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In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned an expedition that would go deep in to the heart of the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. Over the next three years, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, along with their team known as the Corp of Discovery, traveled thousands of miles through uncharted land. It was upon their return that many of the expedition's adventures took place in what is today's Custer Country, Montana.
On their return trip from the coast, Captains Merriwether Lewis and William Clark split their party on July 3, 1806 near what is today Missoula, Montana. Lewis and his party returned via northern Montana, while Clark's party journeyed through Southern Montana and Custer Country.
Among Clark's party were Toussaint Charbonneau, his Shoshoni wife Sacagawea (also commonly spelled Sacajawea and meaning "bird woman") and their baby Jean Baptiste (whom Clark called Pomp). From the Three Forks of the Missouri River to the Yellowstone River, Sacagawea was commended for recalling Shoshoni travel routes. Clark called her his "pilot" for pointing out a gap through the mountains, the modern-day Bozeman Pass.
July 19: Park City Area
From the Three Forks area, where they camped on July 13, to the Park City area, which they reached on July 19, the expedition had difficulty finding cottonwoods large enough to be made into canoes. They were traveling overland with 49 horses. Along this stretch, Private George Gibson fell on a burned snag that went "nearly two inches into the Muskeler part of his thy," according to Clark's journal entry. Then, while Charbonneau was chasing a buffalo, his horse stepped into a badger hole, throwing him over the horse's head. He was "a good deel brused on his hip sholder & face." The party also encountered "emence sworms of Grasshoppers." Further, Indian smoke signals had been seen that were interpreted as "takeing us to be their Enemy made this signal for other bands to be on their guard."
However, game was abundant. Chokecherry wood was found for axe handles, and eventually, near Park City, two suitable cottonwoods were found for canoes.
July 21: Stolen Horses
On the morning of July 21, the intent of the smoke signals was discovered. Twenty-four of the horses had been stolen in the night. The remaining horses were troublesome; they insisted on chasing every buffalo encountered, as their original owners, Indians, had taught them to do.
July 23: Canoes Ready
On July 23 the canoes were ready. Clark and the rest lashed the two canoes together and headed down river. Three men took the remaining 25 horses overland. July 24 they floated past where the Clark Fork River flows into the Yellowstone River near Laurel, a place the Indians called "The lodge where all dance." Indeed a large council lodge--60 feet in diameter--had been built on an island there.
Just west of present day Billings at the mouth of Canyon Creek, the horse party met Clark and the others, and crossed to the south bank of the Yellowstone. They camped east of Billings near the mouth of Pryor Creek.
July 25: "Pompy's Tower"
On July 25, the party noticed a huge sandstone rock not far from the river. Clark climbed it and saw "emence herds of buffalows, elk and wolves." Indian pictographs were on the rock, and to them he added his name and the date: Wm. Clark, July 25, 1806. He named the rock Pompy's Tower (now called Pompes Pillar) after Sacagawea's baby.
Today, Pompey's Pillar is one of the most famous sandstone buttes in the United States. It bears the only remaining physical evidence along the trail of the Lewis & Clark expedition: Clark's signature. A boardwalk leads to Clark's signature, and to the top of the pillar. Trails lead visitors past wild game antlers and Lewis & Clark canoe replicas down to a view of the river.
July 26: Surrounded by Elk and Buffalo
At the mouth of the Bighorn River, their July 26 camp, the group was kept awake by the bellowing of buffalo bulls.
On July 27, the party camped at Castle Rock near present-day Forsyth. On the 28th, after floating past Rosebud, Porcupine and other creeks, the notable entry of the day was "The elk on the bank of the river were so abundant that we have not been out of sight of them today." The Indians, in fact, called the Yellowstone River "Elk River" because of the herds.
On July 29, near present day Miles City, Clark commented on "coal in great quantities" in the hills. On July 30, after one of the most difficult river navigations of what are present day Buffalo Rapids and Bear Rapids, the party came upon the Glendive Makoshika badlands, which Clark described as "birnt hills."
July 31: Grizzly Encounter
On July 31, 1806, they camped near present day Glendive and Clark recorded seeing a Grizzly Bear, "the largest I ever saw."
August 1 was rainy and windy. Clark reported that thousands of buffalo were crossing the river ahead of the canoes "as thick as they could swim." The herd was a quarter-mile wide and took an hour and fifteen minutes to cross the river. After they set camp at present day Savage (near Sidney), two more sizable herds crossed the river.
By August 2, they reached the Missouri River, and would soon rejoin Lewis and his party.
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