Oregon's New Frontiers

Although carefully chosen by Thomas Jefferson, Lewis and Clark gave little hint of the greatness they would attain with the expedition.

Lewis and Clark West to the Pacific by Frank R. "Bob" Davenport. Photo and Copyright held by: Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation, Inc.

(SALEM, Ore.) - I stood looking out to sea from Ecola State Park, squinting against a fine mist falling from leaden skies. Tossing in waves of gray, the ocean thundered against the cliffs and shook the ground beneath my feet. This was the scene that met the gaze of Lewis and Clark, who had traveled across a continent to the mythic edge of the frontier.

Few missions have succeeded so impressively in their completion as the expedition of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The Corps of Discovery were seasoned frontiersmen who set out in 1804 to realize Thomas Jefferson's vision of a republic united from Atlantic to Pacific.

They mapped the new territory west of the Louisiana Purchase, cataloging plant and animal species. On the way, they searched for a northwest passage and a precedent for the manifest destiny of the United States. The key to the success of the expedition was the balanced diversity of their leadership, tempered by the courageous Shoshone woman Sacajawea, whose skills as an interpreter and guide proved critical.

Fortune smiled upon the intrepid group as they made their way across the west, bartering with Indians and hunting to support their dwindling rations. As the expedition prepared to cross the Rockies late in the season, it was Sacajawea and her brother who obtained the horses they desperately needed.

A bond between the adventurers was forged in the realm they bravely inhabited between peril and discovery. At Fort Clatsop, the expedition wintered through constant rain, their conviction undimmed, and claimed as our right the land of the mighty Columbia.

Although carefully chosen by Thomas Jefferson, Lewis and Clark gave little hint of the greatness they would attain with the expedition. Their model of achievement became a cornerstone of our young republic. It eclipsed the later lives of Lewis and Clark, who fell into relative obscurity.

Forthcoming recognition of the Corps of Discovery camping sites will rank them alongside the greatest historical sites of our nation.

A new generation of Americans can come to ponder Lewis and Clark's thoughts as they viewed the immensity of the Oregon country, perhaps to consider that there are still frontiers and challenges to be met all around us, waiting for us to realize our full potential.