In 1804, Thomas Jefferson’s newly commissioned Corps of Discovery, composed of Captain Meriwether Lewis, his friend Second Lieutenant William Clark, and some thirty others, set off to explore the territory recently acquired by the United States in the Louisiana Purchase. The journey lasted more than two years and paved the way for America’s future expansion into the West. In 1814, Paul Allen complied and published the complete narrative of the team's journey in two volumes. This is the first of those volumes, newly typeset and formatted for a comfortable reading experience for a modern audience. “From this time his journal, now published, will give the history of his journey to and from the Pacific ocean, until his return to St. Louis on the twenty-third of September, 1806. Never did a similar event excite more joy through the United States. The humblest of its citizens had taken a lively interest in the issue of this journey, and looked forward with impatience for the information it would furnish.” - Thomas Jefferson