Of the hundreds of sites along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, none bears as much pain and anguish as the quiet, remote campsite along the Two Medicine River in the southeastern corner of the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. Here the tragedy of July 26-27, 1806, can still be felt.
In August 2019, Trail staff members collaborated with the Blackfeet Nation’s Tribal Historic Preservation Office, Blackfeet elder Don Fish, and Larry Epstein, member of the Portage Route Chapter of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation, to visit this historically significant site.
Under the guidance and expertise of Mr. Epstein, Mr. Fish, and Blackfeet Cultural Resources Field Technician, Terry Whitcomb, the group walked the area widely believed to be the location where on July 27, 1806, an altercation between Meriwether Lewis’s small party and a group of young Blackfeet males resulted in the death of two of the Blackfeet.
In an attempt to gain a better understanding of this tragic event, the staff and hosts frequently paused to read from Lewis’s journal entries and to listen to the Blackfeet oral history accounts. The Blackfeet hosts explained that they refer to the area as the “murder site” or “kill site.” They also discussed that the small party of Blackfeet males, probably pre-teens, were guarding a herd of horses when Lewis and his men entered the area on their way back from exploring the Marias River. Everyone present agreed that an obvious lack of communication between Lewis’s party and the Blackfeet certainly had a significant effect on the situation.
The staff of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail are grateful to the Blackfeet Nation, Mr. Fish, Mr. Epstein, and Mr. Whitcomb for their expertise and hospitality during this visit to hallowed ground along the Two Medicine River.
