Pompey's Pillar

Lewis & Clark’s Corps of Discovery reached Pompey's Pillar in eastern Montana on July 25, 1806. Having already reached the majestic Pacific, disproved the myth of the Northwest Passage, and established sound relations with the indigenous peoples of the American West, the explorers were ready to return home with a wealth of stories and information. On the way back, the American pioneers continued to explore the surrounding areas and make new discoveries. Pausing at Traveler's Rest from June 30 to July 3, 1806, Lewis and Clark decided that it would be best to divide the group into separate parties, maximizing their exploratory range. Clark and his party traversed Bozeman Pass, set out down the Yellowstone River, and headed for the caches at Beaverhead. Along the way the crew came across a prominent rock formation located on the south bank of the Yellowstone River near present-day Nibbe, Montana. Naming the anomalous natural formation after Sacagawea's child Jean Baptiste Charbonneau or "Pomp", Clark, too, left his mark at Pompey's Pillar, engraving his name and the date into the stone. Still visible, his mark is probably the only extant on-site evidence of the entire expedition.