Spring 1806
Dear Mr. Jefferson,
The journey was the Corps at its best. The journey was America at its best. The crew at its best! With the hard work of my hefty crew seeking adventure and the ocean. Morgan kept her animal discoveries, and plant discoveries along the trail, and joe presented us with animal discoveries and AMAZING animal photographs! Harrison not only wrote about gourmet meals, but brought the yummy foods in to try. Christina wrote about each and everyone of our birthdays along the trail. Sam, with his amazing poem talent, surprised us with animal discovery poems. Curtis was marking our crew on a map from every trail we went to. Chris and Cam were also chiefs, and cam also presented videos about our discoveries, as did Sarah! Michael also seeked in finding new animals and did so. Heather wrote about the Captains dog and really enjoyed the four-legged friendly pal, and I was very interested in fashion and the indians we came across.
P.S. for my weekly labors, discoveries...For all my endeavors I have brought to this journey, I believe I Should be paid the grade of an A.
sincerely,
Sophie
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
The peaceful Pacific!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Chinook Indians...
Dear Journal,
In late 1805, we began to make its way down the Columbia River after crossing the Rocky Mountains, we were told by the Nez Perce Indians that the Chinooks living down the river had a different culture and language than anything we had encountered. The Nez Perce chiefs also warned us of a rumor that the Chinooks intended to kill the Americans when the expedition arrived. I, however, commented, “as we are at all times & places on our guard, [we] are under no greater apprehention than is common.”
The Chinooks were accustomed to European goods and white traders, so their first encounters with us were peaceful. On October 26, 1805, two Chinook chiefs and several men came to our camp to offer gifts of deer meat and root bread cakes. We responded by presenting the chiefs with medals and the men with trinkets. Other Chinook villages along the banks of the river offered similar receptions to us as we approached the Pacific Ocain and the mouth of the Columbia River.
During these encounters, however, we struggled with what I termed “the protection of our Stores from thieft.” This became such a problem with the Chinooks in the area that we had to restrain some of the men from instigating fights with the Indians. As I noted, “it [is] necessary at this time to treat those people verry friendly & ingratiate our Selves with them, to insure us a kind & friendly reception on our return.”
Arikara indians
Dear Journal,
On October 8, 1804, we made contact with the Arikaras, and stayed with the tribe for five days. Relations between the crew and the Arikaras were warm. Arikara men wore buffalo robes, leggings and mocassins, and many warriors wielded guns that they had acquired in trade. Women were clad in fringed antelope dresses.
The Arikaras were primarily farmers. Their major crops were corn, beans and squash, but they also grew tobacco, watermelon and pumpkins. Some years, when crops did not grow in sufficient numbers, the Arikaras supplemented their food supply by hunting buffalo. Farm fields were owned by family groups, and women did the farming. The women used two simple yet effective tools to do their work: digging sticks fashioned from the shoulder blades of buffalo or deer, and rakes made by fastening reeds to a long handle.
More than anything else, York -- my slave -- occupied the minds of the Indians. The Arikaras had never seen a black man. York played with the children, and told them he was a wild creature who had been captured and tamed by me. The adults were so astonished by his presence that they believed he had special spiritual power. Because of this and his impressive size, they nicknamed him Big Medicine.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
The Shoshone indians...
Dear Journal,
On August 13, some Shoshone women gathering food a few miles from their village saw the crew drawing near. The scurried away in horror, but as an act of peace i put my gun down, and raised my arms. They soon appeared again, and were not afraid anymore, for i painted there faces with vermillion, read paint an act of peace. The principle chief, named Cameahwait (One Who Never Walks) welcomed us and we were given a place to stay, in a teepee. They provided food, shelter and water for our stay.
At camp, Cameahwait described tous the impassable rivers and shores ahead, confirming that no all-water route could take us through to the Pacific Ocean. We would have to traverse the daunting Bitterroot Mountains to continue the expedition. Communicating via a translation chain, the Shoshones and the captains had begun negotiating when a great coincidence occurred: Sacagawea, who was raised as a Shoshone but had been kidnapped years earlier by Hidatsas, recognized Cameahwait as her brother. After an emotional reunion, the negotiations proceeded and Cameahwait agreed to sell us the horses we needed.
Shoshone women wore long deerskin dresses with wide sleeves. Shoshone men wore breechcloths and leggings, as well as buckskin shirts when the weather was cool. Both men and women wore moccasins on their feet. A Shoshone lady's dress or warrior's shirt was fringed and often decorated with porcupine quills and beadwork.
Mandan tribe...
Dear Journal,
We reached the Mandan villages in the fall of 1804 and stayed the winter in Fort Mandan, across the river from Matootonha. n Mandan culture, the village was the focus of political, economic and ceremonial activity. It represented a collective of households, all striving together to better each family, clan and the village itself. A sacred cedar post stood at the center of the Mandan village, symbolizing the tribe’s primary cultural hero. The post was surrounded by an open plaza, and at the north end of the plaza was the village’s primary medicine lodge. Forty or fifty additional lodges populated the plaza. The more powerful a family was, or the more significant that family’s ceremonial duties were, the closer its lodge would be to the center. On average, 10 people lived in each lodge. Throughout most of the year, the Mandans lived in these permanent lodges. But in the winter, to avoid brutal storms, they constructed temporary lodges in wooded, low-lying areas adjacent to the river.
The Mandans supplied us with food throughout the winter at our newly constructed home, Fort Mandan, in exchange for a steady stream of trade goods. When food became scarce, members of the crew accompanied the Mandans on a buffalo hunt. Sheheke and Black Cat, chiefs from Matootonha and Roohaptee, met often with us and participated in a host of Mandan ceremonial rituals. As other tribes unfamiliar with black people had been before, the Mandans were mesmerized by the color of York’s skin, and attributed great spiritual power to him because of it.
Mandan women wore long deerskin dresses. Mandan men wore breechcloths with leather leggings and buckskin shirts. The Mandans wore moccasins on their feet, and in cold weather, they wore long buffalo-hide robes. A Mandan warrior's shirt was fringed and covered with beadwork, porcupine quills, and feathers; a lady's dress was often decorated with elk's teeth and cowrie shells.
The Nez Perce Indians...
Dear journal,
It was late september 1805 when we came across 2 stray Nez Perce Indians hiding in the tall prairie grass. They were very frightened, but we handed them a ribbon meaning peace and that we were friendly visiter's. The young boys led us to there village, but there were only women to greet for that men were out for about to weeks on a voyage. The kind women welcomed us right away and treated us with buffalo, dried salmon, and camas bread. It was divine! Soon the men arrived, and counciled with us, we traded our goods and they gave me wise guidence to the route ahead.
Nez Perce women wore long deerskin dresses. Nez Perce men wore breechcloths with leather leggings and buckskin shirts. Both men and women wore moccasins on their feet. A Nez Perce lady's dress or warrior's shirt was fringed and often decorated with beadwork, shells, and painted designs.
Our visit with the Sioux indians
Dear Journal,
We are now leaving the Teton Sioux tribe that we ad accompanied for three long days. The tribe was a hard one to please, and was unfriendly and aggressive! Teton men wore hawk feathers about their heads and robes over their bodies, while women dressed in buffalo skins and robes. I would describe the Teton with a very skinny appearance, very ill-looking and small. During the expedition’s stay, the Tetons held a number of celebrations – scalp dances – of a recent war victory over the rival Omahas. We could no speak Sioux so there were many misunderstandings through out our stay that caused arguments. So the Teton Sioux tribe is not one that we would want to see again!
Hunting with the suix tribe...
Dear journal,
Today in the winter of 1806 some of our men Chris, Joe, and Cam set out with the harsh suix men to hunt for dinner. It was no use, there was not one moving animal to be seen! It was a cold day and the suix trube was not the friendliest indians. 
Friday, May 1, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
Sorry guys my pictures wouldnt upload this week from my old fashion photoshoot, but they will be here shortly!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
missouri beaver
When: July 3, 1804
Where: Iatan, Platte County, Missouri; most abundantly mentioned in Three Forks, Montana.
Description: A very large, bulky rodent, with rounded head and small, rounded ears. Dark brown fur is fine and soft. Scaly tail large, black, horizontally flattened, and paddle-shaped. Length: 3–4 ft (0.9–1.2 m); tail: 11.8–17.5 in (30–44 cm). Weight: usually 44–60 lb (20–27 kg), but sometimes up to 86 lb (39 kg).
Habitat: Rivers, streams, marshes, lakes, and ponds.
Range: Most of Canada and U.S., except for most of Florida, much of Nevada, and southern California.
Note: Well adapted to its highly aquatic life, the beaver swims, using its webbed hind feet, at speeds up to 6 mph (10 km/h).
florida woodrat
When: May 31, 1804
Where: Below the mouth of the Osage River, Missouri.
Description: Grayish brown above; white or grayish below. Bicolored tail is less than half total length. Throat hairs gray at base. Length: 12–17 in (3–43 cm); tail: 5–8 in (12.7–20.3 cm). Weight: 7.1–16 oz (200–455 g).
Habitat: Rocky cliffs, caves, tumbled boulders in southern Illinois and elsewhere when available; Osage orange and other hedges and wooded low areas bellow south.
Range: Southern South Dakota and northern Nebraska; eastern Colorado; southern Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri; south through Oklahoma and eastern Texas; and southeastward through southern states to mid-peninsular Florida.
Note: The Florida woodrat was once combined with the Allegheny woodrat as a single species called the eastern woodrat.
Monday, April 13, 2009
the catfish
When: May 31, 1804
Where: Below the mouth of the Osage River, Missouri.
Description: Grayish brown above; white or grayish below. Bicolored tail is less than half total length. Throat hairs gray at base. Length: 12–17 in (3–43 cm); tail: 5–8 in (12.7–20.3 cm). Weight: 7.1–16 oz (200–455 g).
Habitat: Rocky cliffs, caves, tumbled boulders in southern Illinois and elsewhere when available; Osage orange and other hedges and wooded low areas bellow south.
Range: Southern South Dakota and northern Nebraska; eastern Colorado; southern Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri; south through Oklahoma and eastern Texas; and southeastward through southern states to mid-peninsular Florida.
Note: The Florida woodrat was once combined with the Allegheny woodrat as a single species called the eastern woodrat.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
"York"
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Getting to know my Squad..
I am about to head west with Capatin John and a very unique group of explorers:
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Dear Captain John...
