WILLIAM CLARK by Charles Willson Peale, c. 1810 Oil on paper Courtesy of Independence National Historic Park William Clark (1770-1838) was born in Virginia and was the younger brother of frontiersman and military hero George Rogers Clark. An experienced soldier and outdoorsman with strong leadership and diplomatic skills, Clark was in command of an elite rifle company when he met ensign Meriwether Lewis in 1795, and was thirty-three years old when Lewis invited him to share command of the Corps of North West Discovery. On the expedition west, Clark displayed considerable talent as a negotiator, boatman, engineer, geographer, and cartographer. He spent the rest of his life in St. Louis, where he served as Governor of Missouri Territory and Superintendent of Indian Affairs. His St. Louis home contained a formal council chamber and museum housing objects presented to him by Indian people, among whom he was known as the "red-headed chief." While traveling with the Corps of Discovery, Clark developed a high regard for Sacagawea, the Shoshoni wife of Toussaint Charbonneau, and their infant son, Jean Baptiste (whom Clark nick-named "Pompy"). Following the expedition, Clark assumed responsibility for educating Jean Baptiste, and also served as a patron and supporter of the artist George Catlin. He named his first born son "Meriwether Lewis Clark" in honor of his friend and co-commander.

 

	h o m e i n t r o d u c t i o n o b j e c t s m a p r e s o u r c e s c r e d i t s The Ethnography of Lewis and Clark: Native American Objects and the American Quest for Commerce and Science Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University Copyright ©President and Fellows of Harvard College