William Bratton (1778-1841) was a skilled hunter and blacksmith who suffered one of the expedition’s most severe medical emergencies — a debilitating back injury that left him unable to walk for months during the winter at Fort Clatsop.
Bratton’s condition baffled the captains, who tried numerous remedies without success. Finally, John Shields suggested a frontier sweat lodge treatment: a pit was dug, heated with stones, and Bratton was placed inside and doused alternately with hot and cold water. Remarkably, after one treatment, Bratton could walk. After a second, he was nearly recovered — one of the expedition’s most striking medical episodes.
As a blacksmith, Bratton worked alongside Willard at Fort Mandan trading metalwork for food. His skills were essential to keeping the expedition’s equipment functional throughout the journey.
After the expedition, Bratton served in the War of 1812 under Andrew Jackson, then settled in Waynetown, Indiana, where he lived until 1841. His grave in Waynetown is one of the few marked Corps of Discovery burial sites.
