PRINTER'S NO. 1378
No. 202 Session of 2003
INTRODUCED BY ARMSTRONG, BALDWIN, BOYD, CREIGHTON, HICKERNELL, STURLA AND TRUE, APRIL 15, 2003
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, APRIL 15, 2003
A RESOLUTION 1 Honoring the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. 2 WHEREAS, President Thomas Jefferson sent Meriwether Lewis to 3 Lancaster to study with Andrew Ellicott, a renowned astronomer 4 and surveyor who lived on North Prince Street in a house which 5 still stands; and 6 WHEREAS, Lewis spent three weeks there to learn skills vital 7 for the success of the Lewis and Clark Expedition to the Pacific 8 Ocean; and 9 WHEREAS, Ellicott was America's foremost surveyor along with 10 being an accomplished astronomer and mathematician. Meriwether 11 Lewis visited Ellicott at his Lancaster home in April 1803; and 12 WHEREAS, Ellicott had already conducted several large surveys 13 that established state and territorial boundaries, including the 14 boundary between the United States and Spanish possessions in 15 Florida and the bounds of the District of Columbia; and 16 WHEREAS, In 1803 Ellicott published "The Journal of Andrew 17 Ellicott" which mapped the mouth of the Mississippi River and
1 fixed the position of the mouth of the Missouri River quite 2 accurately; and 3 WHEREAS, Those maps were used in the map of North American 4 that Nicholas King made specifically for the Lewis and Clark 5 Expedition; and 6 WHEREAS, Ellicott was a strong supporter for purchasing 7 Louisiana; and 8 WHEREAS, Ellicott taught Lewis how to use a sextant, octant, 9 chronometer and other surveying equipment during a nearly three- 10 week visit; and 11 WHEREAS, Using his own instruments, Thomas Jefferson 12 personally taught Lewis the basic principles of determining 13 latitude by observing altitudes of the sun or a star with an 14 octant and then he sent Lewis away for further study of 15 astronomical formulas with Robert Patterson, professor of 16 mathematics at the University of Pennsylvania; and 17 WHEREAS, The diligent efforts of the founders of the Historic 18 Preservation Trust of Lancaster County saved the historic 19 Sehner-Ellicott-von Hess House from demolition; and 20 WHEREAS, The building, where Lewis trained with Andrew 21 Ellicott on navigational skills vital to the success of the 22 Lewis and Clark Expedition now serves as the headquarters of the 23 trust; therefore be it 24 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives honor the 25 bicentennial commemoration of the Lewis and Clark Expedition 26 being held April 19, 2003, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Penn 27 Square in the City and County of Lancaster. D7L82MRD/20030H0202R1378 - 2 -