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The First Map To Report On Lewis & Clark's Expedition to The Pacific Ocean
"The Best of Lewis and Clark Route Done Up to This Date" - Howes
The present "Map to accompany the journey of Captains Lewis and Clark to the Pacific Ocean" is the earliest printed map to specifically report on the Lewis and Clark expedition. The map was created by J.B. Tardieu and published in 1810 as part of the first French edition of Patrick Gass's journal (Voyage des Capitaines Lewis et Clarke, depuis l'Embouchure du Missouri, jusqu'à l'Entré de la Colombia dans l'Océan Pacifique; Fait dans les Années 1804, 1805 et 1806, par ordre du Gouvernement des États Unis: Contenant le Journal Authentique des Événemen). The original 1807 Pittsburgh edition of Gass was not illustrated with a map.
This map is one of the earliest to explicitly reference Lewis and Clark and attempts to illustrate portions of their route across North America from 1804 to 1806. The expedition, commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson following the Louisiana Purchase, was the first to chart an overland path from the mouth of the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean. While no maps had yet been disseminated, Tardieu created the map from Meriwether Lewis's brief letter-report to Jefferson. This map is pre-dated only by the Map of the Country Inhabited By The Western Tribes of Indians, first published in 1809, which identified Fort Clatsop, but is otherwise devoid of information from the expedition.
J.B. Tardieu’s map, while ambitious, reflects the limitations of the cartographic knowledge of the time. As Warren Heckrotte observed, "This is the first map which mentions Lewis and Clark (in the title)," underscoring its historical significance. However, Tardieu did not have access to any of the original maps produced by the expedition. Instead, he relied on Meriwether Lewis's brief letter to President Jefferson and existing geographical data, much of it derived from Pierre Antoine Soulard’s earlier and often flawed maps. Carl Wheat notes that Tardieu’s available topography was "skimpy and erroneous," but commends the cartographer for showing "much ingenuity" in his creative use of quoted legends to identify key landmarks along the route. This combination of limited data and artistic effort resulted in a map that is both historically significant and geographically imperfect.
The map highlights several important points along the expedition’s route. It marks Fort Clatsop on the Pacific Coast, where the Corps of Discovery spent the winter of 1805-1806, labeled as "Fort Clatsop ou le Cap. Lewis hiverna en 1806." Further east, the map shows "Fourches du Missouri" (Forks of the Missouri), where the expedition split its path to navigate the Rocky Mountains, and "Fort et Villages des Indiens ou le Cap. Lewis hiverna en 1804", referencing Fort Mandan, where the expedition overwintered during 1804-1805. Other significant features include the Columbia River (R. Columbia), the headwaters of the Jefferson River (Sources du Jefferson), and the Rocky Mountains (Montagnes Rocheuses), which posed one of the most formidable challenges to the expedition.
This map was published in the first foreign-language edition of Gass's journal, published in Paris by Arthus-Bertrand, in 1810, an important document for disseminating information about the expedition. The French edition was particularly significant as it introduced detailed accounts of the journey to a European audience interested in the vast, recently sold Louisiana Territory. As Wheat notes, "This is the first publication in a foreign language of any detailed information of the Lewis and Clark expedition," adding that it held "especial interest to the French, since it was through lands they had so recently laid claim to." The French edition also included two letters by William Clark that were not published in earlier editions: one from Fort Mandan dated April 2, 1805, addressed to William Henry Harrison, and another written upon the expedition's return on September 23, 1806, addressed to Clark’s brother. These letters provide valuable insights into the challenges and achievements of the journey.
