Rick Just
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Author
  • Speaker
  • Contact
  • Subscriptions
  • Heroes & Villains

The Controversies about "Bird Woman"

12/3/2018

Comments

 
​This is Charles Russell’s 1918 painting, Lewis and Clark Reach Shoshone Camp Led by Sacajawea the "Bird Woman." By calling her “Bird Woman,” Russell was using a popular definition of her name which assumes it came from the Hidatsa, though he spelled it the Shoshone way. She was Shoshone, so if she was allowed to keep her given name when she was captured, it would translate to something like “boat launcher” or “boat puller.”
 
In the journals of the Expedition the name is spelled seven different ways, but all using the hard “g.” Clark once explained that Indian words in the journal would be spelled “to make every letter sound.” So, Sacagawea, is widely accepted, though in Idaho, you’ll often see it as Sacajawea, because that’s how her people would have pronounced it.
 
Sacajawea, or Sacagawea, was about 12 when she was captured by the Hidatsa in 1800. It’s often mistakenly understood that she guided the Lewis and Clark Expedition. On its face this is highly suspect. She had a 12-year-old’s memory of her home territory and had never been to many of the places the Expedition travelled. It was a Western Shoshone chief that guided them on the latter part of their journey. They called him “Toby” because, really, who can pronounce Tuziyammo?
                  
That is not to downplay Sacajawea’s role on the expedition. She was a critical member who may have saved them more than once simply because she and her infant son were travelling with them, signaling that this was not a war party.
 
But that’s all a sideroad. Back to the painting.
 
The Russell depiction captures an important moment in the story of Lewis and Clark. Sacajawea’s brother, Cameawait, is shown as he affectionately embraces his sister. The meeting took place near the Lemhi River in what would become Idaho. The Corps of Discovery was able to trade with the Shoshone for horses that would allow them to double back into present-day Montana, then cross into Idaho again along the Lolo Trail.
 
Sacajawea would travel the whole route with the Corps of Discovery, ending up back at the Hidatsa-Mandan village where she had begun the journey. Her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau was adopted by William Clark after Sacajawea’s death in 1812 at about age 25. “Pomp,” as Clark called him, went on to live a rich and adventurous life. A daughter, Lisette, was born to Sacajawea shortly before the woman’s death. She, too, was adopted by Clark, though Lisette seems to have dropped out of the history books shortly after.
 
Like her name, there is also a controversy about Sacajawea’s death. Some historians believe she lived most of her life on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming, where she died in 1884. This stems from confusion caused by a report written about the death of Toussaint Charbonneau’s wife, who was not referred to by name. The Frenchman had a couple of wives, so…
​
We’ll live the question of her death for today, and just enjoy the painting. Two siblings at the moment of the their reuniting, frozen in history by an artist who brought it to life through his imagination.
Picture
Speaking of Idaho history posts are copyright © 2020 by Rick Just. Sharing is encouraged. If you don’t find a button that lets you do that, find the post on Speaking of Idaho. If you’re missing my daily posts, select the RSS button, or select See it First under the Facebook Following tab.
Comments
    Picture
    The first book in the Speaking of Idaho series is out. Ask for it at your local Idaho bookstore, find it on Amazon, or, if you want a signed copy, click the button.
    Picture
    The second book in the Speaking of Idaho series is out. Ask for it at your local Idaho bookstore, find it on Amazon, or, if you want a signed copy, click the button.
    Picture
    Rick's book about Fearless Farris is available on Amazon! Click the picture above to be taken to Amazon. If you'd like an autographed copy, click the button below.

    Author, Speaker

    Rick Just has been writing about Idaho history since 1989 when he wrote and recorded scripts for the Idaho Centennial Commission’s daily radio program, Idaho Snapshots. One of his Idaho books explores the history of Idaho's state parks: Images of America, Idaho State Parks. Rick also writes a regular column for Boise Weekly.

    Rick does public presentations on Idaho's state park history and the history of the Morrisite war for the Idaho Humanities Council's Speakers Bureau.idahohumanities.org/programs/inquiring-idaho/
    ​


    Check out Rick's history of Idaho State Parks.

    The audio link below is to Rick's Story Story Night set called "Someplace Not Firth"

    RSS Feed

Speaking of Idaho history posts are copyright © 2025 by Rick Just. Sharing is encouraged. If you’re missing my daily posts, select the RSS button, or select See it First under the Facebook Following tab.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. That means if you follow a link (generally to a book) from my page to an Amazon page, I get a tiny percentage of any purchase you may make.