Latest news with #Sacagawea
New York Times
23-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
What if Everything We Know About Sacagawea Is Wrong?
In a conference room in the middle of the Great Plains, 50 people gathered to correct what they saw as a grave error in the historical record. It was July 16, 2015, on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota, not too far upstream from the camp on the Missouri River where Meriwether Lewis and William Clark first met Sacagawea, the teenage girl who would accompany them to the Pacific Ocean and back. The story of that journey has been told many times: in the journals that Lewis and Clark kept; in more than a century of academic histories; and in countless more fanciful works that have turned the expedition, and Sacagawea's supposed role as guide to the Americans, into one of the country's foundational myths. The people in the conference room, members of three closely related tribes, the Mandans, the Hidatsas and the Arikaras, thought basically all of it was nonsense. Jerome Dancing Bull, a Hidatsa elder, took the microphone first. The day was warm enough that someone had propped the door open to the outside; the sun was blindingly bright, the prairie a labrador's scruff in the distance. 'They got it all wrong!' he told the people in the room, referring to the bare-bones, truncated life sketched out for Sacagawea by Lewis and Clark and the historians who followed them. In that telling, Sacagawea was born a member of the Shoshone tribe in present-day Idaho, was kidnapped by the Hidatsa as a child, spent most of 1805 and 1806 with the expedition and died in 1812, while she was still in her 20s. The Hidatsas insist that she was a member of their tribe all along and died more than 50 years later, in 1869. And not of old age, either: She was shot to death. History has always been a process; it has also long attracted partisans who insist that its judgments should be frozen in time. In March, the Trump administration released an executive order with the title 'Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,' which condemned the 'widespread effort to rewrite history' and called for 'solemn and uplifting public monuments.' It was a timeworn complaint turned into a wanton threat: Mess with our national symbols, and we'll pull your funding. Sacagawea long ago left the realm of the apolitical dead. Over the years, she has been pressed into service as an avatar of patient humility or assertive feminism, of American expansionism or Indigenous rights, of Jeffersonian derring-do or native wisdom. Her face is on U.S. currency, her name has been affixed to a caldera on Venus and there are statues of her spread throughout the nation, each incarnation seeming to pull her further out of context. The Trump administration has said it wants to include a sculpture of her in a planned National Garden of American Heroes, effectively claiming her as an honorary citizen — though to the federal government at the time, she was closer to being an alien enemy. 'The Hidatsas' portrait of Sacagawea is both richer and more ambiguous than the one found in standard histories.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Scottish Sun
22-06-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Top nine rarest and most valuable foreign coins you might find on your summer holiday worth up to £275k
We reveal below how you can sell one of the coins if it turns up in your spare change CASH IT IN Top nine rarest and most valuable foreign coins you might find on your summer holiday worth up to £275k Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) YOU could end up back home with more than a tan after your summer holiday this year. Find a rare foreign coin in your spare change and you might fetch thousands or potentially hundreds of thousands of pounds for it. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 10 Gregory Edmund, from Spink and Son, has revealed nine rare foreign coins Credit: Spink and Son But don't know what you're looking for? Gregory Edmund, senior coin specialist at auction house Spink and Son, has revealed the top nine you need to look out for, and how much they're worth. He told The Sun: "Whilst coin use is rapidly in decline around the world, the age-old pastime of checking your change is as exciting as it has ever been. "With some of the world's most celebrated coin rarities resulting from unexpected discoveries in people's pockets from America to Italy and the Isle of Man to Australia, you may well just find something that will cover your getaway and then some." Of course, you're never guaranteed to be quids in - but it's still worth keeping an eye on your holiday change. Just remember any coin is only worth how much someone else is willing to pay for it. US and Canadian coins West Point Quarter - £14.75 10 The West Point Quarter was first put into circulation in 2019 and 2020 Credit: Spink and Son Over 20million West Point quarters ($0.25) were struck and put into general circulation by the Federal Mint in 2019 and 2020. The Federal Mint is the body that makes coins in the US, like the Royal Mint in the UK. But those that come with a "W" mint mark behind George Washington's head on the obverse side of the coin can be worth up to $20 (£14.75). Meanwhile, sets of 10 of these coins can sell for as much as $250 (£184.45). 1955 Cent - Doubled Die Obverse - £17,712 10 The Doubled Die 1955 cent coin can be worth thousands of pounds Credit: Spink and Son The 1955 Cent Doubled Die Obverse coin was first struck in 1955. But an error in the manufacturing process led to some of the one cents showing a doubling of the date and wording on the head's side. The error is known in collector circles as a "doubled die". Despite the coin's face value only being one cent, it has been known to sell for up to $24,000 (£17,712) in auctions previously. US 'Cheerios' 2000 Sacagawea Dollar - £22,070 10 The 2000 "Sacagawea" dollar coin comes with the lettering "In God We Trust" on one side Credit: Spink and Son In 2000, "Sacagawea" dollar coins were struck and put into circulation as part of a marketing promotion with cereal company General Mills. The pieces were added to boxes of Cheerios cereal. However, in 2005 it was discovered that around 5,500 of the coins were early strikes with "experimental" tail feathers on one side, different to those ultimately issued for general circulation. One of the coins has been known to sell for $30,000 (£22,175) previously. 1943 Copper Cent - £275,182 10 Find the 1943 Copper Cent coin in your change and it could sell for almost £300,000 Credit: Spink and Son Branded the "Holy Grail" of rare circulated coins, the 1943 "Wheat Cent" is worth a small fortune. The coin was originally designed to be made out of steel, but around 40 were struck on copper blanks for the Federal Mints in Philadelphia, San Francisco and Denver. Since their release, some have turned up in cafeterias and bubblegum machines. One of the coins was previously priced at $500 (£369.86) but the record sale for one of these pieces is a staggering $372,000 (£275,182). 2000 P25 Cents - £18,500 10 This Canadian coin is worth upwards of £18,500 Credit: Spink and Son The 2000 Canadian nickel-plated "P" Caribou coin has been known to sell for as much as $25,000 (£18,500). Only around three to five of these coins were put into circulation due to their unique P lettering underneath Queen Elizabeth's head. This is instead of the standard mint mark applied to the vast majority of these coins. Europe Italy, One Cent / Two Cent, 2002 'Mole Antonelliana' Error – £1,278 - £1,705 10 This Italian Euro coin could be worth a hefty sum if you sell it on Credit: Spink and Son A rare Euro coin might crop up in your spare change on holiday to Italy this summer. As the Euro coin first came into production in 2002, a small number of two cent pieces were struck with a one cent head's side. Only around 7,000 of these were struck before the mistake was spotted. Some of these coins have sold for up to €2,000 (£1,705) previously. Monaco, 2007 'Grace Kelly' 2 Euros – £1,279 10 This €2 coin is worth £1,279 Credit: Spink and Son Monaco released around 20,000 special two euro coins to commemorate Princess Grace Kelly's death in 2007. But because so few of them were entered into general circulation, they have been known to sell for big sums. One previously sold for as much as €2,000 (£1,706). Isle of Man Tosha Cat £2 - £200 10 This coin could end up in your spare change even in the UK Credit: Spink and Son Take a trip to the Isle of Man and you might stumble across this rare £2 piece. The Tosha Cat coin was struck in 2011 to mark the Commonwealth Youth Games being held on the island for the first time. It has been known to sell for upwards of £200 on eBay before so is well worth looking out for in your spare change. It may even turn up in your spare change in the UK too, because the Isle of Man £2 coin is the same size and specifications as mainland British currency. Australia "Mob of Roos" Dollar Coin - £4,819 10 This Aussie coin features a herd of kangaroos Credit: Spink and Son In 1992, the Australian government reported striking 8,000 Dollar coins featuring five kangaroos on the tails side. However, these pieces never actually surfaced with mintage records believed to be wrong. It is thought only one of this type of coin has ever surfaced making it worth a hefty amount. The last time this unique coin sold was for more than AU$10,000 (£4,819). How to sell a rare coin You've got three main options: in auction, on eBay or on Facebook Marketplace. The safest way to sell a rare coin is more than likely at auction. If you are selling on eBay, make sure you list the coin's price accurately. You can do this by checking how much other sellers have sold the same piece for. Finally, you can sell on Facebook Marketplace, but be wary of scammers trying to get you to transfer money to dodgy accounts. It can be easier to meet buyers in person and get cash for your coin, but only in daylight and in a public place. In any case, if you're selling on eBay or Facebook, decent pictures will help the coin sell for the best price. Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
National Geographic
29-05-2025
- National Geographic
Who was Sacagawea? Here's the real story of her critical role in U.S. exploration
Often remembered merely for guiding Lewis and Clark, Sacagawea's story is far more complex. Discover the deeper story behind the life of this Shoshone woman—beyond the expedition. Explorer Sacagawea stares into the distance while Jean Baptiste Charbonneau sleeps soundly on her back. She was vital to the Lewis and Clark Expedition after the Louisiana Purchase. Photograph by ZUMA Press, Inc, Alamy Stock Photo Of all the figures that emerged from the American West, none may be so wrapped in mythology as Sacagawea. When she joined Meriwether Lewis and William Clark's infamous expedition west, she was just a teenager and a new mother. However, Sacagawea emerged as an icon of the New World. Today, her name is synonymous with a period characterized by rapid westward expansion at the great expense of the Tribal Nations who stewarded the land since time immemorial. Though her brief life burns brightly in the American consciousness, here's what is known about the young Native American woman who accompanied the famed explorers on the journey that would change America forever. Who was Sacagawea? It's estimated that Sacagawea was born in the late 1780s, however, not much is known of her early life before she met Lewis and Clark at age 16. As a citizen of the Lemhi Shoshone Tribe, Sacagawea would have grown up in what is now Idaho, along the Salmon River. In Sacagawea: A Biography, historian and author April Summitt writes that the Lemhi Shoshone people subsisted on the salmon abundant in its waters. As a young woman, she would have contributed to the daily tasks essential for survival: preparing and drying fish, curing animal skins, harvesting wild berries, seeds and root vegetables, and even building shelter. Sacagawea's life changed forever when she was abducted at around 10 years old. As the Lemhi Shoshone were camped near what is now Three Forks, Montana, the Hidatsa Tribe attacked. The conflict culminated in the capture of a group of young Shoshone women, including Sacagawea. The captives were taken to the Hidatsa villages near what is now Bismarck, North Dakota. Sacagawea lived as a captive of the Hidatsa for three years until she married a 38-year-old French Canadian fur trader, Toussaint Charbonneau, who lived among the tribe. Sacagawea's forced marriage Charbonneau was already married to another Shoshone woman when he took Sacagawea as his wife in 1804. Historical accounts offer a dark glimpse of the man with whom Sacagawea would spend much of her young life. In 1795 while working for fur trading business, North West Company, he was discovered raping a young Indian woman, according to journal's kept by the company's clerk. Not much is known about how their marriage came to be. However, we do know that Sacagawea had little agency over her fate. A 2002 Los Angeles Times article reported that Charbonneau "won" her as his wife in a gambling bet. Others say he bought her in exchange for goods. In Sacagawea: A Biography, historian and author April Summitt writes that Charbonneau likely exchanged horses or other goods with the Hidatsa for Sacagawea's hand. Others point to the union as a means of forging an alliance between Native communities and settlers. Historically, matrimony between Native women and a European man was not one of romance. For European men in the fur trade, marrying into a Tribal Nation meant gaining insider status in what could otherwise be a hostile relationship. A Native wife could interpret for their husbands and tribes, forge deals and alliances, and open access to trade routes. For tribes, those alliances might keep them safe from destruction at the hands of colonizers or offer political mobility in a swiftly changing world. Debra Magpie Earling, a member of the Bitterroot Salish tribe and author of The Lost Journals of Sacagawea, a fictionalized account of Sacagawea's life based on historical documents, emphasizes that the reality of the arraignment was likely more sinister. 'There are some historians who claim that Sacagawea was sold, that Charbonneau was trying to sell Sacagawea to other men,' Earling said. The Louisiana Purchase's influence on Indigenous life Sacagawea's life took place against the backdrop of a quickly evolving geopolitical landscape brought on by the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The largest land deal in American history, the United States doubled in size when it purchased 820,000 square miles from France—a swath of land that would become 15 states spanning from Louisiana to Montana. The Louisiana Purchase also opened the West to a deluge of settlers spurred on by Manifest Destiny—the belief that it was their divine right to expand America beyond the vein of the Mississippi River. Settlers and indigenous tribe's clashed, the former fought for what they thought was divinely theirs, and the latter held their ground to protect their homeland and lifeways. In just a few decades, the Native tribes that stewarded western land would be forced to the confines of reservations created by the U.S. government and subject to sanctimoniously cruel campaigns to rid the country of their peoples and memory. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 saw the U.S. military forcefully marching Native people great distances away from their homelands, resulting in the deaths of thousands by starvation, disease, and exposure. (Read more on how North America's Native nations are reasserting their sovereignty.) As settlers displaced Native communities, Sacagawea's fortunes changed. In November 1804, while she was six months pregnant with her first child, Lewis and Clark arrived at the Hidasta settlement to wait out the winter. President Thomas Jefferson had commissioned the two men to lead an expedition into America's vast new territory acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. The expedition aimed to survey the land, forge relationships with various tribes, and collect information about new species of plants and animals. Lewis and Clark recruited Charbonneau to their expedition, dubbed The Corps of Discovery, for his ability to speak French and some Hidatsa. The journey would span from the northern plains of modern-day North Dakota, through the Rocky Mountains and to the Pacific Ocean. The fur trader's young wife quickly piqued their interest. Sacagawea was fluent in both Hidasta and Shoshone, an indispensable asset to a team of explorers venturing into Native American territories where language barriers could impede relations and even lead to deadly violence. Sacagawea, a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, is retrieving supplies after one of the boats keeled over. Sacagawea was vital to the expedition as she translated and guided the group from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Coast. Painting by Rob Wood, Wood Ronsaville Harlin, Inc. USA, Bridgeman Images Sacagawea's influence in the Lewis and Clark expedition On April 7, 1805, two months after giving birth to her son Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, Sacagawea, her new baby, and her husband began the journey west with Lewis and Clark. She was the youngest member and only woman in the group, carrying her baby on a cradleboard on her back, in her culture's tradition. While Lewis and Clark's journals mention Sacagawea less than two dozen times, many entries contain clues that may tell us what her life was like on the journey. In an entry on August 14, 1805, Clark wrote that Charbonneau struck her during dinner, for which he was reprimanded. At times, she and her baby slept in Lewis and Clark's tent. A month into the journey, the explorers were canoeing down a tributary of the Missouri River when the boats capsized, spilling people and supplies into the roaring waters. Sacagawea remained calm while gathering essential papers, books, instruments, medicines, and provisions that would have otherwise been lost to the river. The act inspired Lewis and Clark to name the river after her. Sacagawea's language skills proved essential when it came time for the expedition to negotiate the purchase of horses from a group of Shoshone near the Lemhi Pass in modern-day Idaho. While discussing the purchase with the group's leader, she discovered it was, in fact, her brother, Cameahwait. Clark wrote in his journal that the reunion was clearly emotional, and the typically stoic young Shoshone woman expressed joy upon meeting her long-lost brother. Sacagawea used knowledge culled from her Native culture to the benefit of the group, harvesting edible plants for food and medicinal purposes and making clothing and footwear. She also read the landmarks in the vast landscape, advising the party on the best route to return east. Her contributions elevated her status in the group. By the time the voyage reached the Pacific Coast in November 1805, she was allowed agency that was otherwise not afforded to a woman. The captains allowed her to join a scouting party to see the remains of a whale beached on the shore and Clark's journals note that she even had a vote when it came time to decide where to set up camp to wait out the winter. While the captains ultimately chose not to settle in the area she suggested—where wapato, or root vegetables, were plentiful—casting her vote as a lone woman among men would later inspire the women's suffrage movement to adopt her as a symbol. Upon returning to the Hidatsa settlement in August 1806, Charbonneau was paid $500.33 and 320 acres of land for his role in the expedition. Sacagawea received no compensation from Lewis and Clark. Little is known about Sacagawea's life after the expedition. In 1811, Sacagawea and Charbonneau took Clark up on his offer to oversee their son's education in St. Louis, after the explorer was appointed the superintendent of Indian Affairs. Meanwhile, the couple worked for the Missouri Fur Company, and it's believed Sacagawea gave birth to a girl named Lisette in 1812. Records point to Sacagawea's death from illness later that year; but that might not be the end of her story. In 1925, the U.S. government directed Sioux physician Charles Eastman to seek out where Sacagawea was buried so a monument could be erected in her honor. After interviewing tribes in North Dakota and Wyoming, he came to believe that she left Charbonneau to marry into the Comanche tribe, and lived a long life well into her 80s, passing away in 1884. Sacagawea's legacy in the United States Today, Sacagawea's image is immortalized on the U.S. Golden Dollar coin, with her face peering over her shoulder as her baby is nestled safely against her back. First issued in the year 2000, the coin sought to honor her contributions to American history and was created in collaboration with Native American communities. The image seeks to remind us of the tenacity of the young Native woman as an explorer in her own right, and her strength as a mother. From the waters from which she saved crucial records and supplies to Sacagawea Peak in Oregon, her impact on the country is remembered. An effigy in Salmon, Idaho—the homeland of her people—also stands in her honor. "I think America has told itself this tale, made this myth of this young Indian woman who came along and helped the explorers as a false justification for the stealing of native lands," Earling said. "She isn't mentioned very much [in Lewis and Clark's journals], but her presence is so powerful.' As Clark noted in a letter after the expedition, Sacagawea deserved "a greater reward for her attention and services ... than we had in our power to give her."
