Why were Lewis and Clark so important?
Despite their accomplishments, Lewis and Clark had little real effect on the course of history. Their journals were published nearly 10 years after the expedition, while the country was distracted by the War of 1812, and the publication omitted the most salient information; the wealth of scientific and anthropological data. By the time the Lewis and Clark journals were satisfactorily rendered, in 1894, the West had been long settled, without the help or need of the help. Frankly, the confluence of social forces at the time would have precipitated Westward movement notwithstanding Lewis and Clark; they didn’t really matter. See Manifest Destiny.
