LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION MONUMENT
N 48° 35.959 W 112° 47.900
12U E 367416 N 5384476
Designation: LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION MONUMENT.
Marker Type: NGS Benchmark.
Setting: setting not listed - see long description.
Stability:
Waymark Code: WMN2B
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 08/22/2006
Views: 41
Documented History (by the NGS) 1/1/1963 by CGS (MONUMENTED) DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1963 (JCC) THE STATION IS THE CENTER OF THE BASE OF A 18 BY 20 FOOT HIGH MONUMENT. IT IS ABOUT 10-1/2 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF BROWNING, 0.2 MILE NORTH OF U.S. HIGHWAY 2 AND ON THE HIGHEST POINT OF A SMALL EAST-WEST RIDGE BETWEEN THE HIGHWAY AND THE RAILROAD. A TRAVERSE CONNECTION WAS MADE TO TRIANGULATION STATION MONUMENT. THE DISTANCE BEING 304.66 FEET AND THE METERS (92.860). WEST-NORTHWEST.
Two Medicine Fight Site JUST SOUTH. Off US 89, southeast of Browning, MT
As they headed back toward the Great Falls, Lewis divided his already small party further, directing Drouillard ahead to follow the Two Medicine River, while he and the Fields climbed the nearby hills. When they arrived at the summit, Lewis was alarmed to see some 30 horses on a rise in the distance, and among them several young Piegan (Pikuni) Blackfeet men (perhaps teenagers), who were watching Drouillard. "This was a very unpleasant sight," he wrote. Hoping to avert hostilities, Lewis approached them, offered them a flag, handkerchief, and medal, and they agreed to catch up with Drouillard--who carried the tobacco--for a smoke.
That evening the Americans and the Blackfeet, one of whom was named Side Hill Calf, nervously camped together by the river, and Lewis gave them the speech. The news likely went over as it did with the Teton---like a lead balloon. Probably the last thing the Blackfeet wanted to hear was that white people were arming and trading with their enemies.
In the early dawn, the Indians attempted to steal the men's guns and horses. In the scuffle, Reubin Field fatally stabbed Side Hill Calf. A second man, who was running off the horses, turned and aimed a musket at Lewis, who fired and hit him in the belly. The man fell, raised himself up, and returned fire. Lewis felt the bullet sail past his head, but without further ammunition, he turned and retreated.
At camp they quickly saddled the horses and tossed the Piegan shields, bows, and arrows on the fire. Leaving the peace medal around Side Hill Calf's neck, Lewis and the men fled, knowing that they would be pursued.
The site is reached at the end of a series of dirt and gravel roads, most of which demand four wheel drive. The area is marked by a clump of cottonwoods, a small fence, and a plaque.
Monumentation Type: Dressed stone
Monument Category: other (not included below)
Monument Category (if other): LEWIS AND CLARK MONUMENTS
Accessible to general public: yes
Historical significance: Camp Disappointment
Off US 2, about 12 miles northeast of Browning, MT.
On the return trip through Montana, Lewis and Clark divided the Corps and explored areas to the north and south of regions they'd already seen. While Clark headed southeast toward the Yellowstone near Livingston, Lewis took a small party and followed the Marias River that doubled back northwest toward what is now Cut Bank,Montana. He hoped to find that it would reach far enough to provide a natural northern boundary to Britain's Northwestern Territory, but instead it wound west, back toward the mountains. He did, however, find evidence that Blackfeet were in the area, and this made him, Drouillard, and the Field brothers nervous. The Nez Perce had warned that they were headed right into Blackfoot territory, and the encounter would not be positive.
There is a historical marker four miles south of the camp, at milepost 233 on Highway 2. The camp is on the south side of Cut Bank Creek, on the Blackfeet Reservation.
County: GLACIER
USGS Quad: Camp Disappointment (historical), USGS Kipp Lake (MT)
NGS PID: TM0854
Monumentation Type (if other): Not listed
Explain Non-Public access: Not listed
Other Coordinates: Not Listed
Other Coordinates details: Not listed
Approximate date of monument: Not listed
Monument Website: Not listed
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Visit Instructions: 1. A closeup photo of the monument is required. ______ 2. A 'distant' photo including the monument in the view is highly recommended. Include the compass direction you faced when you took the picture.
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