Part I-- Prelude (1803)

1. Introduction and Credits
2. The mission of Meriwether Lewis in Philadelphia
3. President Jefferson writes to five mentors about instructing Lewis
4. Jefferson's letter to Dr. Benjamin Rush, a mentor
5. Lewis's Mission (on his way to Philadelphia) in Harper's Ferry: Ordering Equipment
6. Lewis's mission in Harper's Ferry: the iron boat
7. Lancaster's Andrew Ellicott, mentor
8. Lewis and Ellicott
9. Lewis in Lancaster: ordering weapons
10. Lewis travels to Philadelphia: May, 1803
11. The city of Philadelphia in 1803
12. The Philadelphia Museum and Charles Willson Peale
13. Two showplaces: Woodlands and Bartram's Garden
14. Philadelphia in May, 1803: weather and news
15. Lewis and Robert Patterson, mentor
16. Lewis gathers reference books for the Expedition
17. Lewis purchases navigational instruments
18. Why wasn't a physician assigned to the Expedition?
19. Lewis and Benjamin Rush, mentor
20. Dr. Rush's "abstract inquiries" about American Indians
21. Dr. Rush writes to Jefferson: June, 1803
22. Dr. Rush's suggestions for "the preservation of Lewis's health"
23. Lewis purchases medical supplies
24. Lewis and Clark's background in healing
25. Benjamin Smith Barton, mentor
26. Lewis and Dr. Barton
27. Some books carried by Lewis and Clark
28. Lewis and Clark as Linguistic Pioneers
29. Jefferson sends Lewis a draft of the instructions for the mentors
30. Caspar Wistar, mentor
31. Lewis and Dr. Wistar
32. Israel Whelan, supplier
33. Whelan's purchases for the Expedition
34. General William Irvine, supplier
35. Problem: transporting supplies to Pittsburgh
36. When exactly was Lewis in Philadelphia in 1803?
37. Lewis has successfully outfitted the Expedition
38. Lewis leaves Philadelphia with "quickened pulse, bounding enthusiasm, and heightened determination"