Sacagawea

Sacagawea, also spelled Sacajawea or Sakakawea, was a Lemhi Shoshone woman who aided the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806) as an interpreter, guide, and cultural mediator. Born circa 1788 in the Lemhi Shoshone homeland along the Lemhi and Salmon rivers in what is now Idaho, she was captured by a Hidatsa raiding party and later married to Toussaint Charbonneau, a French-Canadian fur trapper who joined the expedition as an interpreter.

In 1804 the couple joined the Lewis and Clark expedition at Fort Mandan in present-day North Dakota. Sacagawea traveled with the explorers to the Pacific Ocean and back. Her presence and linguistic skills helped the expedition establish relations with various Native American nations and navigate complex diplomacy. She aided in translating with Shoshone leaders, facilitating the purchase or obtainment of horses necessary to cross the Rocky Mountains, and assisting with the expedition’s survival by identifying edible plants and resources. She gave birth to Jean Baptiste Charbonneau on February 11, 1805 at Fort Mandan, traveling on with her infant through much of the journey.

The expedition returned to St. Louis in 1806. Details of Sacagawea’s later life are unclear, and the exact location and date of her death are uncertain, commonly placed around 1812 in the Lemhi Shoshone area of present-day Idaho.

Sacagawea has become a symbol of women’s contributions and Native American history in the United States. Her legacy is celebrated in museums, literature, and popular culture, and she is depicted on the obverse of the Sacagawea dollar, first minted in 2000.