Sacagawea by William R. Sanford

Author:William R. Sanford [Sanford, William R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-4645-1003-8
Publisher: Enslow Publishers, Inc.
Published: 2013-04-25T04:00:00+00:00

Image Credit: Keith Crowley / © 2011 Photos.com, a division of Getty Images

To escape the rains that pelted the Corps of Discovery when it reached the Pacific Coast, the men built Fort Clatsop. Sacagawea, Charbonneau, and Pomp were given their own room. This photo shows a reconstruction of the stockade and log walls

The constant rain shrouded the fort in gloom. The men suffered from colds, flu, boils, and lumbago. Fleas infested the camp. Sentries stood guard to keep the Chinook from stealing tools and supplies. Lewis and Clark preferred the Clatsop. Sacagawea spoke in sign language to Chief Comowoll when he came to trade.

On January 5, the Clatsop brought news of a beached whale. As Clark made plans to visit the site, Sacagawea asked for a favor. Lewis reported her request in these words: “The poor woman stated … that she had traveled a great way with us to see the great water, yet she had never been down to the coast. Now that this monstrous fish was also to be seen, it seemed hard that she should be permitted to see neither the ocean nor the whale.”

Two days later, Sacagawea stood on a bluff above the Pacific. The “great water” looked as though it stretched to the edge of the world. She lifted eleven-month-old Pomp so he could see waves crash on the sand. By that time, the Clatsop had stripped the great “fish” of blubber. When Sacagawea reached the beach, she marveled at the immense bones. Clark measured the whale’s length at 105 feet.

As the weeks passed, hopes of meeting a supply ship died. Lewis and Clark worked on their notes and planned the return trip. Lewis traded his gold-laced coat for a canoe. As a good-bye gift, the captains gave Fort Clatsop to Chief Comowoll.

The skies finally cleared at midday on March 23, 1806. Sacagawea took a seat in one of the canoes. The dug-outs moved slowly up the river as the men bent to their paddles.

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