Sacagawea

Intro

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson transformed the United States by boldly purchasing the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million. In doing so, he doubled the young nation's size with the new vast stretch of land from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. It was a monumental, transformative deal but one that raised important questions. Chief among them was: What lies within these uncharted lands?

President Jefferson turned to his trusted personal secretary, Meriwether Lewis, and seasoned frontiersman William Clark to uncover the answers. Lewis, an Army officer with a sharp mind and a talent for leadership, was tasked with organizing and commanding the expedition. Clark, chosen for his exceptional skills in navigation and mapmaking, was appointed co-leader. The ambitious mission set out to map the land, establish ties with Native American tribes, and see if there was a water route to the Pacific.

As Lewis and Clark set out planning the expedition, they quickly understood that despite their experience and resources, they would face cultural and linguistic divides and unfamiliar terrain challenges that would demand more than supplies and maps. So, for help, they added a French trapper and his wife, a young Native American named Sacagawea, to their 31-person expedition team.

Just 16 or 17 years old at the time and carrying a newborn baby on her back after giving birth just before the trek's start, Sacagawea would serve several essential roles. But arguably, one of her most important was that as the only woman in the group, her presence eased tensions and symbolized peaceful intent to wary tribes the expedition encountered, as Native Americans generally believed that women wouldn't be included in a war party. Clark himself wrote, "A woman in a party of men is a token of peace."

Over the years, the level of Sacagawea's contributions has become the subject of historical debate. We won't explore these debates in this snapshot biography other than to say that even if she wasn't as much of a guide or translator to the expedition as some posit, her courage and determination to journey thousands of miles over nearly two years through varying terrains and harsh climates as a teenager with a baby, all while helping to translate, guide and foster peace, rightfully turned her and her story into legend. It's a status that endures to this day.

Early Life and Abduction