The site of the original Ft. Mandan, named in honor of the neighboring
tribe and hosts of Lewis and Clark, is in some dispute, except for the
fact that it currently is under the waters of the Missouri River. The
Missouri has changed course many times over the years since Ft. Mandan
was built, but no changes were as dramatic as when the Garrison Dam
was constructed in the 1950's. Part of the Pick-Sloan Plan, Garrison
submerged many sites behind it and further altered the downstream path
of the already wandering river. Another Pick-Sloan dam, Oahe in South
Dakota, also submerged a number of historic sites along the river. A
reconstruction of Ft. Mandan currently exists approximately two miles
south of the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Washburn, North
Dakota.
Image Courtesy of the Lewis & Clark
Interpretive Center
The site of the original Ft. Mandan, named in honor of the neighboring
tribe and hosts of Lewis and Clark, is in some dispute, except for the
fact that it currently is under the waters of the Missouri River. The
Missouri has changed course many times over the years since Ft. Mandan
was built, but no changes were as dramatic as when the Garrison Dam
was constructed in the 1950's. Part of the Pick-Sloan Plan, Garrison
submerged many sites behind it and further altered the downstream path
of the already wandering river. Another Pick-Sloan dam, Oahe in South
Dakota, also submerged a number of historic sites along the river. A
reconstruction of Ft. Mandan currently exists approximately two miles
south of the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Washburn, North
Dakota.