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William Rogers Clark
William Rogers Clark
grew up tough. He was the
ninth of ten children
and the youngest of six
boys. The famous Revolu-
tionary War hero George
Rogers Clark was his oldest
brother and personal
hero. Virginian born, the
family moved when he was
14 into the Ohio-Indiana ter-
ritory to pursue land and busi-
ness dealings.
Clark followed the fam-
ily tradition and entered regu-
lar military service under
General Anthony Wayne.
During this period Clark
learned to lead men.
He undertook several mis-
sions for the general into the
s o u t h w e s t
a n d
along the Mississippi River in
southeast Missouri and south-
ern Illinois. Perhaps because
of his birth order or his per-
sonality Clark usually kept
quiet and to himself. He was
most at home tramping
through the wilderness.
He learned the rough and
tumble ways of the woods
and
the
survival
skills necessary along the
frontier. During his military
service he briefly became
acquainted with a Virginian
named
Meriwether
Lewis.
Little did he
realize then how intertwined
the two men's future would
become.
Historians are
unsure of their relationship
during this period due to a
c o m p l e t e
l a c k
of records.
Regardless of the evi-
dence, it was obvious the two
men came to respect
one another's abilities. Both
Lewis and Jefferson appreci-
ated the danger of
the trip and the need for an-
other leader on the expedi-
tion.
Le wi s i m me d i a t e l y
penned his old military friend
and offered him the rank of
captain and the chance to be
an equal with Lewis during
the journey. Balky mail ser-
vice, and Lewis' continual
movements, delayed Clark's
eager affirmative response to
the offer.
Lewis was embarrassed,
and Clark a bit miffed, when
snags inside the War
Department finally sent
Clark's commission.
The
paperwork listed Clark
as lieutenant on the official
roster instead of a cap-
tain.
Much to their
credit the two men never let
on to anyone else and to eve-
ryone
who
came
in contact with the Corps of
Discovery the two men were
co-captains.
Clark's strength lay in his
ability to handle the wide
range of personalities com-
prising the Corps. His word
was his bond and he dis-
played nerves of steel in cru-
cial situations. Surveying and
journal
writing
proved to be two of his addi-
tional strong points, and it is
from his journal we get
the most complete picture of
t h e
a d v e n t u r e .
While he must have had hun-
dreds of questions and a few
doubts on October 15,
1803, he stepped onto the
keelboat at Clarksville, Ken-
tucky and shook hands
with Lewis.
From this moment for-
ward they would be one of
the most formidable teams in
American history.
Dave Hinze is a profes-
sional historian and tour
guide.
He leads tours
and presents at conferences
on Lewis & Clark, and other
topics pertaining to early
American history, for the
American History Education
Association.
You can reach Dave at 1-
800-298-1861
or
AHEA2004@yahoo.com
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‘Illinois Valley News’
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, October 8, 2003