09/05/2023
Meriwether Lewis brought his dog SEAMAN on the Expedition. Lewis purchased the dog before the Expedition began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. There are several statues and a few books that feature Seaman. Seaman made the entire round trip! Below are a few passages from Meriwether Lewis’ journals that mention Seaman 😊
On May 19, 1805 Lewis notes that Seaman was seriously hurt. One of the men had shot and wounded a beaver, and when Seaman went out to retrieve it, the animal bit him through the hind leg, cutting an artery. Both Lewis and Clark took extraordinary medical measures to save Seaman, and fortunately, the dog pulled through.
May 29, 1805: Some were curious, "last night we were all allarmed by a large buffaloe bull, when he came near the tent, my dog saved us by causing him to change his course"
June 27, 1805 :" a bear came within thirty yards of our camp last night and eat up about thirty weight of buffaloe suit which was hanging on a pole, my dog seems to be in a constant state of alarm with these bears and keeps barking all night.
Pictured is a statue of Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and Lewis’s Newfoundland dog, Seaman dedicated on May 18, 2003, for the Expedition's 200th anniversary. The Lewis & Clark monument sits along the Missouri riverfront in Frontier Park.