William Clark

William Clark was born in 1770. He was born in Caroline County, Virginia. He grew up in Virginia. He joined the army. He fought Indians. He was a very good soldier. He was very brave. He was a leader.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson asked Meriwether Lewis to explore the Louisiana Purchase. Meriwether Lewis asked his friend, William Clark, to join him. They started the Corps of Discovery. This was called the Lewis and Clark Expedition. They went on a trip across the country. They explored the western half of the United States.

Lewis and Clark started the trip in Missouri. They went all the way to Oregon. They saw the Pacific Ocean. William did a lot of things on the trip. He made maps. (Click on the image below to go to a large map.)

He talked to Native Americans.

He wrote down everything. He wrote a book about the trip. He told what they had found.

After the trip, William worked for the government. He was an agent who talked to the Native Americans. They called him “Red-Headed Chief.” He was the first governor of the territory of Missouri. He was governor from 1813 to 1821. Missouri became a state in 1821. William ran for governor of the state. He lost to Alexander McNair.

William Clark was important for Missouri. He died in 1838.

Author: Justin Minard
Sources:
http://www.lewis-clark.org
http://www.kcmuseum.com/explor01.html
http://encarta.msn.com/find/Concise.asp?z=1&pg=2&ti=761567836

Images: Library of Congress and http://www.lewisandclarktrail.com/images/bigmap.jpg