Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 â€" October 11, 1809) was an
American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best
known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition,
also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark. Their
mission was to explore the territory of the Louisiana Purchase,
establish trade with, and sovereignty over the natives near the
Missouri River, and claim the Pacific Northwest and Oregon Country for
the United States before European nations. They also collected
scientific data, and information on indigenous nations. President
Thomas Jefferson appointed him Governor of Upper Louisiana in 1806. He
died of gunshot wounds in what was either a murder or suicide, in
1809.Meriwether Lewis was born on Locust Hill Plantation in Albemarle
County, Colony of Virginia, in the present-day community of Ivy. He
was the son of William Lewis, of Welsh ancestry, and Lucy Meriwether,
of English ancestry. After his father died of pneumonia in November
1779, he moved with his mother and stepfather Captain John Marks to
Georgia. They settled along the Broad River in the Goosepond Community
within the Broad River Valley in Wilkes County (now Oglethorpe
County).Lewis had no formal education until he was 13 years of age,
but during his time in Georgia he enhanced his skills as a hunter and
outdoorsman. He would often venture out in the middle of the night in
the dead of winter with only his dog to go hunting. Even at an early
age, he was interested in natural history, which would develop into a
lifelong passion. His mother taught him how to gather wild herbs for
medicinal purposes. Meriwether Lewis Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter