A large group works to cart two dugout canoes around the Falls of the Missouri. They hoist sails to give them an assist. At the lower camp, Clark has men render bison tallow and cache heavy items. At the camp above the falls, Lewis assigns men to hunt and work on the iron-framed boat. Pvt. Whitehouse suffers from heat exhaustion and as a special treat, Lewis makes suet dumplings for the tired crews.
Raw Suet Dumplings
© 2020 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Upper Camp Tasks
The Musquetoes are extreemly troublesome to us. This morning early I dispatched J. Fields and Drewyer in one of the canoes up the river to hunt Elk. set Frazier [Frazer] at work to sew the skins together for the covering of the boat. Sheilds [Shields] and Gas [Gass] I sent over the river to surch a small timbered bottom on that side opposite to the Islands for timber and bark
—Meriwether Lewis
Making Suet Dumplings
[T]o myself I assign the duty of cook . . . . boiled a large quantity of excellent dryed buffaloe meat and made each man a large suet dumpling by way of a treat.
—Meriwether Lewis
Pen Knife on Copper Canteen
© 2014 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Whitehouse Overheats
Whitehouse one of them much heated and fortiegued on his arrivall dank a very hearty draught of water and was taken almost instanly extreemly ill. his pulse were very full and I therefore bled him plentifully from which he felt great relief. I had no other instrument with which to perform this opperation but my pen knife, however it answered very well.
—Meriwether Lewis
Lower Camp Tasks
I gave Serjt. Pryor a dost of Salts, & Set Chabonah [Charbonneau] to trying up the Buffalow tallow & put into the empty Kegs &c.
—William Clark
Favorable Winds
The wind from the N. W. verry worm flying Clouds in the evening the wind Shifted round to the East & blew hard, which is a fair wind for the two Canoes to Sail on the Plains across the portage
—William Clark
Buffalo Blacken the Plains
we Saw great numbers of buffalow on the plains in every direction. the plain appear to be black with them. Some antelope [Pronghorns] and Deer. the wolves pleanty.—
—Joseph Whitehouse
Caching ‘Lumbersom’ Articles
assort our articles for to be left at this place buried, [blank] Kegs of Pork, ½ a Keg of flour, 2 blunderbuts [blunderbuss], [blank] Caterrages a few Small lumbersom articles Capt Lewiss Desk and Some books & Small articles in it
—William Clark
Weather Diary
State of the thermometer at rise
Weather Wind at State of the thermometer at 4 OC. P.M. Weather Wind at 4 OC. P. M. State of river 49 [above 0] fair S. W. 78 [above 0] fair S. W. raised ½ in. —Meriwether Lewis[1]To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “State of the river” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations.
The Great Falls Portage is a High Potential Historic Site along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail managed by the U.S. National Park Service. It includes Sulpher Spring (open to the public) and Lower Portage camp site (private land), and the Upper Portage Camp Overlook.
Notes
| ↑1 | To assist the reader, the editor of this web page has omitted the date column, merged the “State of the river” columns, and spelled out some abbreviations. |
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Experience the Lewis and Clark Trail
The Lewis and Clark Trail Experience—our sister site at lewisandclark.travel—connects the world to people and places on the Lewis and Clark Trail.
Discover More
- The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Day by Day by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2018). The story in prose, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals: An American Epic of Discovery (abridged) by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2003). Selected journal excerpts, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals. by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 1983–2001). The complete story in 13 volumes.
This page was funded in part by the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, U.S. National Park Service.
This site is provided as a public service by the
Lewis and Clark Trail Alliance
with cooperation and funding from the following organizations:
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
- Montana Committee for the Humanities
- Idaho Governor's Lewis and Clark Trail Committee
- The Capital Gallery (Lewis and Clark Fort Mandan Foundation)
- Yellowstone Public Radio
Unless otherwise noted, journal excerpts are from The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by Gary E. Moulton, 13 vols. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1983-2001).