Departing St. Charles, May 21, 1804

Photo: Rendezvous Site Marker near Frontier Park, St. Charles, Missouri.  Creative Commons. 

After a five-day hiatus in St. Charles, the Corps of Discovery returned to the river on Monday, May 21, 1804.

Since May 16, Captain Clark and the group of nearly 50 men made final preparations in St. Charles as they waited for Meriwether Lewis to arrive from St. Louis, which was about 25 miles away by land. The men attended dances, dinners, and a church service during this time, and the town’s residents, excited to play a small part of this national expedition, were hospitable.

Lewis later described the small town as having a chapel, about 100 poorly constructed houses, and 450 inhabitants, mostly French-Canadians.

Captain Lewis joined the group on May 20 and the men launched the keelboat and pirogues at about 3:30 p.m. on Monday afternoon. Facing a strong headwind and heavy rains the Expedition only progressed about three miles before they camped for the evening.