What was the width of Lewis and Clark's keelboat?

Answer 1

Lewis had named it the "Discovery" and pictures of what the keelboat might have looked like can be found at the website provided under "related links". Lewis and Clark's keelboat is recorded by Lewis to be "1 Keeled boat light strong at least 60 feet in length her burthen equal to 8 tons." The boat was 55 feet in length, about eight feet in width, with a three-foot draft and a thirty-two foot mast. It could carry twelve to fourteen tons of men and freight and was controlled by a tiller or rudder and an anchor. During the first winter at Wood River, the keelboat was modified to include an awning, catwalks, lockers for stowed baggage, and lids, cannon, blunderbusses, and eleven benches for twenty-two oarsmen.