# Gilbert C. Russell, statement on the death of Meriwether Lewis, 26 November 1811 (in the hand of Jonathan Williams) — EXCERPTS as reprinted in We Proceeded On

CITATION (primary): Statement of Gilbert C. Russell, 26 Nov. 1811, Jonathan Williams Papers, Lilly Library, Indiana University; printed in Donald Jackson, ed., Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition with Related Documents, 1783-1854, 2d ed. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1978), vol. 2, pp. 573-575 (Jackson's editorial note says the statement is in Williams's hand).
CITATION (reprint used here, A): sidebar "Excerpt from a statement of November 26, 1811, by Gilbert C. Russell ...", in We Proceeded On (Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation), vol. 28, no. 1 (February 2002), pp. 14-15 (accompanying J. I. Merritt, "Lewis's final journey: A chronology"); the sidebar's own source line reads "Source: Donald Jackson, ed., Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition ... Vol. 2, pp. 573-74."
CITATION (reprint used here, B): E. G. Chuinard, "How Did Meriwether Lewis Die? It was Murder (Part 2 of 3)," We Proceeded On, vol. 17, no. 4 (November 1991), pp. 6-7, quoting the same statement (with modernized spelling) including its final sentence, which the 2002 sidebar omits.
URL fetched: https://lewisandclark.org/wpo/pdf/vol28no1.pdf and https://lewisandclark.org/wpo/pdf/vol17no4.pdf (text extracted with PyMuPDF)
DATE FETCHED: 2026-09-14
TRANSCRIPTION: SECONDARY (WPO reprint of Jackson's scholarly transcription). Reprint A keeps Jackson's original spelling ("succeded", "efficatious", "allarmed", "cuting") and marks one omission with an ellipsis "…"; reprint B (Chuinard) modernizes spelling and is used only for the closing sentence. The full text of the statement (Jackson 2:573-75) was NOT reachable (Jackson's edition is in copyright; archive.org lending copy not downloadable; Google Books API quota exhausted). Kira Gale and others contend the statement is not genuinely Russell's (see WPO 42:4, Nov. 2016, pp. 25-26); Holmberg (WPO 18:4, 1992, n. 51) notes Clark's 26 Nov. 1809 report of Russell's letters is consistent with it.

---- REPRINT A: We Proceeded On 28:1 (Feb. 2002), pp. 14-15, sidebar, verbatim as extracted (line breaks as in the PDF) ----

Excerpt from a statement of November 26, 1811, by
Gilbert C. Russell, commanding officer of Fort Pick-
ering, where Lewis had stayed two years earlier on his
way to Grinder’s Stand.
G
overnor Lewis left St. Louis late in August, or
early in September 1809, intending to go by
the route of the Mississippi and the Ocean, to
the City of Washington, taking with him all the papers
relative to his expedition to the Pacific Ocean, for the
purpose of preparing and puting them to the press, and
to have some drafts paid which had been drawn by him
on the Government and protested. On the morning of
the 15th of September, the Boat in which he was a
passenger landed him at Fort Pickering in a state of
mental derangement, which appeared to have been
produced as much by indisposition as other causes. The
Subscriber being then the Commanding Officer of the
Fort on discovering his situation, and learning from the
Crew that he had made two attempts to kill himself, in
one of which he had nearly succeded, resolved at once
to take possession of him and his papers, and detain
them there untill he recovered, or some friend might
arrive in whose hands lie could depart in safety.
In this condition he continued without any material
change for about five days, during which time the most
proper and efficatious means that could be devised to
restore him was administered, and on the sixth or
seventh day all symptoms of derangement disappeared
and he was completely in his senses and thus continued
for ten or twelve days. On the 29th of the same month
he left Bluffs, with the Chickasaw agent the interpreter
and some of the Chiefs, intending then to proceed the
usual route thro’ the Indian Country, Tennissee and
Virginia to his place of distination, with his papers well
secured and packed on horses. By much severe deple-
tion during his illness he had been considerably reduced
and debilitated, from which he had not entirely recov-
ered when he set off, and the weather in that country
being yet excessively hot and the exercise of traveling
too severe for him; in three or four days he was again
affected with the same mental disease. He had no person
with him who could manage or controul him in his
propensities and he daily grew worse untill he arrived at
the house of a Mr. Grinder within the jurisdiction of
Tennissee and only Seventy miles from Nashville, where
in the apprehension of being destroyed by enemies
which had no existance but in his wild immagination, he
destroyed himself, in the most cool desperate and
Barbarian-like manner, having been left in the house
intirely to himself. …
After he arrived [at Grinder’s Stand] and refreshed
himself with a little Meal & drink he went to bed in a
cabin by himself and ordered the servants to go to the
stables and take care of the Horses, least they might
loose some that night; Some time in the night he got his
pistols which he loaded, after every body had retired in
a seperate Building and discharged one against his
forehead without much effect—the ball not penetrating
the skull but only making a furrow over it. He then
discharged the other against his breast where the ball
entered and passing downward thro’ his body came out
low down near his back bone. After some time he got
up and went to the house where Mrs. Grinder and her
children were lying and asked for water, but her hus-
band being absent and having heard the report of the
pistols she was greatly allarmed and made him no
answer. He then in returning got his razors from a port
folio which happened to contain them and siting up in his
bed was found about day light, by one of the servants,
busily engaged in cuting himself from head to foot.
Source: Donald Jackson, ed., Letters of the Lewis and
Clark Expedition with Related Documents, 1783-1854, 2
Vols. (Urbana: University of Chicago Press, 1978), Vol.
2, pp. 573-74.

---- REPRINT B: Chuinard, We Proceeded On 17:4 (Nov. 1991), pp. 6-7, verbatim as extracted (modernized spelling; Chuinard's "(Italics mine.)" is his) ----


=== PDF PAGE 7 ===
The elements have taken their toll on the Lewis Monument at Natchez 'ftace. 
Gilbert Russell dated 26th of November, 1811. 
• '. . . Some time in the night he got his pistols 
which he loaded, after everybody had retired in 
a separate building and discharged one against 
his forehead without much effect- the ball not 
penetrating the skull but only making a furrow 
over it. He then discharged the other against his 
breast where the ball entered and passing 
downward thro' his body came out low down 
near his back bone. (Italics mine.) 
After some time he got up and went to the house 
where Mrs. Grinder and her children were ly-
ing and asked for water but her husband, being 
absent, and having heard the report of the 
pistols, she was greatly alarmed and made him 
no answer. He then, in returning, got his razors 
from a portfolio which happened to contain them 
and sitting up in his bed was found about 
daylight by one of the servants, busily engaged 
in cutting himself from head to foot ... he lay 
down and died with the declaration to the Boy 
that he had killed himself to deprive his enemies 
of the pleasure and honor of doing it.' '60