Preparations for the Journey

This section of the Lewis and Clark in the Illinois country Web site recounts some of the preparations the corps made for their journey. It includes locating and building the winter camp at Fort DuBois.

This section also includes information about maps and mapping. Lewis met with James Mackay to discuss Evan's map of the lower Missouri River and the Mandan villages from his and James Mackay's own exploration of 1796.

See a detail from Evan's Map at the Yale Beinecke Library.

Read about the Legend of Madoc, which Evans was determined to solve, and which is still pursued today — that there are Native Americans who are descendants of the ancient Welsh.