xchanging of gifts, speeches given, Lewis firinga gun to impress the Indians, and a medal with Jefferson’s likeness etched being given tothe tribes. Each tribe was amazed or disappointed with the gifts. The Arikara andHidatsa tribes met along the Missouri River on the way to the Mandan Villages were twotribes pleased by the council. These two tribes were peaceful and did nothing to harmthe Corps. The Mandan Villages in present day North Dakota were reached in October of 1804. The Mandan were extremely helpful to expedition. A fort was given to the Corps as aplace to spend the upcoming winter, information on the upcoming land, and supplies forthe next leg of the journey were also supplied. Perhaps the most important thing coming from the Mandan Villages was the addition ofthe Charbonneau family to the expedition. Toussaint and Sacagawea were hired becauseof Sacagawea’s ability to translate Shoshone. Sacagawea was kidnapped from herShoshone tribe in what is now known as Montana and brought to the Mandan Villagewhere she married Toussaint Charbonneau. Later that winter Sacagawea gave birth to aboy named Jean Batiste adding one more member to the expedition. In April of 1805 the Corps set off again this time in canoes because the keelboat was toolarge to navigate the rivers. The keelboat was sent back to St. Louis with reports, letters,and maps written by Lewis and Clark. The Yellowstone and Musselshell Rivers werepassed on the way to a fork in the Missouri. Upon reaching the fork the Corps split into two groups headed by each captain andexplored each fork. The south fork ended up being the Missouri River. Reaching thefalls that would later be called the Great Falls, the Indians had told the Corps about thegroup was faced with another predicament, how to portage all there supplies around theGreat Falls. After almost a month all the supplies were transported around the GreatFalls and in July of 1804 the Corps...
