Lewis and Clark
Supplies: Goals of the Expedition
The choice of supplies for the great journey west was carefully
considered by Meriwether Lewis, who started to prepare for
the journey during the spring of 1803. President Thomas
Jefferson had stated the main goals of the expedition and
the supplies had to be chosen to help the explorers achieve
the goals. The major objectives were:
-
To follow the Missouri
River to it’s source and discover it’s tributaries
-
To create maps of
the new territory gained in the Louisiana Purchase
-
To find a water route,
'Northwest Passage' to the Pacific Ocean
-
To undertake scientific
tasks, documenting descriptions of newly discovered
animals and plants
-
To learn about the
climate, soil, and terrain of the new lands
-
To learn about the
customs and culture of the Native American Indians
Lewis and Clark
Supplies: Preparations
The preparations for the journey required Meriwether Lewis
to learn as much as he could about astronomy, navigation
and cartography (map making) and the scientific instruments
that would help in this task. As the identification of new
plants and animals was important he also learnt about botany
and biology and ensure there were adequate supplies of writing
materials. The welfare of the men was of prime importance
so supplies regarding their comfort in respect of clothing,
shelter, food and medicines had to be carefully considered.
Their safety in the unknown, unmapped lands was also important
so the choice and supplies of weapons was also of prime
importance to the expedition. Finally Lewis had to consider
supplies that would help him establish relations with the
Native American Indian tribes the expedition might encounter
on the journey.
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies: A Crucial Task
The following list of Lewis and Clark supplies give a 'flavor'
of the provisions that were taken on the historic journey.
Not only did Meriwether Lewis have to prepare a list of
supplies he also had to consider the quantities of items,
storage space on the keelboat and ease of transporting the
items. Creating the list of supplies was a massive task
and crucial to the success of the expedition.
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies
The list of Lewis and Clark supplies are categorized as
follows
- Food, Shelter,
Tools and Camping Supplies
- Clothing Supplies
- Medical Supplies
- Weapons and Arms
- Scientific and
Mathematical Instruments
- Maps, Reference
Books and Writing Materials
- Gifts for Native
American Indians
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies: Food, Shelter, Tools and Camping Supplies
10.5 Pounds (5
kilograms) of fishing hooks and fishing lines
12 Pounds (5.4 kilograms) of soap
193 Pounds (87.5 kilograms) of "portable soup" (a thick
paste made by boiling down beef, eggs, and vegetables, to
be used if no other food was available on the journey)
2 Dozen tablespoons
25 Hatchets
3 Bushels (106 liters) of salt
30 Steels for striking or making fire
6 Large needles
Chisels
Handsaws
Iron corn mill
Mosquito curtains
Oilskin bags
Pliers
Whetstones
150 Yards (140 meters) of cloth to be oiled and sewn into
tents and sheets
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies: Clothing Supplies
15 Blankets
15 Frocks (Work Garments)
15 Pairs wool overalls
20 Coats
30 Stockings
Knapsacks
Shoes
Woolen pants
45 Flannel shirts
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies: Medical Supplies
1,100 Doses of
emetic
1,300 Doses of physic
3,500 Doses of diaphoretic (sweat inducer)
Additional drugs
Forceps
Lancets
Syringes
Tourniquets
50 Dozen Dr. Rush's patented "Thunderclapper" pills
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies and Quantities: Weapons and Arms
1 Long-barreled
air rifle
15 Gun slings
176 Pounds (80 kilograms) of gunpowder packed in 52 lead
canisters
24 Large knives
420 Pounds (191 kilograms) of sheet lead for bullets
500 Rifle flints
Powder horns
15 Prototype Model 1803 muzzle-loading .54-caliber rifles
"Kentucky Rifles"
15 Model 1795 Springfield” muskets
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies and Quantities: Scientific and Mathematical
Instruments
1 Chronometer
(needed to calculate longitude; at $250 it was the most
expensive item)
1 Hadley's quadrant
1 Portable microscope
1 Set of plotting instruments
1 Tape measure
1 Telescope
2 Sextants
3 Thermometers
Hand compass
Surveyor's compass
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies and Quantities: Maps, Reference Books
and Writing Materials
Antoine Simon's
Le Page du Pratz's History of Louisiana
Barton's Elements of Botany
Dictionary (4-volume)
Map of the Great Bend of the Missouri River
Richard Kirwan's Elements of Mineralogy
Tables for finding longitude and latitude
A Practical Introduction to Spherics and Nautical Astronomy
Linnaeus (2-volume edition), the Latin classification of
plants
The Nautical Almanac and Astronomical Ephemeris
Writing paper, ink and crayons
List of Lewis
and Clark Supplies and Quantities: Gifts for Native American
Indians
10 Pounds (4.5
kilograms) of sewing thread
130 Rolls of tobacco
144 Small scissors
20 Pounds (9 kilograms) of assorted beads, mostly blue
288 Brass thimbles
288 Knives
4,600 Sewing needles
5 Pounds (2 kilograms) of small, white, glass beads
8 Brass kettles
Armbands
Ear trinkets
Handkerchiefs
Ivory combs
Silk ribbons
Tomahawks that doubled as pipes
Vermilion face paint
Yards of bright-colored cloth
12 Dozen pocket mirrors
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