Lewis & Clark in the Frankfort Newspapers
Frankfort, Franklin County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Lewis and Clark in Kentucky- Frankfort Newspapers. Ky. newspapers were a major means of reporting news regarding the 1803-06 Lewis & Clark Expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Of special importance were the Frankfort papers The Palladium and The Western World. Both carried news of the explorers' return. Over. (Reverse) The October 2 and 9, 1806 issues of The Palladium ran the first printed accounts of the return of Lewis and Clark, noting that the explorers arrived "in very good health." The journey's details were then circulated nationally.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
News of the Lewis and Clark Expedition reached the American public largely through newspapers, and Frankfort's papers played an outsized role. The Palladium and The Western World carried word of the explorers' long-awaited return, with The Palladium's October 1806 issues running the first printed accounts that the party had come back "in very good health." From these early notices the details of the journey were then circulated across the nation.
Why it matters
The story is a window into how a frontier press shaped national memory, turning a government expedition into a shared public event long before instant communication existed.
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Related events
- · Return of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1806)
Themes & tags
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