Meriwether Lewis Suicide Theory

Chances are, you have heard of Meriwether Lewis whether you know who he is or not. Meriwether Lewis is mostly known for traveling out west with William Clark, Sacagawea, and York. This expedition helped him to become closer with the president, Thomas Jefferson, and become his assistant and friend. This relationship eventually led to him becoming the governor of the Louisiana Territory and may have also led to his death. On the night of his death, Lewis was traveling back to D.C. to take care of some debts when he stopped at Grinder’s Stand to rest. Little did he know, later that night he would die due to a gunshot to the back of the head and stomach. No one was ever found guilty of murdering Lewis and it was never proven that he killed himself. The most convincing theory is that his death was murder by conspiracy. It is believed that Meriwether Lewis was killed by the Grinders because of the

This alone can rule out the suicide theory, yet most people still believe that Meriwether Lewis’s death was a suicide. Another thing learned from the autopsy is that Lewis was shot in the back of the head. If this was a suicide, he would have to awkwardly twist his hand to shoot himself in the back of the head. Lastly, multiple sources including Decoded that it would be nearly impossible for Lewis to survive the first shot to the head, let alone, shoot himself again in the stomach. This is some proof that he could have been shot by the Grinders because he was staying at their house and this evidence shows that he most likely did not shoot himself. Another piece of information that could support the claim that Lewis was murdered is that it was common for owners of hotels/inns to rob and murder their guests. According to Vardis Fisher, it is possible that the Grinders could have done this to