MISSOURI STATE ARCHIVES
The Unknown Travels and Dubious Pursuits of William Clark

Presented by:
Jo Ann Trogdon

Publish Date:
May 27, 2016

Presentation Length:
1 hour 02 minutes 32 seconds (1:02:32)

Description:
In 1798—more than five years before he led the epic western journey that would make him and Meriwether Lewis national heroes—William Clark set off by flatboat from his Louisville, Kentucky home with a cargo of tobacco and furs to sell downriver in Spanish New Orleans. He also carried with him a leather-trimmed journal used to record notes about his exploits. The Unknown Travels and Dubious Pursuits of William Clark, a new book by author Jo Ann Trogdon, reveals William Clark’s highly questionable activities during the years before his famous journey west of the Mississippi. Delving into the details of Clark’s diary and ledger entries from this period, Trogdon investigates evidence linking Clark to a series of plots, often called the Spanish Conspiracy, in which corrupt officials sought to line their pockets with Spanish money and separate Kentucky from the United States. Join us as Ms. Trogdon sheds new light on the complex life of one of our country’s most intriguing icons.