This well-documented historical account provides background to the forerunners of Lewis and Clark, highlighting the role of earlier French-Canadian explorers and fur traders. It re-creates the world of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, chronicling the relationship between Lewis and Clark and their French-Canadian guides, recounting the crucial hospitality of the Native American people they encountered, and showing how, without both groups, the expedition would not have succeeded. The French-Canadian guide Toussaint Charbonneau is introduced, along with his young Shoshone wife, the legendary Sacagawea, who endeared herself to Clark for her determination and helpfulness. Detailed archival maps, photographs, paintings, and a complete bibliography are included.