[PRELIMINARY MEMORANDA]
[Clark]
CAPTS. LEWIS & CLARK wintered at the enterance
of a Small river opposit the Mouth of Missouri
Called Wood River,[1]
where they formed their party,
Composed of robust helthy hardy young men, recomended
[Sentence unfinished.—Ed.].[2]
[The following memoranda of events in the history of the
expedition prior to its departure from River Dubois, May 14,
1804, are selected from a record, mainly of natural phenomena,
kept by Clark, which is written near the end of Codex C;
this begins at p. 231, and continues (the pages being in reverse
order) to p. 216, covering the time from Jan. 1, 1804 to
April 7, 1805. The expedition had gone into camp in December.
—
Ed.]
January 30th.
Capt. Lewis arrived from Kahokia
Feby. 29
The weather had been clear since Capt Lewis lef[t] Camp
untill this[3]
March 19th
Visited St. Charles
20th
Return from St Charles after haveing arrested the progress
of a Kickapoo war party
21st
I arrived at River Dubois from St Charles
28th.
Capt. Lewis returned to Camp
29th.
Tried Several men for missconduct
April 2nd
Capt Lewis went to St. Louis. Mr. Hay arrive[d]
[The following memorandum, by both Lewis and Clark, occupies
a detached sheet in the Clark-Voorhis
collection.—Ed.
[Lewis:]
Information of Mr.
John Hay, commencing at the discharge
of the Ottertail Lake, which forms
the source of the Red
River, to his winter station on the Assinneboin
River.
| From Ottertail Lake |
Leagues |
| To the Shugar
rappid |
18. |
| Buffaloe River—N.
Side |
10. |
| Commencement of shaved
prarie |
9. |
| Expiration of D°.
d°. |
18. |
{Tho' on a
streight line not thought more than
6.
leagues} |
|
| Stinking bird river, South
side |
60. |
| (heads with river
St. Peters) |
|
| Shayen or
Shaha South side |
14. |
| River au Bouf North
side |
4. |
| Tree River South
side |
10. |
| Wild oates river N.
Side |
2. |
| Goose river South
side |
7. |
| Pond River S.
side |
1/3 |
Sand Hill river—not
certain but b[e]lieved to be on the
South
side |
5. |
| To the grand fork or Red Lake River N.
Side |
20. |
| Turtle river S.
Side |
3. |
| Dirty water river S.
side |
3. |
| Salt water river N. side at the
head of this river is a salt
spring |
18. |
| Pierced wood river N.
S. |
12. |
| Pembenar river N.
S. |
3. |
To a wintering establishment of the
N. W. Company on
the S.
side |
8. |
| Paemicon river S.
side |
3. |
| Mr. Reaum's
Fort S. side 1792 |
1/3 |
| Pond river S.
side |
14. |
| Kuckould burr river S.
side |
3 1/2 |
| Rat river N
side |
7. |
| Assinniboin N
side |
161/2 |
|
269 |
| Dead river S.
side |
8. |
| Lake
Winnepique |
10. |
From the mouth of the
Assinaboin up the same to
To the mouth of Mouse River S
side |
139 1/2 |
Notes—1) the general course of the red River from Leaf river to
the mouth of the assinnaboin is due West
(2d.) the River Pembenar heads in three large lakes bearing as it
proceds upwards towards the Assinnaboin—the first lake three leagues
in length and 1 in width, the
turtle mountain bearing S W. dist
nt 7
leagues, the
second smaller lying N N W. not very distant from the
former the third and
last large and extending within a few miles of the
mouth of Mouse river
branch of the Assinnaboin
(3) Salt is made in sundry places on the Red
river (to it) [to wit]
just below the mouth of river Pembenar on the S.
side head of salt
river, also on the South side of the red river a little
way below the dirty
water river
[Clark:]
The Course from the Fort Mandan to the
Fort Chaboillez's
on the Assinna Boin is North 150
Miles
|
mls |
| Mirey
creek |
12 & Big C. of wood 16 to the E to a
lake |
Mous river
30 yd wide |
50 to the river La sou[rie] 4
L |
| and |
20 Legues to a Small creek of the
Mous R |
| & |
3 d° to the
next |
| & |
1 League cross the Lasou or
M.[ouse] |
| & |
20 L
cross the Ditto to the R
Pass Turtle Hites at 6 L. |
|
27 to
Assinnibon |
|
51 |
[ILLUSTRATION]
[We now return to Clark's memorandum of events, in
Codex C.—Ed.]
3rd.
Mr. Garrous[4]
Boat loaded with provisions pass up for Prarie
du chien, to trade
18th.
at St. Louis
The Country about the Mouth
of Missouri is pleasent rich
and partially Settled On the East Side of the
Mississippi a
leavel rich bottom extends back about 3 miles, and rises by
several elevations to the high Country, which is thinly timbered
with Oakes & On the lower Side of the Missouri, at about
2 miles
back the Country rises graduilly, to a high plesent
thinly timberd
Country, the lands are generally fine on the
River bottoms and well
calculating for farming on the upper
Country
in the point the
Bottom is extensive and emensly rich for
15 or 20 miles up each river, and
about 2/3 of which is open
leavel plains in which the inhabtents of St. Charles & portage
de Scioux had ther crops of corn
& wheat. on the upland is
a fine farming country partially timbered
for Some distance
back.
