In 1803 President Thomas Jefferson pulled off the Louisiana Purchase, snapping up all the French territory in the middle of North America -- nearly doubling the size of the United States for a mere $7 ($150 in today's money) per square kilometre. He then ordered his secretary, Meriwether Lewis, to trek across it, mapping the land, befriending the natives and seeking a navigable waterway to the Pacific.
Lewis recruited more than 40 men, mostly soldiers, and brought in William Clark as co-commander. Clark brought his slave, York. Supplies included a compass, a theodolite, writing paper, beads and tobacco for gifts, opium for pain, "pewter penis syringes" for venereal disease and a hefty arsenal including a swivel cannon. Jefferson gave Lewis an unlimited letter of credit.
They set off from Camp Dubois near St Louis on May 14th 1804. The men ate about four kilos of meat a day. Sergeant Charles Floyd died on August 20th 1804, probably of a burst appendix -- the first American soldier to die west of the Mississippi.
A September 1804 encounter with the Teton Sioux nearly turned calamitous. Had Lewis fired the swivel gun, the history of North America might have changed: the Sioux might have allied with Britain in the War of 1812. At Fort Mandan (North Dakota), where it was "sometimes so cold a man's penis would freeze", the Mandan tribe supplied corn that may have saved the expedition from starvation.
At Fort Mandan the expedition hired Sacagawea, a 17-year-old Shoshone woman, as interpreter. In February 1805 she gave birth to Jean Baptiste, nicknamed "Pompey". The baby's presence reassured tribes that the armed expedition was peaceful -- who takes an infant on a war party? When the expedition reached Shoshone territory, Sacagawea recognised the chief as her long-lost brother (she had been kidnapped at 12 by the Hidatsa). The Shoshone sold the Corps horses.
On November 7th 1805 Clark wrote: "Ocian in view! O! the joy" -- having travelled 6,666km. They put the winter camp location to a vote; Sacagawea and York participated, making it the first time a woman or a black slave had voted in America.
The expedition identified 122 animal species (from coyotes to prairie dogs) and at least 178 plants. Their journals and maps gave priceless guidance to Americans who followed them westward.
Lewis, an alcoholic, may have killed himself. York asked for his freedom after contributing heroically; Clark disgracefully said no. Pompey grew up to be a successful explorer. Today the Lewis and Clark trail crosses 16 states.
Positive, adj.: Mistaken at the top of one's voice.