Camp Dubois Expedition

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Thirty-three people, including 29 participants in training at the 1803–1804 Camp Dubois (Camp Wood) winter staging area, then in the Indiana Territory, were near present-day Wood River, Illinois, on the east bank of the Mississippi. In March 1804, the Spanish in New Mexico learned from U.S. General James Wilkinson, later discovered to be a paid agent of the Spanish crown, that the Americans were encroaching on territory claimed by Spain. On August 1, they sent four armed expeditions of 52 soldiers, mercenaries, and Indians from Santa Fe northward under Pedro Vial and José Jarvet, to intercept Lewis and Clark and imprison the entire expedition. When they reached the Pawnee settlement on the Platte River in central Nebraska, they learned that the expedition had been there many days before, but because the expedition at that point was covering 70 to 80 miles (110 to 130 km) a day, Vial's attempt to intercept them was unsuccessful.
Departure
The Corps of Discovery departed from Camp Dubois at 4 pm on May 14, 1804, and met up with Lewis in St. Charles, Missouri, a short time later, marking the beginning of the voyage to the Pacific coast. The Corps followed the Missouri River westward. Soon, they passed La Charrette, the last Euro-American …show more content…
On August 20, 1804, Sergeant Charles Floyd died, apparently from acute appendicitis. He was the only member of the expedition to die, and was among the first to sign up with the Corps of Discovery. He was buried at a bluff by the river, now named after him, in what is now Sioux City, Iowa. His burial site was marked with a cedar post on which was inscribed his name and day of death. 1 mile (2 km) up the river, the expedition camped at a small river which they named Floyd's River. During the final week of August, Lewis and Clark reached the edge of the Great Plains, a place abounding with elk, deer, bison, and
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