An archive of research on historic trails and roads
Using geo-located data collected by the National Park Service, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, this inventory lists sites including photographs of each sign. Organizations who sponsor these sites as well as travelers are encouraged to help keep the database current.
List of sitesInteractive maps and photos:
Idaho Kansas Montana Nebraska-Iowa North Dakota Oregon-Washington South DakotaIn 2001 and 2002, Steve F. Russell and survey assistants, Theo Petersen and Matt Battani, hiked the trail followed by Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery from Lolo Pass, Idaho-Montana to Weippe, Idaho. This trail tread was recorded with a Trimble Pathfinder Pro XRS precision GPS to an accuracy of 3 meters. This book documents this effort and contains topographic maps of the trail along the entire route.
2005, PDF
View DownloadThis campsite is well know to the Lewis and Clark Trail community. It was a popular camping place for Salish, Nez Perce, and early Explorers. The location was at the junction of the Lolo Trail (from Lolo, Montana to Kamiah, Idaho) with the 1806 Bitterroot Trail (from Missoula, Montana to Gibbon’s Pass). The Corps of Discovery was camped there a total of 5 days in 1805-06. The campsite was originally thought to be near the mouth of Lolo Creek (as interpreted by an old highway marker on US 93) but all the Journal evidence from 1805-06 and the Nicholson survey of 1866 placed it at, or near, the location given in this report. In recent years the interpreted location has been moved to its present location, and is interpreted by the Travelers Rest State Park. Despite archeological digs, the location is still debated, although the location most researchers have identified are within 1000 feet of each other – very good agreement when locating historic campsites. This author’s most current research placed the camp on a dry bench-land adjacent to the creek, and on the south side.
1999, PDF
View DownloadIn July of 1806, Meriwether Lewis and a small group of men from the Corps of Discovery main party, traveled eastward from Travelers Rest Camp, following the main Indian trail up the Big Blackfoot River in Montana. On July 5, they crossed the Clearwater River. This document reports on the research for the location of the trail and crossing that they used. The crossing by Russell is based on the Journal accounts. The crossing by Cox is based on a wagon road swale found by field exploration. The crossing by Bergantino is based on his research map of the area. For purposes of interpretation of Lewis & Clark, one of the crossings by Russell or Cox should be used.
2015, PDF
View DownloadThis report is one of five research reports that were compiled into a document entitled: "The Mystery of Lost Trail Pass," James Fazio, Ed, 2000. It describes in detail how the researcher analyzed the Lewis and Clark Journals and the associated topography of the area to create a description of the trail route and campsite used by Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery. Research methodology and conclusions are described in detail.
2000, PDF
View DownloadThis is a brochure preparied by the Idaho Fish and Game that is entitled “Lewis and Clark Expedition: Sgt. Ordway’s Salmon River Fishing Expedition. It contains photos, maps, and descriptions of the route taken by Ordway in 1806 from Kamiah, Idaho to the Snake River at Cougar Rapids Bar. Map and text information was provided in 2002 by Steve F. Russell, Historic Trails Research, Ames, Iowa.
Brochure, 2002, PDF
View DownloadThis document is a research report on the salmon fishing expedition of Sgt. John Ordway of the Corps of Discovery under the command on Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. This route and the effort of Ordway remained largely unnoticed until this research was completed and published. It has been the collaboration of Steve F. Russell, Historic Trails Research, Sam McNeill of the Idaho Fish and Game, and John A. K. Barker. The logistics were funded by a Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Assistance Grant from the State of Idaho. Research analysis, descriptions, and detailed maps of the route are included. On public land and on private land, with permission, the trail tread was hiked and campsites were examined. Both have been recorded with GPS. The Idaho Fish and Game have also prepared a brochure with descriptions and maps for self discovery.
2003, PDF
View DownloadA presentation of the research results and methods of Steve F. Russell, Historic Trails Research, Ames, Iowa. Presented at the Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, Montana by invitation of the Headwaters Chapter of the Lewis and Clark Heritage Foundation. Photos and Maps.
2004, PDF
View DownloadFascination with the route and camping places of Lewis and Clark has remained strong for more than 100 years. With the approaching bicentennial of the Corps of Discovery, this interest is only intensifying. What is more, increasing numbers of people are interested in following the route themselves-not always a wise idea, as is certainly the case with the area described here.
This is the first in a series of articles that Steve Russell is preparing on his research of the route and camping sites as the Corps of Discovery crossed the mountains from the Missouri River basin to the Columbia River basin. Their passage through Hungery Creek and Fish Creek took them across what is now the Clearwater National Forest of north-central Idaho. They came through the area four times, once in 1805 and three times in 1806. The documentation of their various journals leaves us with a wealth of clues as to the route they followed, although William Clark's maps for this area are of limited value because of their topographic distortion.
Idaho Yesterdays, The Journal of the Idaho State Historical Society, Volume 44 No. 1, Spring 2000, pages 19-31.
2000, PDF
View DownloadThe Lolo Trail is a mountain trail in Northern Idaho that ranks secondonly to the Oregon Trail and the Mullan Wagon Road in its importance to Northwest U.S. History. Due to its remoteness, it may also be the most well preserved and documentable Native American trail left in the entire U.S. Aggressive documentation and preservation measures are urgently needed if the historic nature of the Lolo Trail is to be fully protected for future generations. These measures must be applied to the archaeological sites, removable artifacts, and the five actual routes or "paths" themselves. Documentation and preservation will involve photographic and radionavigation surveys, topographic location, definition of protection boundaries, and the protection of the existing routes against any type of rerouting. The most influential agency for effecting these changes is the Forest Service USDA. With their leadership, and the cooperation of interested historical groups and adjacent land owners, this documentation and preservation can become a reality.
1990, PDF
View DownloadOn the Clearwater and Lolo National Forests, in the mountains of Northern Idaho and Western Montana, there is an ancient trail system that has been used for hundreds of years as a land bridge between the Columbia River basin and the Missouri River basin. The approximate route of this trail is westward up Lolo Creek from Lolo, Montana to Lolo Pass and then along the dividing ridge between the North and Middle Forks of the Clearwater River until reaching the Weippe Prairie near Weippe, Idaho. Recent research, using a combination of historical records, computer analysis tools, and extensive field exploration, has now provided conclusive proof that the erosion trace of this ancient trail system still exists and can be located in many places along the 130-mile length of the trail.
Presented at the 1994 Fall Heritage Resources Program Seminar, USDA Forest Service, Region 1, Powell Ranger District, Idaho, PDF
View DownloadOn Christmas day—some sources say Dec. 24—, 1861, John Mullan gave what is said to be the first public lecture in Montana. It was the largest crowd ever assembled at Fort Owen and his topic was Lewis and Clark. Several Mullan historians have mentioned the speech in their works, but this transcriber was unable to find the actual text of the speech. Presented here is the first draft his own transcription. This needs to be further refined by consulting the actual newspapers, or at least better-quality microfiche, as well as viewing Mullan's handwritten manuscript located at the Montana Historical Society, Helena.
2018, PDF
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