On This Date – October 11, 1809 – Meriwether Lewis commits suicide or is murdered on the Natchez Trace!
On the morning of October 11, 1809 the innkeeper at Grinder’s Stand on the Natchez Trace about 70 miles southwest of Nashville
heard gunshots. Soon servants found Meriwether Lewis badly injured from gunshot wounds, including one to the head. Lewis died shortly after sunrise that morning. Lewis had stopped at the inn the day prior, according to a Thomas Jefferson on October 18th. Lewis was on his way to Washington where he hoped to settle issues regarding payment of drafts he had drawn against the War Department while serving as governor of the Upper Louisiana Territory. Lewis also carried his journals with him for delivery to his publisher. From Wikipedia:
