Busy port cities are a crucial part of the modern world, but there were similar places in years past as well. The Knife River area was an important trading and agricultural region inhabited by Native peoples for over 10,000 years. It was here that the Hidatsa resided in earthlodges and lived an agricultural lifestyle. The Mandans and Arikara later came to the area, and the three tribes started basic agriculture in the Northern Plains while also hunting and gathering.

In October 1804, the sixth month of the Lewis & Clark expedition, the Corps of Discovery reached the earthlodge villages of the Hidatsa and Mandan tribes along the Knife River. When the Corps encountered the Hidatsa, Sacagawea, a Lemhi Shoshone woman, was living in one of the Knife River Villages with her husband, Toussaint Charbonneau, a French-Canadian fur trader. Scholars believe a Hidatsa raiding party abducted her when she was a young girl. The Corps formed a strong bond with the tribes, which led to the establishment of nearby Fort Mandan. Recognizing her value as a guide, Lewis and Clark hired Charbonneau and Sacagawea, and they moved into the Corps’ fort during the winter of 1804 – 1805.

Today, the Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site provides opportunities to experience the traditions of the Northern Plains tribes.  Established in 1974, this site contains three villages: the Awatixa Xi’e, Awatixa, and Big Hidatsa.  The site has a museum, a full-scale earthlodge reconstruction, remains of earthlodge sites, miles of hiking trails, and access to both the Knife and Missouri Rivers.

Call (701) 745-3300 or visit http://www.nps.gov/knri/index.htm for more information concerning operating hours, directions, etc. View a short park video at http://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=293FC62F-A9F0-0DDC-946CFB626DDA4365.

Credits and Sources:

Content for this Next Exit History site sponsored by the Lewis & Clark Trail Heritage Foundation. For more information visit http://lewisandclark.org/.

 

National Park Service. Foundation Document: Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, North Dakota. National Park Service - U.S. Department of the       Interior, 2013.

National Park Service. “Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site.”  Accessed June 2014.  http://www.nps.gov/knri/index.htm.

National Park Service. Knife River Indian Villages: The Earthlodge. National Park Service - U.S. Department of the Interior.

 

National park Service. Lewis and Clark in North Dakota. National Park Service - U.S. Department of the Interior.

The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. “The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.”  Accessed June 2014. http://lewisandclarkjournals.unl.edu/index.html.