Jefferson Valley

The Lewis and Clark Expedition, westward bound, came up the Jefferson River and passed through this area in early August, 1805. This valley was an ancient travel corridor; Lewis noted the presence of an “old Indian road” near the Big Hole River. The further south up the Jefferson the expedition traveled, the more treacherous the river became. The men were forced to pull the canoes upriver with ropes, tripping over slippery rocks and bruising their feet. By the time they reached this point, their feet were so badly swollen they could hardly walk. In addition, Captain Clark hobbled along with a painful infected leg and George Drouillard was injured after taking a fall down a steep bluff. The Corps was also increasingly preoccupied about contacting the Shoshone and obtaining much-needed horses. On August 4th, they reached the forks of the Ruby and Beaverhead rivers. After little debate, Captain Lewis chose the Beaverhead River as their route and proceeded on toward the main range of the Rocky Mountains. They finally met the Shoshone a week later about 50 miles south of here on the Red Rock River.