Why did Lewis and Clark pick Sacagawea?

Answer 1

Lewis and Clark met Charbonneau and quickly hired him to serve as interpreter on their expedition. Even though she was pregnant with her first child, Sacagawea was chosen to accompany them on their mission. Lewis and Clark believed that her knowledge of the Shoshone language would help them later in their journey.

Answer 2

Actually, Lewis and Clark to not ask Sacajawea to join them. They had asked her husband, Toussaint Charbonneau to interpret Hidatsa for them. At first Sacajwea only tagged along, but she proved to be more useful than her husband. She spoke Shoshone and Hidatsa very well and earned much respect from Lewis and Clark. Despite this though, Toussaint was helpful when the expedition encountered French trappers from Canada. He served as a cook and his skill in striking a bargain came in handy.

Answer 3

Lewis and Clark did not directly pick Sacagawea to be their guide. It was her husband Toussaint Charbonneau who was invited and hired by Lewis and Clark as an interpreter, and Sacagawea would at first only serve as a companion. However, her skills in interpretation proved superior to her husband's, and Lewis and Clark were impressed. She could speak French, Hidatsa and Shoshone very well. She was also very calm and level-headed in many instances, whereas her husband would often panic so Lewis and Clark learned to trust her guidance more than his.

She became invaluable as a guide in the region of her birth, near the Three Forks of the Missouri, and as a interpreter between the expedition and her tribe when the expedition reached that area. After she gave birth during the expedition to Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau on February 11, 1805 she also quieted the fears of other Native Americans, for no war party traveled with a woman and a small baby.