By His Own Hand? The Mysterious Death of Meriwether Lewis

BY HIS OWN HAND? The Mysterious Death of Meriwether Lewis

EDITED BY JOHN D.W. GUICE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA PRESS 2007, 178 PAGES, $14.95

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark returned to the St. Louis area from their epic journey to the Pacific Coast on Sept. 23, 1806. They successfully had traveled 7,000 miles through unknown territory, collected specimens of animals and plants, and wrote extensive journals of the trials and hardships of their Corps of Discovery. Given a hero's welcome, the future for both looked bright. Indeed, it was for Clark, who lived to be 68 years old, but not for Lewis. The latter died at age 35, apparently by his own hand.

Upon the explorers' return, Pres. Thomas Jefferson, who fathered the idea of this odyssey, rewarded Lewis with the governorship of the Louisiana Territory (a position turned down by our French ally the Marquis de Lafayette, who also was a U.S. soldier while holding dual citizenship) and Clark with promotion to Brigadier General and Chief Indian Agent for the territory. Each was feted extensively. Clark married after a short time and took on the job he was given, while Lewis stayed out East luxuriating in the well-deserved glory that was his. He also got started on arrangements for publication of the expedition's journals. Procrastination got the better of him, though, much to the disgust of the President, and he dilly-dallied for a year before taking on his post as governor, Territory Secretary, Frederick Bates holding down the fort for him.

The post was fraught with myriad problems and Lewis only added to them. A virtual alcoholic, he accumulated various debts, was unhappy at not being able to find a suitable wife, and was not well-served by Bates. Lewis petitioned the War Department to cash a $500 voucher for expenses occurred in having a Mandan Indian chief visit Washington and was refused payment. (A new Administration with James Madison as president now was in place.) In danger of losing his job, Lewis set out for Washington to get things straightened out. The standard story of that death journey follows.

Lewis boarded a vessel on the Mississippi River intending to take an all-water route to the nation's capital. On that boat, he twice tried to commit suicide and then recuperated at Ft. Pickering, near present-day Memphis, Tenn. Worrying about the safety of the expedition's journals he was transporting, he changed his mind, deciding to go by land, using the Natchez Trace, a dangerous but popular route to the East. Accompanied by his free black servant and a Maj. James Neelly and his servant, they arrived at an Inn called Grinder's Stand in Tennessee. Early on the morning of Oct. 11, 1809, Lewis after walking and talking to himself much of the night, supposedly shot himself twice--once in the head and once in the chest. The .69 calibre balls did not kill him; so he cut himself head to toe with a razor, complaining that he was slow in dying. The landlady, Lewis' servant, and Neelly, although not staying in Lewis' cabin, all gave the same accounting. Pres. Jefferson, Clark, and most who knew Lewis well accepted suicide as a fact. Yet, it was hard for the public to acknowledge the stigma of suicide for so great a hero.

Lewis was buried on the spot and, in 1848, a monument was erected there, but with the sponsoring committee suggesting that his death was not suicide, but murder. Now, after the bicentennial celebration of the Lewis and Clark expedition, there is renewed interest in the circumstances of his death. The National Park Service oversees the site and refuses exhumation which might settle the question.

This book brings together three historians who ply their trade like lawyers in arguing pro and con as to the means of Lewis' demise. Evidence is argued and interpreted while the documents which offer these are appended. As one author points out, "historians are an argumentative bunch;' and this is no exception. Readers are left to make their own judgment. For those who wish to explore some Americana, peruse the various journals on the topic to help make a decision. This book is a decided contribution to that extensive literature.

Reviewed by

GERALD F. KREYCHE

American Thought Editor

COPYRIGHT 2007 Society for the Advancement of Education
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