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What happened to Seaman after the Lewis and Clark Expedition?

“What happened to Seaman after the Expedition?” It’s a short, logical question that deserves a long, detailed answer.

Unfortunately, we can’t provide one because nothing is known for certain about Seaman after the final journal entry about him on July 15, 1806. Captain Lewis wrote (describing the hoard of mosquitoes), “…my dog even howls with the torture he experiences from them, they are always most insupportable, they are so numerous that we frequently get them in our thrats as we breath.”

So, from mid-July until nearly the end of September 1806, there’s no mention of the Newfoundland again. Most people feel that if anything happened to Seaman during this time, surely Lewis or one of the other journal keepers would have written about it. After all, it seems all of the men considered the dog one of their own. This leads you to believe that Seaman returned with Lewis to “civilian life” and either remained in St. Louis, or traveled with him to Washington or Albemarle County.

Most Newfoundlands lived to be approximately 10 years of age during the early 19^th century, so it’s possible, if Seaman was less than one year old when Lewis purchased him in 1803, the dog could have lived to around 1813, long after Lewis himself.

Lewis and Clark NHT Visitor Centers and Museums

This map shows a range of features associated with the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, which commemorates the 1803-1806 Lewis and Clark Expedition. The trail spans a large portion of the North American continent, from the Ohio River in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon. The trail is comprised of the historic route of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, an auto tour route, high potential historic sites (shown in black), visitor centers (shown in orange), and pivotal places (shown in green). These features can be selected on the map to reveal additional information. Also shown is a base map displaying state boundaries, cities, rivers, and highways. The map conveys how a significant area of the North American continent was traversed by the Lewis and Clark Expedition and indicates the many places where visitors can learn about their journey and experience the landscape through which they traveled.