Meriwether lewis gay

Join us to learn more about the past, now. History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Follow Us:. A skit in last week’s season finale of Saturday Night Live has ruffled a few feathers. Learn More. PART ONE Meriwether Lewis and William Clark shared a deep and significant bond, one that had major ramifications for their contribution to American history.

Certainly the nature of that coupling deserves careful analysis. Last summer, We Proceed On, the scholarly journal of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation came under significant fire after historian and archivist William Benemann published two essays that speculated on the homo-erotic nature of the bond between the two men.

Although I would have a preferred a joke at the expense of those with narrow-minds, perhaps we owe a debt of gratitude to Saturday Night Live for asking a broader audience to imagine the very lewis that Benemann circulated among a small group of Lewis and Clark enthusiasts.

If you find it funny that famed western explorer Meriwether Lewis might actually have desired William Clark. Weekly Roundup. Meriwether Lewis (August 18, – October 11, ) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark.

Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. If you find it funny that famed western explorer Meriwether Lewis might actually have desired William Clark, the joke was probably hilarious.

Letters to the editor poured in. Sign up for the HNN Newsletter. To better understand Lewis, he decided to read "every book ever written about what it was like to be a gay man in Meriwether Lewis' time" - only to discover a virtually uncharted historical territory.

Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. As Mr. These two men have been paired in a conjoining that is unique in American history. Features Book Excerpts About Submissions. Their ability to work as one, and to stand in for one another when the occasion required it, was an important factor in gay success of their mission, and most historical studies of the co-captains of the Corps of Discovery, however brief.

For gay and lesbian Lewis-and-Clark buffs, the recent speculation that Meriwether Lewis might have been gay has made an already fascinating story downright titillating. Weekly Feature. But as I have done in pastI will similarly defend the intellectual meriwether political legitimacy of posing questions about their relationship and even their personal desires.

Some of the letters to We Proceed On simply accused Mr. Members threatened to protest at their annual meeting, arguing that the national reputation of the explorers was at stake.