[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 151 (Tuesday, November 15, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12852-S12853]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION 315--TO COMMEMORATE THE BICENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF 
          THE ARRIVAL OF LEWIS AND CLARK AT THE PACIFIC OCEAN

   Ms. CANTWELL (for herself, Mr. Wyden, and Mrs. Murray) submitted the 
following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 315

       Whereas, on January 18, 1803, President Thomas Jefferson 
     began an extraordinary journey by sending a secret message to 
     Congress requesting approval and funding to establish the 
     ``Corps of Volunteers for Northwest Discovery'' to explore 
     the most direct and practical water route across the 
     continent of the United States all the way to the Pacific 
     Ocean;
       Whereas, on May 14, 1804, the journey up the Missouri River 
     and across the vast and newly acquired Louisiana Territory 
     began at Camp Dubois, Illinois, led by Captain Meriwether 
     Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark;
       Whereas after a long year and a half and 4,133 arduous 
     miles, the expedition endured a dangerous storm of wind, 
     rain, and waves for 6 days at Clark's Dismal Nitch;
       Whereas, on November 13, 1805, the Corps of Discovery moved 
     further west to Station Camp and beheld their first 
     comprehensive view of the Pacific Ocean, and thereby began

[[Page S12853]]

     the realization of the vision of President Jefferson of a 
     country ``from sea to shining sea'';
       Whereas Station Camp also marks the occurrence of a 
     historical democratic vote to determine where to stay for 
     winter that included all members of the expedition, including 
     Sacagawea, an Indian woman, and York, an African American 
     slave;
       Whereas, on November 19, 1805, Clark and 11 of his men set 
     out on an ocean excursion, hiking 25 miles to Cape 
     Disappointment to get a complete view of the Pacific Ocean 
     and reach the furthest western point of the expedition;
       Whereas the expedition built their winter camp on the south 
     side of the Columbia River at Fort Clatsop, Oregon, named in 
     honor of the friendly local Clatsop Indians, and the 33 
     member party spent 106 days among lush old-growth forest, 
     wetlands, and wildlife preparing for their long journey back 
     to St. Louis, Missouri;
       Whereas Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery produced 
     detailed journals with maps, charts, samples, and 
     descriptions of the previously undocumented western 
     geography, climate, plants, animals, and native cultures from 
     which the Nation continues to benefit today;
       Whereas the Lewis and Clark Expedition marks a significant 
     benchmark in American history and a crucial step in securing 
     the claim and the eventual creation of all the States in the 
     Pacific Northwest;
       Whereas the exploration of the western frontier of our 
     fledgling Nation was the great odyssey of America, symbolic 
     of the core values of teamwork, courage, perseverance, 
     science, and opportunity held by the United States;
       Whereas, on October 30, 2004, President George W. Bush 
     signed into law legislation creating the Lewis and Clark 
     National Historical Park which preserves these 3 Washington 
     State sites integral to the dramatic arrival of the 
     expedition at the Pacific Ocean, and incorporates Fort 
     Clatsop of Oregon and important State parks for the benefit 
     and education of generations to come; and
       Whereas, during November 2005, Washington and Oregon are 
     hosting, ``Destination: The Pacific'', a unique commemoration 
     of the 200 year anniversary of the arrival of the Corps of 
     Discovery in the Pacific Northwest: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commemorates the bicentennial anniversary of the 
     arrival of Lewis and Clark at the Pacific Ocean; and
       (2) recognizes that by exploring the unknown frontier, 
     Lewis and Clark expanded the boundaries of our great Nation 
     and pushed the limits of what we are capable of as citizens.

                          ____________________