Meriwether Lewis once said, “I could esteem this moment of my departure as among the most happy of my life” (“Meriwether Lewis Quotes”). This is fitting considering Lewis went on an adventurous two year expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Meriwether Lewis is associated with the American Romanticism era. The Romanticism era began in the early 1800s and continued until approximately 1865. This era valued unspoiled nature, relied on intuition over logic, and believed in the importance of individual freedom and liberty. Meriwether Lewis’s infamous expedition and the Romanticism Era is what inspired him to keep detailed journals, and it’s because of these journals that we know about his heroic journey.
Meriwether Lewis was born on August 18, 1774 in Albemarle, Virginia. He was the second child and first
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After studying astronomy, map-making, and other survival skills Meriwether made for the perfect explorer candidate. Lewis asked William Clark, a friend he made in army, to co-captain this journey with him. In mid-October Lewis and Clark made the final preparations in Clarksville, Indiana territory. It is here that they assembled the team that would accompany them on this trip. This team that was composed of Native American experts and men who were familiar with upper Missouri. This company would later be called the Corps of Discovery. The two men divided their responsibilities for the trip equally. Lewis was in charge of the men. He was also the team’s naturalist. He collected plant, mineral, and animal samples to take back to be studied and tested. Since Lewis had a diplomatic position, he was usually the one to conduct speeches to the Native Americans. The expedition took two years. It took endurance, strength, and much help to accomplish. Meriwether Lewis kept very detailed journals of the expedition, that he would later publish. Scholars still study these journals