History

The expedition of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark marked a milestone in the expansion of the United States. In one section of their extensive journals, Lewis and Clark outlined A Winter with the Mandans. This journal section proves crucial to understanding how Lewis and Clark developed diplomacy among the Native Americans and maintains historical significance related to the geographical, cultural, and political development of the United States.

Prior to the beginning of Lewis and Clarks travels, President Thomas Jefferson long considered sending a crew to explore the Missouri River and then move on to the Pacific. Thomas Jefferson was not the only one with his eyes beyond the Missouri. British explorer Alexander Mackenzie published a text outlining potential British exploration and settlement of the western frontier. To gain a step ahead of the perceived competition, Jefferson decided to expedite his original interest in the West and commissioned the expedition of Lewis and Clark. Even though some European groups had established trading relationships with the Native Americans in the West, none had made any official claims. Thus, Native Americans retained political dominance over the land. Jefferson wanted to be the first to make a claim, so the purpose of the Lewis and Clark mission was to proclaim American sovereignty over the area, prepare the way for American commerce with the tribes, and gather as much information as possible about the new land and the many Indian peoples who inhabited it.                      
By the winter of 1804 and 1805, Lewis and Clark had already run into some diplomatic trouble with Native Americans, and they still had a lot to learn if the expedition was to navigate successfully the turbulent waters of inter-and intratribal politics. A winter in the Mandan villages provided an invaluable crash-course. On October 27, 1804 Lewis and Clark reached the Mandan villages along the Missouri River. They depended on the Mandans for shelter during the harsh winter weather. Both Lewis and Clark recorded their experiences meeting and building relationships with Mandan chiefs. One of their most helpful interpreters was Sacagawea, who was married to a French trader Toussaint Charbonneau. As Lewis and Clark continued their journey throughout the West, Sacagawea was instrumental in interpreting the diplomatic intentions of Lewis and Clark to tribes. On April 7th, 1805, after learning about the cultures of the Mandans and neighboring tribes and assembling a crew of able interpreters, Lewis and Clark continued their journey.

A Winter with the Mandans has significance to the Atlantic World for a number of reasons. From a geographical standpoint, Lewis and Clarks account gave specific conditions of the terrain and climate of an area unknown to the United States government. This text also shows the intersection of Native American and non-Native American cultures. The particular missions of Lewis and Clark marked a change in political relations between sovereign Native American nations and the United States government. Another reason why Lewis and Clarks chronicle of their winter with the Mandans is important lies in its historical and cultural documentation concerning specific Native American groups.