Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-10-18
Of the Fort Mandan
Site, Winter Quarters Of
Lewis and Clark

dition UP the Missouri river to the
Pacific ocean "a
Having neither data nor books of
record at hand on my first advent, +
attempted to get information from the
Oldest native Indians through some of
the more Intelligent of the French
Canadian traders who resided among
them, but was never able to find any
of these who remembered that partic-
ular body of white men. Even as in
teHigent man as Girard, the last |
trader in charge of old Fort Clarke.
had an idea that the Lewis and Clark
winter quarters was on the west bank
of the Missouri in the neighborhood
of Lake Mandan
No progress in the inquiry was made
until a friend then living in Illinois
I (188I forwarded me as a souvenier
of our life on the trap line, the Harper
reprint Of the 1914 edition, but in a
somewhat abbreviated form. m IL.
In reading this journal we find that
there were two Mandan villages one
near the present site Of Deapolis p.
o., and the other two miles up the
river. The Anahaways and Gros Ven
4 tres were around the mouth of the
Knife River
The expedition had passed beyond
4 knife river, but not finding good tim
q Der for boat building and quarters re-
! turned to the first Mandan village.
From Lewis and Clark S journal the
q following notation concerning their
q hunt for and the location OF winter
b quarters. MS s.s
n Novss1. r. In the evening we
dropped down to the lower village
where Captain Lewis went on shore
and Captain Clark proceeded to a point
of wood on the north side.
sssss. Nov. He therefore wen
8 up to the village where eleven bushels
IA of corn were presented to him. II
the meantime Captain Clark went
down with the boats three miles, and
having found good position where
Ri there was plenty of timber, encamped
land began to fell trees to build ou1
lhuts. II
a Nov A. We continued our
/ llabors; the timber which we employ
His large and heavy, and consists chiefly
Is Of cottonwood and elm, with some ash
/ Iof an inferior size,
November 20. We this day
moved into our huts, which are now
completed This place, which we cal
/ Fort Mandan, is situated on point Of
low ground on the north side of the
Missouri river, covered with tall and
heavy cottonwood The works con
sists of two rows of huts or sheds
forming an angle where they join each
II other, each row containing four rooms
Il of fourteen feet square and seven fee
{ high, with plank ceiling, and the roo
slanting SO as to form loft above the
rooms the highest part of which is
eighteen feet from the ground Thu
backs of the huts form a wall O
4 i that height, and opposite the angle
the place Of the wall is supplied b,
81 picketing. In the arena are twt
z rooms for stores and provisions, Thi
4 latitude by observation is 47o 21 4
i end the computed distance from tn,
mouth of the Missouri LOGO miles.
In their journal they speak of TIL
Indians coming 'down" to the for
1 from their village. but in the follow
ing item they so down from TIL
D fort to the pumice stone cliffs be
q II tween the lower. end Of Elm Point an
the upper end of the Conkling Point
& The six miles for boat building tim
Der. was probably the Counted Woods
a March Il. n FIN The canoes Wer
now finished and four of them wer
y carried down to the river at the dis
d tance of i mile and half from wiler
\ / they we're constructed. On the 21s
the remaining pirogues were haule
& i to the same place and all the men es
8 capt three left to watch them, re
& turned to the fort. On his way dowI
3 which was about six miles. Capital
Il Clark passed along the points Of TIL
8 high hills, where he saw large guar
4 titles of pumiee stone on the foo
d sides and ton Of the hills. which ha
q every appearance Of having been /
Il some period on FIRE. He eollecte
speciments Of the stone itself, I'll
q pumice stone, and the hard earth an
on being put into the furnace. th
! hard earth melted and glazed u
punice stone melted and the har
5 stone became a pumiee stone gla'
. ed.