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Adam
You would have loved visiting North Dakota, last year especially. The state was celebrating the 200th anniversary of the Corps of Discovery. It was a extremely big celebration with Pow Wows and interpritive centers set up from Bismarck west and north along the river.
As you head west much of a major highway travels along the path L&C took.
I have lived in Dakota country for roughly 40 years now and still marvel at how those people must have lived and survived. I've been out on the plains at -40° and can tell you it was a numbing cold. And I had modern clothing.
The planning that went into their mission was fantastic. They never once ran short of projectiles or powder or candles. If you read their journals closely you see that they could barely name the game they were taking because up untill that time there was no name for it. They used the Red Mans name for it and converted it. The way they painstakingly drew pictures of each animal was a task in itself.
L&C might be considered country bumpkins by our standards but they were both highly intelligent.
One of the smartest strategic moves they made was taking Sacagawea with them. Not only was she an interpretor she identified eatable plants and roots and knew all the good fishin' holes.
Effectively about 3/4 of our country was explored, and mapped utilizing one of the most effective tools known to man, The Flintlock Rifle. If I am not mistaken I seen some pictures of artists drawings showing wheel locks in the mix also. I can't remember where I seen them though, could have been in the Charles M. Russell museum in Gt. Falls.
I to would have liked to live in that time frame. Life sometimes wasn't very long but it was fulfilled. I'm now living my Grandfathers fantasy. When he emigrated to this country his dream was the West. He never made it. So I'm doing it for him.
He used to tell me stories about American History, he probably knew as much about American history as most Americans. He loved the history and the firearms as he read about them. He always wanted a Black Powder firearm. Gramps never had one but the first chance I had to get one I did. My Sidelock is a tribute to him. Someday I'll own a Flintlock also.
Best wishes, Bill
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