The sketches leave the actual shape of the hull to the imagination. Most constructors of LCB reproductions have assumed that it was a slab sided, flat bottomed affair. This viewpoint appears incorrect. The various bits of written information on the boat lead one to conclude that it was either a keelboat or a barge, as the term barge was understood at the time. A barge then was generally a boat used to transport important people. Several examples of barges are shown in Chapman's "Navalis Architectura Mercatoria". Also, plans of barges for the Commodore's use are included in books on the Frigates Essex and Constitution.
Whether LCB was a keelboat or a barge, it was a round bottomed boat built with frames set up on a keel. It was not flat bottomed, as many reproductions are. The one at Nebraska City is a particularly egregious piece of crap. I would not use the one at Onawa or Bismark as a guide. I have a lot of respect for the creator of the Onawa reproduction, Butch Bouvier, who has created a pictorially correct boat, but the hull form is not suitable for a model.
The best reproduction of the LCB is the one owned by the Discovery Expedition of Saint Charles Missouri. It has a reasonable hull shape.
The best available plans for the LCB are those published by Richard Boss*, as I have mentioned previously. There is also an article on an LCB model in the July-August 2005 issue of Ships in Scale, but no plans. The author of the article is Jerry Smith. Perhaps he would be willing to share the plans he used.
We don't know the shape of the LCB authoritatively. If I were to make a model, I would develop my own set of lines based on some of the available barge lines drawings.
* Keelboat, Pirogue, and Canoe: Vessels Used by the Lewis and Clark Corps of
Discovery. Richard Boss. Nautical Research Journal, June 1993
{David Purdy}
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