Sacajawea was born between 1784 and 1787, in the Lemhi Valley. (present day Idaho.) Her father was a chief of the "Snake People," or Shoshone. Her name meant "Boat Pusher" in that language.
When Sacajawea was about ten, she was captured by Blackfeet Indians. She was either gambled or traded to the Hidatsa tribe. They took her to live in their village near what is present day Bismark, North Dakota. They called her Tsikikawias, meaning, "Bird Woman." These people either gambled or traded her to French-Canadian trapper, Touissant Charbonneau, along with another Native woman. Charbonneau married both women in the winter of 1803/1804. More than one wife was the Native custom of the day. The family lived at Fort Mandan. This is where they met Lewis and Clark, explorers who were planning an expedition to the Pacific Ocean. They were looking for a guide and interpreter. Sacajawea was pregnant with her first child at the time.
Lewis and Clark hired Charbonneau as a guide. They insisted that Sacajawea be allowed to come along. They wanted her as an interpreter. Charbonneau agreed. On Sunday November 4, 1804, Sacajawea became an official member of the Lewis and Clark expedition.
The expedition wintered at Fort Mandan. It was here that Sacajawea gave birth to her son, Jean Baptiste, on February 11, 1805. She gave him the Shoshone name of "Pomp" meaning "First Born." The expedition got underway on April 7, 1805. Sacajawea carried two-month-old Jean Baptiste on her back.
Lewis and Clark recorded an incident that showed how calm Sacajawea was. On May 14, 1805, the boat carrying her was hit by a sudden storm. It tipped. While members of the expedition were scrambling to right the boat, Sacajawea calmly retrieved important instruments and books that were floating away. If not for her quick thinking, the expedition probably would have failed.
Sacajawea did not act as a guide for Lewis and Clark. She held the job of interpreter. She did tell Lewis and Clark to use a tributary of the Beaverhead River to reach the mountain home of the Shoshone, where they wanted to buy horses for the trip. On August 15, 1805 the expedition arrived at the village of Sacajawea's family. She was delighted to find her brother, Cameahwait, living there. He had inherited the position of chief upon their father's death.
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