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  Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery  
 


Sent by President Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to find the fabled Northwest Passage, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led the most important expedition in American history – a voyage of danger and discovery from St. Louis to the headwaters of the Missouri River, over the Continental Divide to the Pacific Ocean. It was the United States’ first exploration of the West and one of the nation’s most enduring adventures. 

Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery tells the remarkable story of the entire Corps of Discovery – not just of the two Captains, but the young army men, French-Canadian boatmen, Clark’s African-American slave, and the Shoshone woman named Sacagawea, who brought along her infant son. As important to the story as these many characters, however, was the spectacular land itself, and the promises it held.

A Film By
KEN BURNS

Written By
DAYTON DUNCAN

Produced By
DAYTON DUNCAN
KEN BURNS

Edited By
PAUL BARNES
ERIK EWERS

Cinematography
BUDDY SQUIRES
KEN BURNS
ALLEN MOORE

Narrated By
HAL HOLBROOK

Voice of Meriwether Lewis
ADAM ARKIN

Voice of William Clark
MURPHY GUYER

Funding Provided By
General Motors Corporation
The Pew Charitable Trusts
The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Public Broadcasting Service
William T. Kemper Foundation
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Travel Montana

Access more credits

Original Broadcast November 1997

Film Honors:
• ‘Wrangler’ Award, Outstanding Documentary, 1997
• A.H. Pankow Award, state of South Dakota
• ‘Spur’ Award for the Lewis & Clark script, presented by the Western Writers of America, 1998
• National Education Association Award for the Advancement of Education Through Broadcasting, 1998
• Nominated, ACE Eddy Award, film editing, Best Documentary
• CINE Golden Eagle Award, 1998

 
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