[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 144 Engrossed in House (EH)]


                 In the House of Representatives, U.S.,

                                                    September 23, 1998.
Whereas the Expedition commanded by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, which 
        came to be called ``The Corps of Discovery'', was one of the most 
        remarkable and productive scientific and military exploring expeditions 
        in all American history;
Whereas President Thomas Jefferson gave Lewis and Clark the mission to ``explore 
        the Missouri River & such principal stream of it, as, by its course and 
        communication with the waters of the Pacific ocean, whether the 
        Columbia, Oregon, Colorado or any other river may offer the most direct 
        & practicable water communication across this continent for the purposes 
        of commerce'';
Whereas the Expedition, in response to President Jefferson's directive, greatly 
        advanced our geographical knowledge of the continent and prepared the 
        way for the extension of the American fur trade with American Indian 
        tribes throughout the area;
Whereas President Jefferson directed the explorers to take note of and carefully 
        record the natural resources of the newly acquired territory known as 
        Louisiana, as well as diligently report on the native inhabitants of the 
        land;
Whereas Lewis and Clark and their companions began their historic journey to 
        explore the uncharted wilderness west of the Mississippi River at Wood 
        River, Illinois, on May 14, 1804, and followed the Missouri River 
        westward from its mouth on the Mississippi to its headwaters in the 
        Rocky Mountains;
Whereas the Expedition held its first meeting with American Indians at Council 
        Bluff near present-day Fort Calhoun, Nebraska, in August 1804, spent its 
        first winter at Fort Mandan, North Dakota, crossed the Rocky Mountains 
        by horseback in August 1805, reached the Pacific Ocean at the mouth of 
        the Columbia River in mid-November of that year, and wintered at Fort 
        Clatsop, near the present city of Astoria, Oregon;
Whereas the Expedition returned to St. Louis, Missouri, on September 23, 1806, 
        after a 28-month journey covering 8,000 miles during which it traversed 
        11 future States: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, North 
        Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon;
Whereas the explorers faithfully followed the President's directives and 
        dutifully recorded their observations in their detailed journals;
Whereas these journals describe many plant and animal species, some completely 
        unknown to the world of science or never before encountered in North 
        America, and added greatly to scientific knowledge about the flora and 
        fauna of the United States;
Whereas accounts from the journals of Lewis and Clark and the detailed maps that 
        were prepared by the Expedition enhanced knowledge of the western 
        continent and routes for commerce;
Whereas the journals of Lewis and Clark documented diverse American Indian 
        languages, customs, religious beliefs, and ceremonies; as Lewis and 
        Clark are important figures in American history, so too are Black 
        Buffalo, Cameahwait, Sacajawea, Sheheke and Watkueis;
Whereas the Expedition significantly enhanced amicable relations between the 
        United States and the autonomous American Indian nations, and the 
        friendship and respect fostered between the American Indian tribes and 
        the Expedition represents the best of diplomacy and relationships 
        between divergent nations and cultures;
Whereas the American Indian tribes of the Northern Plains and the Pacific 
        Northwest played an essential role in the survival and the success of 
        the Expedition;
Whereas the Lewis and Clark Expedition has been called the most perfect 
        expedition of its kind in the history of the world and paved the way for 
        the United States to become a great world power;
Whereas the President and the Congress have previously recognized the importance 
        of the Expedition by establishing a 5-year commission in 1964 to study 
        its history and the route it followed, and again in 1978 by designating 
        the route as the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail administered by 
        the Secretary of the Interior through the National Park Service; and
Whereas the National Park Service, along with other Federal, State, and local 
        agencies and many other interested groups, are preparing commemorative 
        activities to celebrate the bicentennial of the Expedition beginning in 
        2003: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its support for the work of the National 
        Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Council and all the Federal, 
        State, and local entities and other interested groups that are 
        preparing bicentennial activities to celebrate the 200th 
        anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition;
            (2) expresses its support for the events to be held in 
        observance of the Expedition at Council Bluff near present-day 
        Fort Calhoun, Nebraska, at St. Louis, Missouri, at Portland and 
        Fort Clatsop, Oregon, and at Bismarck, North Dakota, and many 
        other cities during the bicentennial observance; and
            (3) calls upon the President, the Secretary of the 
        Interior, the Director of the National Park Service, American 
        Indian tribes, other public officials, and the citizens of the 
        United States to support, promote, and participate in the many 
        bicentennial activities being planned to commemorate the Lewis 
        and Clark Expedition.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.