Sergeant Floyd Monument

The Sergeant Floyd Monument in Floyd’s Bluff, Iowa, is a 100-foot high sandstone obelisk honoring Sergeant Charles Floyd, Jr., the only member of the Corps of Discovery to die during the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Floyd died on August 20, 1804, after becoming violently ill (likely from peritonitis caused by a ruptured appendix). He was buried with all of the honors of war on top of a high round hill overlooking the Missouri River. By 1857, erosion along the Missouri River had partially exposed Floyd’s grave and local settlers re-interred his remains in a different locations on the bluff. His grave was moved yet again in 1895. In 1901, an Egyptian-style obelisk made of Kettle River sandstone was erected and Floyd’s remains were sealed at it’s base. Thousands of people attended the dedication held on Memorial Day, May 30, 1901.