St. Charles Historic District

Approx. Time: 2 hours
Activity Level: Easiest

St. Charles, Missouri, served as the final embarkation point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. At noon on May 14, 1804, Clark and approximately 42 men docked at St. Charles, an outpost for traders dating from about 1769. St. Charles, the first permanent European settlement on the Missouri River and one of the first in the state of Missouri. Here Clark met with two more members of the expedition, Pierre Cruzatte and Francois Labiche, who served as boatmen and interpreters. While awaiting Lewis's arrival the men entertained the townspeople on the boats, danced at balls and attended a Mass conducted by a local priest. Some members of the crew celebrated too much, resulting in court-martials and punishments. John Collins received 50 lashes for being absent without leave (AWOL), misbehaving at a ball and using disrespectful language to Clark. William Werner and Hugh Hall were also found guilty of being AWOL and received sentences of 25 lashes each. Lewis arrived at 6:30pm on May 20 and the entire crew set out on their journey to the Pacific Ocean on May 21, 1804, to the sound of "three cheers" from the audience lining the riverbank.

Text courtesy of The National Park Service. For more information on the Fox Theatre Historic District and the National Register Travel Itineraries, click here.