Final Column: 200 Years Ago This
Week (April 23)
Educator/writer Larry McClure is a member of the Lewis and Clark Trail
Heritage Foundation and president of Tualatin Historical Society. He
is following the historic path of the Corps of Discovery as it makes
its way toward the Northwest.
Week ending April 29: From John Day Dam area to the Walla Walla River
Highlights: Getting more horses to help carry baggage is still a priority
as the Expedition visits villages along the Columbia. At one stop,
Sacagawea gives up two of her leather outfits to help pay for one
animal. The men smoke with tribal leaders and then everyone dances:
first with
fiddle music provided by the Corps of Discovery and then a traditional
circle dance of the tribe. The captains notice language differences
of tribes we know today as the Yakama, Umatilla, Cayuse and Walla
Walla Indians. At today’s Walla Walla River they describe how fishermen
use bone hooks, seins and weirs. This is also where they learn that
cutting cross country (through present-day Dayton, Washington) will
save them 80 miles. They continue replenishing their food supply by
buying dogs, but find little firewood to prepare their meals. The captains
give medical aid to several Walla Walla Indians in return for help
crossing the Columbia near present-day Wallula.
Words from the Journals: The men experience difficulty walking on
shore: “most
of the party complain of the soreness of their feet and legs this evening;
it is no doubt caused by walking over the rough stones and deep sands
after being several months accustomed to soft soil.” Walla Walla
Chief Yellept “appeared much gratified at seeing us return, invited
us to remain at his village three or four days and assured us that we
should be furnished with plenty of such food as they had themselves and
some horses to assist us in our journey.” Chief Yellept, who they
first met last October, gives Clark a fine white horse in hopes of obtaining
a kettle, but the captain says they can’t give up any more equipment.
Instead, the chief accepts Clark’s sword, ammunition and other
small items.
Today’s connections: The Corps of Discovery
has now said farewell to the country that will officially become Oregon
in 53 years. For the
next six months, they continue to make careful records of what
they see and do, even when splitting into several groups across present-day
Montana.
Near disasters continue to stalk the mission, but they survive
to reach St. Louis. On the way down the Missouri, they meet trappers
and traders
already moving west based on information sent to Jefferson from
Fort Mandan. It has taken us 200 years to understand the many accomplishments
of the Expedition and the legacies we share because of it. Still,
more
questions remain. The one national organization whose mission is
keeping the flame alive is the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation.
See
www.lewisandclark.org for details on how to join.
Bicentennial events in the Pacific Northwest: The Tamastsklikt
Cultural Institute operated by the Confederated Tribes of the
Umatilla Indian
Reservation hosts the last Oregon visit by the National Park
Service Corps of Discovery II Traveling Exhibition April 29-May 7.
The
museum (exit 216, I-84) provides traditional exhibits as well
as an outdoor
living history program to demonstrate tribal life then and now. Download PDF
Special thanks to Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation
members, particularly historian Barb Kubik, for assisting with this series.
See
www.lewisandclark.org.
To follow the story, click “200 Years Ago
This Week” at www.thejourneycontinues.org. Better yet, read the
actual journal entries at http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/lewisandclark/index.html. For
Bicentennial activities in Oregon, go to www.lcbo.net.
Educational Links About Lewis & Clark
- Oregon
History Project: created by the Oregon Historical Society.
- http://www.nps.gov/lecl National
Park service’s Lewis and Clark web site. Find the latest information
about Corps of Discovery II traveling exhibit; Lewis and Clark: Then
and Now an interactive website with virtual field trips and video conferences;
Lewis and Clark Gnet a Lewis and Clark website with a focus on education.
- http://edsitement.neh.gov “ Discovering
Lewis and Clark” a web-based partnership of the National Endowment
for the Humanities, the National Trust for the Humanities and the Marco
Polo Education Foundation. Go to the search button and type in Lewis
and Clark for a wide variety of lesson plans.
- http://www.nps.gov/focl Fort
Clatsop National Memorial. Learn more about on-site activities for
groups, training opportunities for teachers, video loan program, and
the very popular traveling trunks program. This website also has great
Lewis and Clark background information.
- http://www.lewisandclark200.org The
National Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemoration. This site includes
information on American Indian Nations, Care for the land and water,
travel the trail, and learn more about the journey. There is also a
calendar of bicentennial events. The Bicentennial Exhibition section
contains teacher guides and lesson plans. These multi-disciplinary
curriculums for grades 4-12 offer’s a new perspective on the
Corps of Discovery’s western exploration. Click on Maps of the
Journey to explore a variety of maps that outline the path of Lewis
and Clark.
- http://www.nationalgeographic.com Go
west across America with Lewis and Clark.
- http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark An
excellent educational web site. Great background information!
- http://www.lewisandclark200.gov/edu Lists
47 tribes who had contact with the expedition. http://www.esri.com/lewisandclark
4 classroom guides PDFs for GSI in the classroom.
- http://www.lcarchive.org An
enormous list of web sites related to the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
- http://www.cruzatte.com This
site is on all things musical in relation to the expedition.
- http://www.marcopolo-education.org Internet
content for the classroom. Offer free K-12 standard based lesson plans.
Search for Lewis and Clark. Xpeditions-geography has a new Lewis and
Clark activity.
- http://www.lewisandclarkwa.com The
Pacific County Friends of Lewis and Clark-18 days in Pacific County,
Washington
- http://www.lewisandclark.org Lewis
and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation
- http://www.destinationthepacific.com Washington
and Oregon’s bicentennial commemoration of the Lewis and Clark
Expedition. Check out their Junior Corps of Discovery Program.
- http://www.lewisandclarkexhibit.org
- http://www.ohs.org The
Oregon Historical Society will be hosting a national tour of artifacts
associated with Lewis and Clark, as well as, many other educational
opportunities.
- http://www.maryhillmuseum.org The
Maryhill Museum east of The Dalles offers teacher institutes, special
exhibits and programs on Lewis and Clark. The museum also has extensive
NW Indian holdings.
- http://nwrel.org/teachlewisandclark Northwest
Regional Educational Laboratory in Portland has profiled several Oregon
teachers whose students updated interesting topics from the Lewis and
Clark Journals.
- http://www.sierraclub.org/lewisandclark Profiles
on tribes, plants and animals.
- http://www.thejourneycontinues.org Lewis
and Clark College is offering excellent summaries of the journals and
other sources during the next couple of years. Teachers are invited
to suggest lesson ideas for each week.
- http://trailtribes.com One
of the best emerging sites on tribes that Lewis and Clark met.
- http://www.l3-lewisandclark.com Tribally-approved
oral histories passed down about the Corps of Discovery’s visit,
as well as, summaries of tribal histories.
- http://www.plankhouse.org The
US Fish and Wildlife Service offers a trunk of resources about the
large Cathlapotle (Chinook) village on the Columbia River visited twice
by the Corps of Discovery.
- The Oregon National Guard has
done over 150 presentations to over 14,000 participants in schools
and organizations all over the state of Oregon. To find out more, about
these free presentations, visit www.mil.state.or.us/LC.
- http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/lewis_clark/ online
activities for teachers.
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