Bria Domiano

Will Sacagawea change the world for the better or for the worse? Sacagawea was exploring during the times of the U. S expansion where the Louisiana Purchase started and changes about the U.S started to occur. At the time, there were not many explorers that were women. During that time period, they only trusted men with such jobs. Sacagawea changed that. She was the only woman who went on the Lewis and Clark expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery. This one girl is a strong, selfless, and courageous woman who is a great example to all the women in the world to be strong, just as she was. Sacagawea changed exploring forever.

Sacagawea had a horrific childhood that made her stronger. Sacagawea was born in Circa Idaho, 1788. On the other hand, in her life she never went to school. Her tribe was always moving and there were no schools near her tribe movement. That means that her tribe taught her everything that she knew. However, nobody knows anything about the hobbies she liked or her parents. When she was only twelve, she was captured by a Hadassa raiding party. A few years later, she was sold into marriage with a French man, Toussaint Charbonneau as a late teenager. Three years after she was captured, she had her first child. Sacagawea was a unique edition to this world.

Toussaint Charbonneau was Sacagawea’s huge influence. Sacagawea’s husband was asked to be on the expedition, but he had a wife and one small child. He had to go but he couldn't just leave her all alone with a baby! Therefore, Sacagawea decided to go with her small child because there was no other choice. She must have been scared for the safety of her child and that is how she is courageous. Sacagawea did this to protect her family.

Sacagawea had a problem and solved it calmly. Something happened during the Corps of Discovery that could have messed up the whole journey. On the journey, a Keelboat capsized, and everything fell out! Sacagawea’s son, Jean Baptiste froze. The things she got were books, maps, food, clothing, documents, fur, and more. Sacagawea was only sixteen when she went on the Corps of Discovery, which sounds like a huge obstacle as well. Therefore, she is a calm and courageous woman.

Sacagawea had success with The Corps of Discovery. The Corps of Discovery is when Meriweather Lewis and William Clark lead an expedition to explore the land from the Louisiana Purchase. Lewis was the Captain of the U.S army. at age 27 he became President Thomas Jefferson’s personal assistant. Whenever Lewis was told that he would be on the expedition he went right to his studies. The things he studied were medicines, Botany, Astronomy, Zoology, and he inspected maps of the region that he would be discovering. Clark was only nineteen years old when he joined his state militia. Some years later, George Washington promoted him to Lieutenant of Infantry. When he joined the Lewis and Clark expedition, Lewis made him the Co-commander of the expedition. Sacagawea was their translator, guide, forager, and a symbol of peace to the tribes that they traded with. When their keelboat capsized; Sacagawea saved everything. Sacagawea played a huge role in The Corps of Discovery. Sacagawea was a gatherer, Translator, and a sign of peace to the tribes that they traded with. She would try her best to keep her little Jean Baptiste or Little Pomp safe. William Clark adopted Sacagawea’s kids after she and Charbonneau died. In all, the whole Corps of Discovery was Sacagawea’s biggest accomplishment.

Sacagawea died a sad death when she was young. Sacagawea died around 1812 at age 24! She died of putrid fever in her sleep at Fort Lisa. The time that she died was a few months after she gave birth to her first and only daughter, Lizzette Charbonneau. In present day, Fort Lisa is destroyed and the river next to it flooded the land. Sacagawea's grave was next to Fort Lisa and her body was lost. Some people found a descendant of Sacagawea and that is incredible. She died a respectful death.

Sacagawea is a respectful woman. Smart, brave, and honest are words that describe Sacagawea. She was on The Corps of Discovery that she played a huge role in. She was a gatherer, a translator, a symbol of peace to the tribes that they traded with, and a young mother all at once! If you would like to honor her like I do, you can go to these places. Some places like Washington park you can see a statue of her. There is also a river that you can go to that is named to honor her and a coin that has her on it with little Pomp. Her name is also spelled three ways and can mean two things. The ways that they are spelled are Sacajawea Sakakawea, and Sacagawea. They can mean either “bird woman” or “boat puller". Her Memorial Day is December twentieth if you would like to honor her on a specific day. Sacagawea was a great woman.