The Lewis and Clark Salt Makers return to Seaside. Join interpreters from the Pacific Northwest Living Historians (PNLH) as they once again bring to life the salt camp which those explorers of the Lewis and Clark expedition established 212 years ago. When the explorers arrived at the Pacific coast in 1805, they needed salt to preserve meat, along with adding a little flavor to their meals. But the supply of salt which they acquired in St. Louis, before they began their long and arduous voyage across the vast American West, was exhausted. So the members of the Corps of North Western Discovery – as Captain Meriwether Lewis called the party in his journal – did the only thing they could: make their own salt. The event site will be at the west end of Avenue U in Seaside.

After a brief orientation, visitors to the program will enter the camp to “meet” members of the Lewis and Clark expedition, who will be busy making salt by boiling sea water over a fire.

This living history program will be part of the 50th Annual Meeting of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation (LCTHF), it is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Oregon Chapter of the LCTHF. The PNLH will also stage the program in collaboration with the Seaside Museum & Historical Society, Seaside Public Works Department, Clatsop County Work Crew, The Tides By The Sea Motel and the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. Special thanks go to Bev and Mike Carrick of Turner, Oregon; without whose assistance, this program would not be possible.

For more information: contact the PNLH at privatejwhitehouse@gmail.com or call the Seaside Museum & Historical Society at (503) 738-7065.