In 1804, Lewis and Clark hired Toussaint Charbonneau and his Shoshone wife, Sacagawea, to assist in an exploration of the Mississippi and territory to its west.

In 1801, as Thomas Jefferson became the 3rd President of the United States, the western boundary of the young country was the Mississippi River. Jefferson decided that it was important to explore the frontier beyond this boundary, and to this end, he tasked his personal secretary Meriwether Lewis to set out on an exploration of the area. Lewis’ former army comrade William Clark joined in the planning of the expedition, and by May 1804, they set out. By this point, the territory they were about to explore had become a part of the United States, as Jefferson and France’s Napoleon had negotiated the "Louisiana Purchase" the previous summer. With the stroke of a pen and for the cost of $15 million, Thomas Jefferson had doubled the size of the United States. For a mere 3¢ an acre, the United States had acquired the land that would one day become Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, North Dakota, Texas, South Dakota, New Mexico, Nebraska, Kansas, Wyoming, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Colorado and Montana.

On November 4th, 1804, Lewis and Clark hired a French trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau to serve as an interpreter. With him was someone who would go on to become one of the most important figures in the journey, the Shoshone Indian woman named Sacagawea. Sacagawea and her baby, nicknamed Pomp, are immortalized on a dollar coin minted by the U.S. Treasury. The journey of Lewis and Clark was considered an eminent success, providing the government with invaluable information about its new territorial acquisition.

Xpeditions
In Lewis and Clark: Same Place, Different Perspectives (3-5), students write about several encounters between the Lewis and Clark expedition and various Native American groups from the viewpoint of either an expedition member or one of the Native Americans.

Through Lewis and Clark: Native American Contributions (6-8), students learn about specific instances in which Native Americans helped the Lewis and Clark expedition overcome obstacles. The expedition faced many difficult challenges, due primarily to the group's lack of knowledge about the geography of the area through which they traveled. This lesson helps students understand that, in large measure, the expedition succeeded because Native Americans generously shared their knowledge and resources.

Lewis and Clark: Building a Lasting Legacy (3-5) helps students understand the significant contributions made by Native Americans and other team members during the Lewis and Clark expedition. A good follow-up to a study on Lewis and Clark, this lesson has students draw or make a diorama that focuses on the geographic perspective of the expedition.

In Lewis and Clark: A Legacy to Remember (6-8), students review the impact Lewis and Clark's successful journey had on exploration, trade and geographic study in North America. Students design a memorial to illustrate the legacy of that expedition from a geographic perspective.

EconEdLink
In Lewis and Clark Barter with the Native Americans (6-8), students learn about the concept of barter as they study the techniques Lewis and Clark used to secure supplies they needed by trading other items with the Native Americans along the way.

Students learn about the creation of a Sacagawea golden dollar in The Return of Sacagawea (6-8). In the lesson, students learn about advantages of coin money over paper money and compare the Sacagawea coin to the Susan B. Anthony dollar.