Book Report: Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West by Stephen E. Ambrose

With all of my middle of the night wakefulness and desperate attempts to soothe a one month old with my breast milk, I have had plenty of time to read.  I am whipping through literature, and though I started Undaunted Courage a bit before the baby was born, I finished it rapid speed after the birth of Little G.  Stop by my house at three AM, and you will often find me in the nursing chair with Little G in one hand and a some fabulous piece of reading material in my other.  Now, truth be told, it is only certain types of reading that can be work in the nursing chair.  A large magazine or a hardback book is not one handed, so it generally needs to be a New Yorker or a paper back book.  Luckily, I have many paper backs stockpiled, and after finished Undaunted Courage last Friday, I started The Art of Racing in the Rain on Saturday and then Sarah's Key on Monday.  I am currently the machine of bibliophiles.

Anyway, here is what I will tell you about Undaunted Courage.  It started of very strong, lagged in the middle and finished with some serious page turning.  While Undauted Courage is the story of Lewis and Clark and their exploration of the Louisiana Purchase territory along with Sacagawea and her husband and son, it is really more about Meriwether Lewis and Thomas Jefferson.  They were both from Virginia and had the same sentiments and general political views.  More interesting, and unrealized to me until I read this book, Meriwether Lewis lived with Jefferson in the White House as his secretary for two years before being given the position of exploring the territory of the Louisiana Purchase.  

Something that interested me greatly as I read was the diminished role of Sacagawea.  My understanding was that Sacagawea led the expedition.  I thought that Lewis and Clark latched onto this Indian woman who led them all over the territory, and Lewis and Clark took notes and brought them back to Washington.  Sacagawea, along with her husband Charbonneau (a french trapper and trader) and their son Jean Baptiste or Pompey traveled with the expedition for most of their route.  Sacagawea had been abducted from her rightful tribe and during the course of the expedition was reunited with them and was very emotional upon seeing her family and friends from whom she had been so long parted.  Sacagawea was able to help with her knowledge of waterways and languages, but other members of the expedition were equally as helpful.

I also did not realize that the primary goal of the expedition was to establish a water route across the continent.  Jefferson's highest hope was that there was an all water route across the North American continent.  It was also hoped that there would be inroads for fur trappers and commerce and that trade would be increased.  Jefferson was very interested in a first hand account of all the flora and fauna of the new territories.  Finally, he hoped that Lewis and Clark would be able to communicate to all the Indian tribes in the new territory that they had a new "white father" (Jefferson), and that their compliance with him was of paramount importance.  Jefferson also hoped that Lewis and Clark would be able to persuade a few Indian chiefs to come back to Washington and meet him.

Another abolished ignorance was that the expedition was just Lewis, Clark and Sacagawea. It was more like at least 20 men along with Lewis and Clark as captains and Sacagawea as local help with Charbonneau and Pompey tagging along. They fully explored the territory and took copious notes.  Everyone caught venereal diseases from the Indians who had caught them from the traders and trappers.  All of the expedition drank copious amounts of mercury to cure themselves of venereal disease, and it is just a wonder that not more of them died from that alone.  

The expedition lasted from 1804 to 1806 and Lewis and Clark were national heros when they returned.  Meriwether Lewis' published notes were widely awaited by Jefferson and the rest of the nation.  On a note than ran throughout the book, everyone commented on Lewis' mental issues.  He had times of dark depression, and it was acknowledged to run in his family.  Their are long periods of the expedition during which Lewis writes nothing.  Jefferson waits and waits and waits and then suddenly Lewis is in Grinders Switch on the Natchez Trace in Tennessee.  The woman he is renting a room from hears a cry and Lewis has shot himself in the head, then again in the spine.  When he is left alone, he somehow gets a razor and begins slicing at himself.  He finally dies a very slow and painful death.  Jefferson and Clark are not surprised by this turn of events.  Lewis' long awaited notes about the expedition are never published.