Guides: George Drouillard and Pierre Cruzatte
Not all interaction between Natives and Whites was antagonistic. Interracial relationships, usually between male Settlers and Native women, were common. The children of those couples could function in their father's world, but they more often preferred that of their mother. They could serve as bridges between the two worlds by being interpreters, scouts and guides. Without such men, early exploration of North America and trade between Natives and Whites would have been more difficult than it was. Yet, the contributions of these mixed-race individuals are often little known and overlooked. While Sacagawea has taken her rightful place in the history of the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806, few people outside of frontier buffs or local historians have heard of George Drouillard and Pierre Cruzatte. George Drouillard (1773-1810) was born of a Shawnee mother and a French-Canadian father. He learned how to read and write, was p...