THE LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION
The Lewis and Clark Expedition were an important journey and a foundation of the creation of the United States. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set out on the exploration of the land gained by the Louisiana Purchase on May 1804. Lewis and Clark did not want was ahead on their long journey.
I believe that the journey they made would not have been as successful without the help of the Indian tribes they met along the way. Also without the help of the French Canadian translator’s wife, Sacajewa, the journey would have been a failure. She was a Shoshone Indian and helped the party as an interpreter and peacemaker, she also proved instrumental in negotiating for horses and supplies along the way.
Also two other tribes met along the way by the party were the Shoshone and Mandans. Lewis and his crew spent a winter with the Mandans and learned to survive in the cold weather by learning to make moccasins, and also to use nature to keep themselves alive and healthy. The Shoshone let the crew rest in their village for some time and also gave them their first taste of salmon.
Yet over the course of the expedition, Lewis and Clark developed a ritual that they used when meeting a tribe for the first time. The captains would explain to the tribal leaders that the their land now belonged to the United States, and that a man far in the east – President Thomas Jefferson – was their new “great father.” They would also give the Indians a peace medal with Jefferson on one side and two hands clasping on the other, as well as some form of presents (often trade goods). Moreover, the Corps members would perform a kind of parade, marching in uniform and shooting their guns.
I believe that with all the help the Indians gave the crew of the Corps of Discovery, they never realized the hardship and pain they would suffer in the years to come.