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| P.S.
I got into a lot of trouble on July 12, 1804, when I was on
guard duty. I was caught sitting down and accused of falling
asleep while on guard. In the army, that offense could be punished
by shooting a soldier. Instead of being shot I was sentenced
to 100 lashes. After that I had no more problems, and helped
the expedition by blacksmithing along with John Shields. I later
worked for the government as a blacksmith for Indian tribes.
I got married in 1807 and eventually had 12 children. I served
in the War of 1812 and lived in Missouri and Wisconsin. In 1852
I took my family overland in a covered wagon to the new state
of California. I died in 1865 near Sacramento at the age of
87. |
This picture of Alexander Willard and
his wife was taken near the end of his life in the 1860s. It appeared
in Olin D. Wheeler's book "The Trail of Lewis and Clark"
in 1904.
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