We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,contact us! Sacagawea was born circa 1788 in what is now the state of Idaho. The National Park Service claims there are more statues dedicated to Sacagawea than to any other American woman. (Some of those statues are controversial for their depiction of Sacagawea, however, and at least one has been removed.) When she was, years old, Sacagawea was captured by an enemy tribe, the Hidatsa, and taken from her Lemhi Shoshone people to the Hidatsa villages near present-day, by President Thomas Jefferson nearly doubled the size of the United States. All rights reserved. Covered in brass, the Sacagawea coin (aka the "golden dollar") was made to replace the Susan B. Anthony dollar. That is unless youre talking to a historian from North Dakota, where official state policy dictates her name be spelled Sakakawea., Additional Source: Lewis and Clark: An Illustrated History by Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns, 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. A biography of the Shoshone girl, Sacagawea, from age eleven when she was kidnapped by the Hitdatsa to the end of her journey with Lewis and Clark, plus speculation about her . She did it all while caring for the son she bore two months before she left, which is unusual. In 1800, Sacagawea was kidnapped and taken to North Dakota, where he remained for three years. Sacagawea and Jean Baptiste died within a few months of each other in 1812. (There were stories that it was another wife of Charbonneau who died at Fort Manuel, but historians don't give much credence to this.) Charbonneau was steering a boat through choppy waters when a sudden, caused the boat to tip sideways and fill with water. Sacagaweas story has been hailed as a folkhero, a symbol of womens empowerment, and an Indian American icon. Scholars think she may have been born around 1788 in Lemhi County, Idaho among the Agaidikas or Salmon-Eater Shoshones of the Lemhi Shoshone tribe. 1. Photo: Edgar Samuel Paxson (Personal photograph taken at Montana State Capitol) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons, Photo: Lyn Alweis/The Denver Post via Getty Images, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads, Name: Sacagawea, Birth Year: 1788, Birth State: Idaho, Birth City: Lemhi County, Birth Country: United States. 3. by Charlie Kerlinger | Nov 28, 2022 | Famous Musicians. As far as historians know, the first written reference to Sacagawea datesto November 4, 1804,. Sacagaweas actual day of birth is not known. Sacagawea traveled 5,000 miles (10,000 km) with her infant son. What happened to Sacagawea when the expedition returned East? When some of these items floated into the water, Clark says they were nearly all caught by [Sacagawea]. Thats pretty impressive, since she was also busy keeping herself and her infant son from drowning. The Lemhi Shoshone woman was born Agnes Sakakawea in the late 1790s in the Lemhi Shoshone village of Tse-Wah-Keen on the Salmon River in Idaho. Tuscaloosa, Ala.: University of Alabama Press, 1996. She and her husband were guides from the Great Plains to the Pacific Ocean and back. Once Sacagawea left the expedition, the details of her life become more elusive. She received no pay for her services and died on December 20, 1812. She was then married to a French-Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau. Sacagawea and new born son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. 600 aoo In 1800, an enemy tribe kidnapped Sacagawea. It is believed that Sacagaweas second child, Lizette, died during childhood as there is no mention of her after her mothers death. Sacagawea was a Shoshone interpreter best known for being the only woman on the Lewis and Clark Expedition into the American West. In August 1812, 25-year-old Sacagawea passed away from "putrid fever." Her naturalists knowledge of the Shoshone trails made her appear to be his pilot, and she may have also helped to explain why Clark claimed her to be his sidekick. Sacagawea spent the next year with the Lewis and Clark expedition, before returning to her homeland in present-day Montana. Their winter home was at Mandan and Hidatsa lands on the November 1804 arrival of the Indians. Pomp was left in Clark's care. Some historians believe that Sacagawea died shortly after giving birth to her daughter, lisette, in 1812. During the winter months,Lewis and Clark made the decision tobuild their encampment, Fort Mandan,near the Hidatsa-Mandan villages where Charbonneau and Sacagawea were living. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. When she was around the age of 12, she was captured by the Hidatsa tribe and taken to present-day North Dakota. What happened to Sacagawea A few years after she was kidnapped? MLA Potter, Teresa, and Mariana Brandman. The infant was just four months old when Charbonneau, Sacagawea and little Jean Baptiste joined expedition. Over the years, tributes to Sacagawea and her contribution to the Corps of Discovery have come in many forms, such as statues and place-names. Sometime in 1811, Sacagawea gave birth to her daughter, who was named Lizette. The Hidatsa derivation is usually supported by Lewis and Clarks journals. She was part of the Native American tribe known as Shoshone and grew up in the Rocky Mountains. She died at Fort Manuel, now Kenel, South Dakota, after leaving the expedition. -Mandan villages where Charbonneau and Sacagawea were living. Sacagawea grew up surrounded by the Rocky Mountains in the Salmon River region of what is now Idaho, a member of the Lemhi tribe of the Native American Shoshone tribe. Idaho is now a state in which she was born around 1788. Unauthorized use is prohibited. She had given birth to at least three children, the last one just a few months before her death. She convinced the Shoshone to provide additional guides and horses to the expedition members. Painting by Split Rock. Jean Baptiste and Sacagawea had a daughter, Marie Dorion, in 1811. Her perseverance as a kidnapped child, a . According to Lewis, he didnt regain his composure until another crewman threatened to shoot him if he didnt take hold of the rudder and do his duty.. Charbonneau was a French Canadian trapper. She traveled thousands of miles from North Dakota to the Pacific Ocean between 1804 . As a translator, she was invaluable, as was her intimate knowledge of some difficult terrain. Kidnapped from her Shoshone tribe when she was just eleven or twelve, Sacagawea . The two groups reunited on August 12,1806. Sakakawea eventually married and had a second child after Tetanoueta died a few years later. At this point, she would have been just 16 or 17 years old. As one of few women and Asian musicians in the jazz world, Akiyoshi infused Japanese culture, sounds, and instruments into her music. The following is the journal entry made by Lewis on February, 1805 about the birth of Jean Babtiste: about five Oclock this evening one of the wives of Charbono was delivered of a fine boy. ", According to Washington University history professor Peter Kastor, the spelling Sacajawea, with the accompanying soft g sound on the j, became the prominent one simply because that's the one the Philadelphia-based editor picked when Lewis and Clarks journals were published. If you know anything at all about Sacagawea, you probably know that she was a guide on the Lewis and Clark Expedition (also known as the Corps of Discovery) to explore the Louisiana Purchase and Pacific Northwest, sagely leading her charges through unforgiving terrain with an almost mystical knowledge of the landscape. After the expedition, they settled in North Dakota. Lewis and Clark hired Charbonneau as a member oftheir expedition, the Corps of Discovery,whileSacagawea was expecting her first child. Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, Copyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. Sacagawea gets sold Sacagawea gets sold to Toussaint Charbonneau. Sacagawea didn't have a proper education, but she learned from her tribes. The bilingual Shoshone woman Sacagawea (c. 1788 - 1812) accompanied the Lewis and Clark Corps of Discovery expedition in 1805-06 from the northern plains through the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean and back. These tribes carried rifles provided by white traders which gave them advantage over the Shoshones. Born circa 1788 (some sources say 1786 and 1787) in Lemhi County, Idaho. Theyarrived atthe Hidatsa villages two days later, where Sacagawea and her family departed the expedition. On February 11,1805, Sacagaweagavebirth to ason, Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau, whom Clark later nicknamed "Pomp," meaning "first born" in Shoshone. . In 1805, Sacagawea gave birth to her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, while traveling with the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Sakakawea spent the next decade in the villages of the Hidatsa, hunting and trading with them. Abigail Adams was an early advocate for women's rights. Sakakawea was instrumental in guiding the way and providing vital information to the expedition as part of the trip. Sacagawea, the daughter of a Shoshone chief, was captured by an enemy tribe and sold to a French Canadian trapper who made her his wife around age 12. The Hidatsa, an American Plains Indian tribe related to the Sioux, were traditionally a sedentary people, meaning they established villages rather than travel around from place to place. Sacagawea. National Park Service. s and Clark hire him as a guide and interpreter. 2013-04-12 21:46:43. Sacagawea gets kidnapped When Sacagawea was 12 years old, Hidatsa warriors raided her tribe and captured many young people, including herself. Sacagawea returns to Three Forksan area where three rivers come together in what is now Missouriwhere she was captured as a child. Another theory is that her name means boat puller, which would make sense given her role in helping Lewis and Clark navigate the rivers during their expedition. As a result of her presence, she helped dispel preconceived notions about their plans to conquer Native American tribes. At about 17 years of age, she was the only woman among 31 older men on this portion of the expedition. The Agaideka (Lemhi) Shoshone lived in the upper Salmon River Basin of Idaho, where Agnes Sakakawea was born. Sacagawea was a pioneer and interpreter of the Lewis and Clark expedition west of the Mississippi River. Sacagawea was only 16 or 17 years old when she joined Lewis and Clark's grueling expedition. Sacagawea Departing on April 7, the expedition ascended the Missouri. She was married to a French trader named Toussaint Charbonneau while living in the Mandan-Hidatsa region. Lewis and Clark met Charbonneau and quickly hired him to serve as interpreter on their expedition. Copy. Sacagawea was kidnapped and taken to the Hidatsa-Mandan settlement in the south-central part of present-day North Dakota. With the acquisition of so much land, , it was necessary to determine the actual boundaries of, . Sacagawea was not compensated at all. Sacagawea, a young Native American, joined them. According to Clarks journals, the boat was carrying the expeditions papers, Instruments, books, medicine, a great proportion of our merchandize, and in short almost every article indispensibly necessary to their mission. They were near an area where her people camped. What happened to Sacagawea after Lewis and Clark? 1. Sacagawea summary: Real and accurate information regarding the history of Sacagawea is hard to find. In November 1804, an expedition led by .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}Meriwether Lewis and William Clark entered the area. She was only about twelve years old. They built Fort Clatsop near present-day Astoria, Oregon, and they remained there until March of the following year. Its a culturally significant question: If her name is pronounced with a soft g, its likely a Shoshone word meaning boat launcher. But if the g is hard and the spelling is closer to Sacagawea, it's probably a Hidatsa word meaning bird woman. President Thomas Jeffersons Louisiana Purchase of western territory from France nearly doubled the size of the United States. The Gros Ventres of Missouri also known as Hidatsa Indians, long time enemies of the Shoshones, captured Sacagawea and other women and took them as prisoners. As a result, she could communicate with the Shohanies (both tribes spoke two completely different languages). The couple had two children together, a son named Jean-Baptiste and a daughter named Lisette. She was held captive at a Hidatsa village near present-day Washburn, North Dakota. The Sacagawea River is a 30-mile waterway in what is now north-central Montana. Sacagawea was a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition during the year 1804-06. Toussaint Charbonneau acquired Sacagawea when she was about 11-13 years old, later he made her his wife. About this time, or shortly thereafter, Sacagawea delivered a daughter, Lisette. name was Sacagawea, and she was a true survivor. Reliable historical information about Sacagawea is very limited. Clark even praised her as his pilot.. Sacagawea and her babyhelpedthose they encountered feelit was safe to befriend the newcomers. She later married a man named Cameahwait, with whom she had several children. Jefferson hired Virginias Meriwether Lewis to explore th, Lewis sought out frontiersman William Clark. Frazier, Neta Lohnes. When a boat capsized on the Missouri River as they were crossing into what is now Montana, Sacagawea saved important books and much-needed supplies. This name is most commonly pronounced with the letter g (/s*k**wi*/), and is usually accompanied by a soft g or j sound. She could cross the Rocky Mountains by purchasing horses from the Shoshynes. Around the age of 12, Sacagawea was captured by Hidatsa Indians, an enemy of the Shoshones. Remaining calm, she retrieved important papers, instruments, books, medicine, and other indispensable valuables that otherwise would have been lost. Students will analyze the life of Hon. All rights reserved. She was then sold to a French-Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau who made her one of his wives. Sacagawea faced the same dangers and difficulties as the rest of the expedition members,in addition tocaring for her infant son. . In April of 1805, the expedition resumed their journey up the Missouri River, now along with Sacagawea, Charbonneau, and their infant son, Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau, who Sacagawea had given birth to just months earlier. On April 7, 1805, the Lewis and Clark party set out on their expedition to explore the unknown Northwest. It was believed that she was a Lemhi Shoshone who settled in Lemhi County. The diaries of Lewis and Clark provide a wealth of information about their journey. The Americans stayed in their relatively safe and warm camp through the winter of 1804-05 and waitedintothe spring so that Sacagawea could accompany them west. She had traveled a long way with us to see the great waters, and that now that monstrous fish was also to be seen, she thought it very hard she could not be permitted to see either (she had never yet been to the ocean). Scholars estimate that there were approximately 3,000 to 4,000 Hidatsas and Mandans living along the Missouri River at that time. American National Biography. Here is where they met Toussaint Charbonneau,who lived among the Mandans. [Sacagawea] recognizes the country and assures us that the three forks are at no great distance. 2021. www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/sacagawea. She was taken to a Hidatsa village in present-day North Dakota, where she was sold into slavery. Sacagawea's actual date of birth is not known because specific birth dates were not recorded at that time. He wouldsee thatPompreceiveda good education andwouldraisePompas his own. He lived among the Mandans and Hidatsas and adopted their way of life. Chicago Potter, Teresa, and Mariana Brandman. He was only two months old. Whether this medicine was truly the cause or not I shall not undertake to determine, but I was informed that she had not taken it more than ten minutes before she brought forth perhaps this remedy may be worthy of future experiments, but I must confess that I want faith as to its efficacy., Lewis and Clark and his group of Corps of Discovery explorers, Next in Biography Sacagawea joins the Lewis and Clark Expedition >>. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Rosalynn Carter, 10 Black Pioneers in Aviation Who Broke Barriers. Abrams is now one of the most prominent African American female politicians in the United States. Despite the fact that we only have a year and a half of her life documented, and because there is so little written or known about American Indian women of her day, she has become a symbol to many Americans. Her presence was regarded as a peace offering and her greatest contribution. Lewis and Clark were so grateful that, a few days later, they named a branch of a Missouri River tributary in Sacagaweas honor. Sacagawea and CharbonneaufeltPompwas too young (he wasnot yet two) but indicated they would bring him to St. Louis when he was older. Her performance as the heroine of the Lewis and Clark expedition is well known. Sacagawea is a very important hero. Sacagawea was born in 1788 near the Salmon River in what is now Idaho. However, many Shoshone Indians maintain that it is a Shoshone name meaning boat launcherand spell and pronounce it Sacajawea.. Fun Facts about Sacagawea 5: the early life. She belonged to the Lemhi Shoshone tribe. Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, Lisette Charbonneau, and more. He was about 41 years old. Sacagawea died in 1812, at the age of 24. Thats the account recorded by a clerk at Fort Manuel [PDF], where Sacagawea was living at the time, and the one accepted by Clark and most history texts. At the time, the Hidatsa and the Shoshone were enemy tribes, and Sacagawea's kidnap came as retribution for an earlier battle between the two. The Making of Sacagawea - Donna J. Kessler 1998-04-13 . The Lewis and Clark Expedition, which visited the Pacific Northwest from St. Louis in 1804-06, is regarded as Sacagaweas greatest achievement. Following hercapture, French-Canadian traderToussaint Charbonneau,who was living among the Hidatsa, claimed Sacagawea as one of his wives.