Alexander Hamilton Willard: Lewis and Clark Expedition Blacksmith

Alexander Hamilton Willard and his wife Eleanor – photo probably taken when they lived in Wisconsin.

Public Domain.

Alexander Hamilton Willard, one of the few members of the Corps of Discovery with a middle name, was born on either August 24, 1778 (according to his grave site) or in July 1777 (according to his obituary and family records). He was born to Jonathan Willard and Betty Caswell in Charlestown, Sullivan County, New Hampshire.

Willard enlisted in the U.S. Army on June 9, 1800, for a five-year term and his primary occupation was listed as blacksmith. During the Lewis and Clark Expedition he was a blacksmith along with John Shields and William Bratton.

While remembered as a reliable soldier, Willard made a few notable errors throughout the journey. His most grievous mistake was falling asleep while on guard duty during the night of July 11-12, 1804, something that was technically punishable by death. He pled guilty to lying down but denied falling asleep. He was found guilty and sentenced to 100 lashes for four days.

In spite of this situation, Willard seemed to improve his reputation with the Captains over the next two years. He repaired metal items, tools, pots, and knives for the Mandan and Hidatsa at Fort Mandan. Once the Corps of Discovery reached the Columbia River estuary, Willard was one of the men sent to scout a location for Fort Clatsop. And he and Peter Weiser were assigned to set up the saltworks on the beach of the Pacific Ocean.

Following the Expedition, Willard became a government blacksmith in Missouri serving several Indian nations. In 1807 he married Eleanor McDonald with whom they had 12 children; one son was named after Lewis and another after Clark. The family lived for about 25 years in Wisconsin, then in 1852 they moved to the gold fields of California, where he died at age 86, the second-oldest member of the Corps. He and his wife are buried near Sacramento.