Mandan Native Indian tribe that were located north of the site of modern-day Bismarck, North Dakota. The Corps of Discovery built its winter encampment nearby alongside the Missouri River, near modern day Washburn, North Dakota.

They called their encampment Fort Mandan in honor of the helpful and friendly Native Indian tribe. The building of Fort Mandan commenced on November 3, 1804 and the structure was completed on December 24, 1804. The members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition stayed at Fort Mandan until April 06, 1805.

Lewis and Clark - Fort Mandan
 
Lewis and Clark Expedition for kids: Facts about Fort Mandan
The following fact sheet provides short, interesting facts about Fort Mandan.

Lewis and Clark Expedition: Facts about Fort Mandan
 
Fort Mandan Fact 1: As can be seen by the above picture Fort Mandan was built in a triangular shape surrounded by an 18 feet high fence.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 2: The gates faced the Missouri River for easy access to the river and sight of the location of the nearest Mandan village.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 3: The construction was made of cottonwood logs from the riverbank of the Missouri. William Clark marked the occasion in his journal on November 3, 1804 stating "We commence building our cabins."
   
Fort Mandan Fact 4: Captain William Clark reported in his journal that the "works consisted of two rows of huts or sheds, forming an angle where they joined each other; each row containing four rooms, of 14 feet square and 7 feet high, with plank ceiling, and the roof slanting so as to form a loft above the rooms, the highest point of which is 18 feet from the ground".
   
Fort Mandan Fact 5: The highest part of the structure was eighteen feet from the ground and the backs of the huts formed a wall of that height, and opposite the angle the place of the wall was supplied by picketing.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 6: The men of the Corps of Discovery were billeted in the rooms. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark shared a room. Two rooms were used as storage facilities for stores and provisions
   
Fort Mandan Fact 7: There were five Native American Indian villages near Fort Mandan which were the  residence of three distinct nations: the Mandans, the Ahnahaways, and the Minnetarees.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 8: Fort Mandan was built with several goals in mind:
  • The fort had to be big enough to provide shelter for the Corps of Discovery and also to hold the stores and provisions
  • The construction had to be weather-proof against the rain and the snow
  • It had to be quick and easy to build
   
Fort Mandan Fact 9: The roofs of this type of building consisted of a simple ridgepole with split logs running down to the top of the wall, with the gables filled in with planks or timbers. The roofs would have been covered with anything that would prevent them from leaking.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 10: The doors would have been made of planks and nails and probably had a wooden latch.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 11: Fireplaces would have been made from either stone or mud brick, depending on what was available. chimneys were often placed between two rooms so that each room might share in the chimney.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 12: The buildings in Fort Mandan were surrounded by a stockade, as with all military constructions of the period. to build the stockade a trench would first be dug and poles were then planted and the trench was then filled  again. The poles would be held together by fixing them to cross pieces with wooden pegs.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 13: The men of the Corps of Discovery had many other skills, besides soldiering and included carpenters and blacksmiths whose abilities were invaluable when building Fort Mandan.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 14: The winter spent at Fort Mandan was bitterly cold and some of the men even suffered from frostbite. The Keelboat was frozen solid in the Missouri River and Captain Clark wrote that the Native Indians had to "...to bare more Cold than I thought it possible for man to endure."
   
Fort Mandan Fact 15: The construction provided some shelter from the elements and the men spent much of their time indoors making and repairing their uniforms and repairing their equipment.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 16: Whilst the expedition wintered at Fort Mandan they met  Sacajawea who was just 16 years old and pregnant. Sacajawea was not supposed to be part of the expedition but her husband, Touissant Charbonneau, insisted that she came with them. The expedition also thought that they could use Sacajawea to help with navigating and in interpreting. Her child, named Pomp, was believed to have been born at the fort in February 1805.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 17: Lewis and Clark prepared reports and specimens to be sent back home on the keelboat.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 18: Despite the harsh weather conditions the men appeared to enjoy their time spent at Fort Mandan where they spent many nights with the Native Indians celebrating with dancing and singing and witnessing customs such as the famous Buffalo Dance.
   
Fort Mandan Fact 19: In the spring of 1804, after wintering at Fort Mandan,  a few members of the Lewis and Clark expedition returned home on the keelboat, loaded with plant and animal specimens and reports that were presented to President Thomas Jefferson.
   

Lewis and Clark Expedition: Facts about Fort Mandan
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Lewis and Clark Expedition: Fort Mandan

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