Pike Expedition departs Fort Bellefontaine for the American West

Background. General James Wilkinson ordered Lieutenant Zebulon Pike to lead an expedition to map the western Louisiana Purchase, contact Native Americans, and find river headwaters. The mission aimed to evaluate natural resources and establish friendly relations. This military party was authorized by the U.S. government to explore the south and west of the recent purchase, coinciding with other Jeffersonian expeditions.

Expedition Objectives. The expedition sought to map terrain and locate the headwaters of the Red and Arkansas Rivers. Pike's party traversed the Great Plains, noting vast sandy tracts devoid of vegetation. These observations later influenced Stephen Long's labeling of the area as the Great American Desert. The mission also prepared for a possible American invasion of the neighboring Royal Spanish provinces of New Mexico and Texas.

Geographical Discovery. In early November 1806, Pike and his team sighted a distant mountain peak in the Colorado foothills. They attempted to climb the summit but failed. Pike named the mountain Highest Peak, which was later commonly known as Pike's Highest Peak. This peak, now Pikes Peak, is the easternmost fourteener in the United States, a present-day attribute of the mountain.