Journals of the
Lewis & Clark Expedition

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May 29, 1804
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May 29, 1804

[Clark]

 

Tuesday 29th May    Sent out hunters, got a morning obsvtn and one at 12 oClock,    rained last night, the river rises fast    The Musquetors are verry bad, Load the pierogue

[Clark] [1]

 

May 29th 180[4]    Set out from the mouth of the gasconnade, where we took obsevn &c.    left a Perogue for a man lost in the woods, [2] Course N. 54 W 2 m to a point Lb. Side. Passed the Isd. on which we Camped, river still rised, water verry muddey    N. 78° W 2 Ms. to a pt. on Lb Side    passed two willow Islands first Smaller and a Creek on Lbd. called Deer Creek [3] one oposit the point St. Side and incamped on the Lb Side [4]    rain all night

[Form?] the tents together [gro?] along the [Bank?] N; 76 W 25 Poles S 26 W, to the point above—    S 19° to the pot below the River [5]

from the pole on the Bank to the upper point is S [11?] E to the lower point [is?] S L L S 42½ East to the pole at the Lower Side

Gasconnade [6]
28 ½ poles Wide 157 yds.
below the mouth of Gascond 35 do do 193
above       do          do 38 ½ do do 215

Course of the River gasconnade is S 20° W—    River up N 70° W    The River Down N 29° E

[Clark]

May 29th Tuesday
 

rained last night, Cloudy morning    4 hunters Sent out with Orders to return at 12 oClock    Took equal altitudes of Suns Lower limb    found it 105° 31' 45"

  h ' "     h ' "
A M. 9 25 24   P M 2 35 31
  9 26   3     2 37 20
  9 27 27     2 38 52
Error of Sextion 8' 45" —
☉s Magnetic Azzamuth S 83° W.   h m s
Time at place of obsvn. by Cromtr. P.M. 4 4 44
Double altitude of ☉ L Limb   71° 24' 00"

Cap Lewis observed meridean altitude of ☉ U L—back observation with the octant & artificeal horozen—    gave for altitude on the Limb 38° 44' 00"    ☉ octant Error 2 0 0 +

had the Perogues loaded and all perpared to Set out at 4 oClock after finishing the observations & all things necessary    found that one of the hunters had not returned, we deturmined to proceed on & leave one perogue to wate for him, accordingly at half past four we Set out and came on 4 miles & camped on the Lbd Side above a Small Creek Called Deer Creek, Soon after we came to we heard Several guns fire down the river, we answered them by a Discharge of a Swivile on the Bow [7]

Course to day & Distance 29 May
N. 54° W, 2 ms. to pt. Lbd Sd.
N. 78° W 2 ms. to pt. Lbd. Sd.    pd. Deer Creek
  4  

[Lewis]

(Poi[n]t Obsn. No. 2)
Tuesday May 29th [8]
 

On a small Island opposite to the mouth of the Gasconade made the following obsertns.

Equal Alds. of ☉, with Sextant.

  h m s     h m s
A. M. 9 25 24   P. M. 2 35 31
  " 26   3     " 37 20
  " 27 27     " 38 52

Altd. by Sextnt. at the time of this observt. 105° 31' 45"

Note.—The ☉ was so much obscured during the A. M. observation, that I cannot be positive as to it's accuracy, not could I obtain the A. M. obstn. at an earlyer hour fron the same cause.

observed ☉'s magnetic azimuth by Cercumftr.—    S. 83° W.

  h m s
Time by Chronometer P. M. 4 4 44
altd. by Sextant of ☉s L. L. 71° 24' 00"
Latitude of place of observation N.38° 44' 35.3"
Variation of nedle—[blank]      

Observed Meridian altd. of ☉'s L L. with Octant by the back observt.    39° 3' 00"

Latitude deduced from this observation 38° 44' 35.3

[Ordway]

 

Tuesday May the 29th 1804, rain last night    Several men out hunting, &C—    we Set out from the Gasgonade River at 5 O.C. P. M. Come 3 miles    passed Deer Creek on the S. Side    encamped all night Jest above on the S Side    〈Some rain this night〉    one man Whitehouse lost hunting    Frenchman's pearogue [9] Std. for him

[Floyd]

 

Tuesday may 29th 1804    Rain Last night    Set out at 5 ock P m 〈[c]ame 3 miles encamped〉    Came 3 miles    pssed Deer Creek on the S. Side    encamped all Night Jest above on the South Side    on[e] man Lost hunting    French men Left for him

[Gass]

 

Tuesday 29th.    Seven men were sent out to hunt; six of whom returned. We waited here until 5 o'clock P. M. for the man, who had not come in, and then proceeded three miles, passed Deer creek on the south side, and encamped a short distance above it on the same side. A periogue and eight men had been left for the hunter who had not returned.

[Whitehouse]

 

Tuesday May 29th [10]    This morning being clear we pursued on with the Pettyauger, and in the Evening overtook the boat, we encamped [11] on the North side of the River.    The course of the River running still 〈due〉 West by South.—

1. This second entry for May 29 is at right angles to the first on document 15. Under it is a sketch map of the Missouri River from Bonhomme Creek to above Tavern Creek, in St. Louis , Franklin, and St. Charles counties, Missouri. See fig. 9. Wood; MRC map 3. (back)
2. Joseph Whitehouse, who had been exploring a cave. The red pirogue, manned by the French engagés, stayed behind him. (back)
3. Probably Bailey Creek, entering the Missouri in Gasconade County, Missouri, near the Osage County line. MRC map 5; MRM map 14. (back)
4. Just above Bailey Creek, very near the Osage-Gasconade county line. MRC map 5; MRM map 14. (back)
5. This and the following paragraph are in pencil, written in the angle between the two May 29 entries on document 15. They are nearly illegible. Apparently they belong to the period when the party camped at the mouth of the Gasconade. (back)
6. These measurements, which Clark took at the mouth of the Gasconade on May 28, are written in ink below the previous penciled paragraphs. (back)
7. The swivel gun was a small cannon widely used by armies, navies, and fur traders in this period. As the name implies, it was placed on a Y-shaped mount that swiveled, giving it great flexibility. It could fire a solid shot or a number of smaller projectiles and was therefore a useful antipersonnel weapon. During the expedition's tense encounter with the Teton Sioux (September 25, 1804), the swivel was loaded with sixteen musket balls, each of which would probably have gone through more than one victim. The gun probably had a bore of less than two inches and fired a ball weighing about one pound. The expedition also had two blunderbusses, likewise mounted on swivels; these were large, bell-mouthed shoulder arms, used with buckshot like heavy shotguns. All of these weapons were probably mounted on the walls of Fort Mandan during the winter of 1804–5. The Corps cached all three at the Great Falls of the Missouri in June 1805, and recovered them in August of the following year. They gave the little cannon as a gift to the Hidatsa chief Le Borgne (One Eye) during the return trip in order to win his good will; the blunderbusses were brought back to St. Louis. Russell (GEF), 251–65; Russell (FTT), 45–48, 77–84. (back)
8. Lewis's observation from Codex O. (back)
9. Otherwise called the red pirogue. (back)
10. This is the fair copy entry; the original version of Whitehouse's journal has no entry for this date. (back)
11. According to John Ordway and Patrick Gass, they encamped on the south side, in Gasconade County, Missouri. (back)
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