Toussaint Charbonneau was a French-Canadian fur trapper born
near Montreal about 1767. He was known to have at least five wives, all Native
American women who he’d “married” when they were under sixteen. Charbonneau
married his last wife when he was seventy and she was fourteen. He was
notoriously short-tempered and violent with his wives, including Sacagawea, who
he’d bought from the Hidatsa, who’d stolen her from the Shoshone. Lewis and
Clark recruited Charbonneau as translator, but later called him “a man of no peculiar
merit.” Sacagawea, on the other hand, helped their expedition by finding edible
plants to supplement their rations, teaching the men to make moccasins and
other leather clothing, helping to chose the safest routes and negotiating with
other Native Americans. She did all this in her teens, while carrying her
infant son. Lewis and Clark paid Charbonneau $500 for his part in the
expedition. Sacagawea received no payment. She died at age 25.
No comments:
Post a Comment