"William Clark owned a slave called York. They were the same age. York went with him on the Great Expedition, which crossed the hitherto unexplored continent. He paddled, pushed, hauled, made and broke camp, hunted, stood ready to fight Indians, went hungry and was often exhausted, carried his rifle, and was prepared to protect Captain Clark's life at the risk of his own. When the Corps of Discovery got back to St. Louis, and every man who had gone on the expedition got double pay and a land grant, York received nothing. York asked Clark, How about my freedom? His owner said that that was out of the question. He asked Clark to sell him to an owner in Louisville so he could live with his wife and family. Not possible, Clark replied, and he complained, "York is but of very little Service to me, insolent and Sulky. I gave him a Severe trouncing the other Day and he has much mended Sence."

[pp. 3-4] From: TO AMERICA "Personal Reflections of an Historian" authored, Stephen E. Ambrose

Who was York?

York was the only African-American member of the Lewis & Clark expedition and also the only member who didn't receive an official "thank you" and grant of land from Congress afterward. In fact he simply returned to being a slave. Throughout the expedition York had been treated as an equal. He hunted on his own, carried a gun, and voted. The particularly interesting thing about the voting is that it was a military expedition so, technically, York was the first African-American to cast a legal vote in America. The point is that while there were thirty-two other people on the expedition who have largely sunk into obscurity and York's contributions were no greater than theirs, his contributions were certainly no smaller than theirs either. Yet instead of returning a hero like the rest, he returned as property.

In a letter to his brother written shortly after the expedition, William Clark wrote that York had become "sulky" upon their return and was good for nothing so he "gave him a severe trouncing... and he has much mended." William Clark and York were the same age and had known each other since childhood, had traveled on the same expedition and, in fact, were the only two members of the expedition to go as far as Haystack Rock - the farthest western point of the expedition. Yet when they returned from the journey and York asked for his freedom it was denied. So he asked to be sold to someone who lived closer to his wife and was denied. Understandably upset, York "sulked" and in turn William Clark beat him for it and then wrote a letter describing this event with casual indifference. (By some accounts York was freed years later.)

In that one anecdote we get a sense not only of what life was like for York, who had otherwise lived an exceptional life of great heroism, but also what life must have been like for all African American slaves. This country was built in large part upon their sweat and their labor. They contributed in at least equal proportions to their white-skinned counterparts. Yet in the final analysis they were beaten, denigrated and forgotten. York is more than a man, he is a symbol of everything we have forgotten or simply not bothered to learn about our history. And that is the most important point to be made. The York Project isn't about African American history - it is about American history.

To honor that history, Lewis & Clark College will acknowledge York's contribution to the expedition from whose leaders the institution takes its name.

Scholarly Articles

A great friend of the York Memorial Project and eminent York historian, Darrell Millner, has graciously allowed us to link to this illuminating article he originally had printed in the Oregon Historical Quarterly:

York of the Corps of Discovery

A brief overview of York and the entire Corps of Discovery:

The Corps of Discovery: York