This year I revisited the Natchez Trace Parkway, determined to get out of my car and hike more on the “old trace” which is a National Scenic Trail that runs along the same ridge from Natchez Mississippi to Nashville Tennessee. Potkopinu near the southern terminus has 20’ deep sunken sections of trail carved into the soft soil. There are other maintained sections near Jackson and Tupelo Mississippi. And there are many small remnants of the trace next to the parkway. I visited a couple small waterfalls on the trace in Tennessee and stopped at the memorial to and burial spot of Meriwether Lewis.

After completing his expedition with Clark, Jefferson appointed Lewis territorial governor in St Louis. Lewis worked hard to maintain peace with natives in the area, using his own funds and then applying for reimbursement from the US. An unscrupulous rival began a smear campaign against Lewis, using common delays in mail to paint Lewis as a poor administrator. Lewis set out to clear his name in DC personally, taking a trusted Native American friend with him for security. He wrote to his friends about his anguish at being maligned and misjudged.

One night in a cabin on the old Natchez trace in Tennessee, Lewis’ native aide was off looking for some missing horses, when shots were heard and Lewis was found shot in both the head and the stomach. He died later that morning. Witness testimony was inconsistent, but at one point someone in his party claimed to have heard both sounds of a scuffle and a cry for help, although they feared to enter his room during the night.

Bizarrely, the official report was suicide. Not sure how or why someone shoots themselves in both the head and the stomach. Years later, the body was exhumed and examined by a doctor who said it was likely the work of an assassin. Nevertheless, many historians are idiots, so the suicide theory did not die. They argue that Lewis was agitated, talking to himself, depressed and may have taken alcohol or medicine.

Obviously, Lewis had reason to be agitated, depressed and was practicing the speech he would give upon arrival in DC. The old trace was dangerous, the political situation was unstable and Lewis had dangerous rivals. At that moment, Lewis was basically unguarded. And more obviously, why would a suicidal man embark on a long journey and plan for his security, if he was preparing to kill himself? Lewis went on a personal mission to clear his name, and it’s extremely difficult to reconcile that fact with his giving up mid journey. If Lewis is known for anything in our history, it is completing the journey, even when times are tough. Meriwether Lewis was murdered on the Old Natchez Trace.