Advanced American History
Meriwether Lewis
November 21, 2013
Meriwether Lewis is remembered as one of the two famous leaders of the Lewis and Clark expedition in the early 1800’s. Lewis was an outstanding military man with many quality leadership skills that helped in the success of the famous expedition. However, Meriwether Lewis was much more than just than the hero of the famous expedition. Lewis was an avid outdoorsman, a scholar in the history of the world, and a successful politician. In this paper, I would like to introduce some of the other great feats of Meriwether Lewis.
.Meriwether Lewis was born on August 18, 1774 to William Lewis and Lucy Meriwether. His father’s side of the family was host to many strong military men and scholars. The Lewis’ owned a farm in Albemarle County, Virginia. It was there that Lewis was raised and taught the many skills that would keep him alive in his voyages. Lucy Meriwether was known throughout the region for her knowledge on herbalist medicines and her cooking was said to be the best in Virginia. It was also in Albemarle County that Meriwether Lewis would meet lifelong friend Thomas Jefferson whose family lived not but five miles from the Lewis farm. In 1780 William Lewis died of pneumonia after returning home from the Revolutionary War. Lucy Meriwether in turn married Captain John Marks and moved the family to the Broad River Valley, in Georgia.
It was in Georgia that young Meriwether honed his skills as hunter and outdoorsman. He was famous for leaving the house in the middle of the night with nothing but his hounds to embark on a nightlong hunt. He was taught which herbs were good to eat and which were good for medicines. In 1788, Lewis left Georgia and returned to Locust Hill, where he managed the family farm and began a road to a formal education. In the spring of 1790, Lewis finished his studies with Parsons William Douglas and began enlarging Locust Hill. In 1792, John Marks was killed by Cherokee Indians and Lucy Meriwether returned to Locust Hill to live out the rest of her days.
In 1794, President George Washington drafted thirteen thousand men to help put down the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania. Lewis volunteered and helped quickly suppress the rebellion. However, Lewis stayed on as a volunteer and served in a special rifle company commanded by one William Clark. The two men grew a deep respect for one another but due to health problems Clark was forced to step down from command and Lewis took his place as captain. For the next six years, Lewis would fight skirmishes with the Shawnee and Cherokee Indians who often tormented the settlers in the region.
In February of 1801, Lewis was summoned to Washington D.C. by his old friend and now President Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson asked Meriwether to be his personal secretary and Lewis gladly accepted. For the next year the two men talked and proposed a plan to explore the new lands that Jefferson had purchased in the Louisiana Purchase with France. Jefferson very much wanted samples of vegetation, animals, and wanted to knowledge himself on the people who lived that far west. Lewis agreed to lead the expedition as long as the President agreed to fund the expedition. In 1803, Lewis wrote Clark and asked him to join as his partner and fellow captain which Clark heartily accepted. In 1804 the expedition began.
I will only talk briefly of the expedition. Meriwether Lewis kept precise journals of the voyage and many of his tales are amazing. Lewis would meet hundreds of different tribes of Indians, discover over a thousand new species of animals and plants, and escape sickness and danger thirty times. On his return in 1807, Lewis and Clark became famous explorers and given the ranks of heroes. President Jefferson appointed Lewis as governor of Louisiana which was one of the most recent additional territories the U.S. had purchased. In the spring of 1809, while traveling to Washington D.C, Lewis was found dead in an inn near Natchez Trace, Tennessee. Controversy arose if Lewis took his own life, or if he was murdered by criminals. He was only 35 years old.
Many believe that Lewis did commit suicide for there is factual evidence to back this statement. Jefferson often commented that Lewis was known for going through depressions. Lewis suffered from alcoholism and had many financial troubles. When his body was found, there was a newly written will in his saddlebag. In either case, Meriwether Lewis was a true American hero. A pronounced man with the bravery of a thousand soldiers, who to this day will always be remembered for his famous expedition that settled these United States.
www.smithsonianmag.com/.../Meriwether-Lewis-Mysterious-Death.htm
www2.vcdh.virginia.edu/lewisandclark/biddle/biographies.../lewis.html
Click on the paper below to experience an interactive word search.
Meriwether Lewis
November 21, 2013
Meriwether Lewis is remembered as one of the two famous leaders of the Lewis and Clark expedition in the early 1800’s. Lewis was an outstanding military man with many quality leadership skills that helped in the success of the famous expedition. However, Meriwether Lewis was much more than just than the hero of the famous expedition. Lewis was an avid outdoorsman, a scholar in the history of the world, and a successful politician. In this paper, I would like to introduce some of the other great feats of Meriwether Lewis.
.Meriwether Lewis was born on August 18, 1774 to William Lewis and Lucy Meriwether. His father’s side of the family was host to many strong military men and scholars. The Lewis’ owned a farm in Albemarle County, Virginia. It was there that Lewis was raised and taught the many skills that would keep him alive in his voyages. Lucy Meriwether was known throughout the region for her knowledge on herbalist medicines and her cooking was said to be the best in Virginia. It was also in Albemarle County that Meriwether Lewis would meet lifelong friend Thomas Jefferson whose family lived not but five miles from the Lewis farm. In 1780 William Lewis died of pneumonia after returning home from the Revolutionary War. Lucy Meriwether in turn married Captain John Marks and moved the family to the Broad River Valley, in Georgia.
It was in Georgia that young Meriwether honed his skills as hunter and outdoorsman. He was famous for leaving the house in the middle of the night with nothing but his hounds to embark on a nightlong hunt. He was taught which herbs were good to eat and which were good for medicines. In 1788, Lewis left Georgia and returned to Locust Hill, where he managed the family farm and began a road to a formal education. In the spring of 1790, Lewis finished his studies with Parsons William Douglas and began enlarging Locust Hill. In 1792, John Marks was killed by Cherokee Indians and Lucy Meriwether returned to Locust Hill to live out the rest of her days.
In 1794, President George Washington drafted thirteen thousand men to help put down the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania. Lewis volunteered and helped quickly suppress the rebellion. However, Lewis stayed on as a volunteer and served in a special rifle company commanded by one William Clark. The two men grew a deep respect for one another but due to health problems Clark was forced to step down from command and Lewis took his place as captain. For the next six years, Lewis would fight skirmishes with the Shawnee and Cherokee Indians who often tormented the settlers in the region.
In February of 1801, Lewis was summoned to Washington D.C. by his old friend and now President Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson asked Meriwether to be his personal secretary and Lewis gladly accepted. For the next year the two men talked and proposed a plan to explore the new lands that Jefferson had purchased in the Louisiana Purchase with France. Jefferson very much wanted samples of vegetation, animals, and wanted to knowledge himself on the people who lived that far west. Lewis agreed to lead the expedition as long as the President agreed to fund the expedition. In 1803, Lewis wrote Clark and asked him to join as his partner and fellow captain which Clark heartily accepted. In 1804 the expedition began.
I will only talk briefly of the expedition. Meriwether Lewis kept precise journals of the voyage and many of his tales are amazing. Lewis would meet hundreds of different tribes of Indians, discover over a thousand new species of animals and plants, and escape sickness and danger thirty times. On his return in 1807, Lewis and Clark became famous explorers and given the ranks of heroes. President Jefferson appointed Lewis as governor of Louisiana which was one of the most recent additional territories the U.S. had purchased. In the spring of 1809, while traveling to Washington D.C, Lewis was found dead in an inn near Natchez Trace, Tennessee. Controversy arose if Lewis took his own life, or if he was murdered by criminals. He was only 35 years old.
Many believe that Lewis did commit suicide for there is factual evidence to back this statement. Jefferson often commented that Lewis was known for going through depressions. Lewis suffered from alcoholism and had many financial troubles. When his body was found, there was a newly written will in his saddlebag. In either case, Meriwether Lewis was a true American hero. A pronounced man with the bravery of a thousand soldiers, who to this day will always be remembered for his famous expedition that settled these United States.
www.smithsonianmag.com/.../Meriwether-Lewis-Mysterious-Death.htm
www2.vcdh.virginia.edu/lewisandclark/biddle/biographies.../lewis.html
Click on the paper below to experience an interactive word search.
Meriwether Lewis Word Search | |
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