Jean Baptiste Charbonneau | |
|---|---|
 Memorial to Charbonneau at Fort Washakie | |
| Born | February 11, 1805 Fort Mandan, present-day Washburn, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Died | May 16, 1866 (aged 61) |
| Resting place | Jordan Valley Hamlet Cemetery, Danner, Oregon, U.S. 42°58′58″N 117°03′17″W / 42.982647°N 117.0547225°W |
| Other names | Jean, Pompey ("Pomp" or "Little Pomp") |
| Known for | Accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition as an infant |
| Parent(s) | Sacagawea Toussaint Charbonneau |
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau (February 11, 1805 – May 16, 1866), sometimes known in childhood as Pompey or Little Pomp, was a Lemhi Shoshone-French Canadian explorer, guide, fur trapper, trader, military scout during the Mexican–American War, alcalde (mayor) of Mission San Luis Rey de Francia and a gold digger and hotel operator in Northern California. His mother was Sacagawea, a Shoshone who worked as a guide and interpreter for the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Charbonneau spoke French and English and learned German and Spanish during his six years in Europe from 1823 to 1829. He spoke Shoshone and other western Native American languages, which he picked up during his years of trapping and guiding.[citation needed]
Jean Baptiste's father was also a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition, a French Canadian explorer and trader named Toussaint Charbonneau. Jean Baptiste was born at Fort Mandan in North Dakota. In his early childhood, he accompanied his parents as they traveled across the country. The expedition co-leader William Clark nicknamed the boy Pompey ("Pomp" or "Little Pomp"). After the death of his mother, he lived with Clark in St. Louis, Missouri, where he attended St. Louis Academy. Clark paid for his education. Sacagawea and Toussaint Charbonneau also had a second child, a daughter named Lizette Charbonneau; however, because she receives only occasional mention in Clark's papers, her life remains unclear beyond her third birthday.[1]
Jean Baptiste and Sacagawea appear on the United States Sacagawea dollar coin. He is the second child depicted on United States currency. Pompeys Pillar on the Yellowstone River in Montana and the community of Charbonneau, Oregon are named for him.[2]
- ^ Colby, Susan M. (Oct 22, 2014). Sacagawea's Child: The Life and Times of Jean-Baptiste (Pomp) Charbonneau. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 9780806185415. Retrieved 2022-09-11.
- ^ McArthur, Lewis A; Lewis L. McArthur (2003) [1928], Oregon Geographic Names (seventh ed.), Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society Press, p. 190, ISBN 0-87595-277-1