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Discover Mid-America — May 2004

Interpreters bring Lewis & Clark history to life

The Lewis & Clark Boat House and Nature Center, located at Bishop’s Landing in St. Charles, is the permanent home of the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles, Missouri, a non-profit organization dedicated to discovering (and sharing) the Lewis & Clark legacy.  For several years, the group has been reenacting the Corps of Discovery’s original river journey from Elizabeth, PA, where the keelboat was built, to Great Falls, MT, the keelboat’s limit of river navigation.  Members conduct living history demonstrations at riverfront festivals and other public events and share their information at area schools.

The Boat House and Nature Center in St. Charles, headquarters of the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles

Exhibits relating to the Lewis & Clark Expedition and the ecosystem of the Missouri River are featured at the Center.  When they are not in use on the river, handcrafted replica boats are on display in the Center’s lower level.  A classroom is provided to accommodate school field trips and ongoing living history demonstrations.

The Center’s replica keelboat is the second one to be built by the Discovery Expedition.  The first boat, built in 1996, completed a river voyage in that year, providing school groups and festival-goers along the river a first-hand look at history.  The keelboat was included in the Ken Burns documentary about the Expedition.

After its successful trips on the Missouri during the summer and fall, the keelboat was put in storage.  During the winter, a fire broke out in the warehouse, destroying the building and the keelboat.

.Jim Rascher, boatwright for the Discovery Expedition, relaxes after parking the red pirogue in the boat house

Between 1998 and 2000 the ruined keelboat was rebuilt by Expedition founder Glen Bishop and Jim Rascher.  “When Glen asked me to help, I was a retired cabinet-maker,” Rauscher said.  “I told him I’d never built a boat.”  Bishop, learning of Rascher’s woodworking experience said “well, you’re a boat builder now.”  The keelboat, a faithful replica of the original, will play an important role in the bicentennial commemoration.  Bishop, a cancer victim, passed away in 2001, a year after the keelboat was completed.  Bishop’s Landing, where the Center is located, was named in his honor.  Rascher continues the legacy in his role as boatwright.

Other St. Charles residents have dedicated a large chunk of their lives to interpreting the history of the historic Lewis & Clark Expedition.  Darold Jackson, the Center’s current president, has been with the Expedition since the beginning.  Larry McClain is president of the Expedition.

Jackson said that about 280 people make up the crew roster of the Discovery Expedition, including several descendents of the original Corps of Discovery.  They come from 24 states and range in age from 24 to 80-something.  Members come from all walks of life.  “During peak periods, the interpreters who have regular jobs devote about all their spare time to the Expedition,” Jackson said.  “Many of the members who are retired work full-time during those periods,” he added.

Joanne Bishop, a worker at the book store at the Boat House and Nature Center in St. Charles, with Meriwether, a Newfoundland dog similar in size to Seaman, who accompanied the Lewis & Clark Expedition.

The journeys on the Missouri by the Expedition interpreters are made in relative comfort, compared to their Corps of Discovery counterparts.  “We use an inboard engine in the keelboat and outboards on the pirogues,” Jackson said.  “The Corps of Engineers requires this, due to the increased currents and barge traffic on the river.  We also provide everyone with life vests and conform to all safety regulations.”

The Expedition has built a replica        of the Corps of Discovery Winter Quarters in Wood River, IL.  Members in period costume serve as interpreters at the log structure, built on the original site.

Two descendents of William Clark are on the Expedition roster: Peyton (Bud) Clark of Dearborn, MI, and Charles Clark of St. Louis, MO.  Bob Anderson of Maryville, OH, and his grandson, Josh Loftis, are direct descendents of George Shannon, the youngest member of the original expedition.  “As a kid, it was always exciting to hear stories of George Shannon,” Anderson said in a recent interview.  Anderson described the Shannons as one of the first white families in the area.  “(George) took off for those years, and the family didn’t even know where he was.  Then he came back and the stories he told of the expedition were passed down.”

For more information about the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles, visit www.lewisandclark.net.  You can become a member of the Expedition.  The annual fee is $50 per year.  Mail check to Tom Marshall, PO Box 210758, St. Louis, MO 63121.  You can join the Expedition’s email mailing list and receive updates of Expedition activities by signing on to Yahoogroups.com.

Discover Mid-America founder and Senior Contributing Editor Ken Weyand files regular reports on notable Midwest destinations. He can be reached at kweyand@gbronline.com.

> Traveling with Ken Archive — past columns