Pierre Cruzatte
Pierre Cruzatte was a one-eyed French-Canadian boatman and fiddle player who served as the Corps of Discovery's principal waterman on the Missouri River and the expedition's musician. His expertise navigating the treacherous Missouri River currents was critical to the expedition's progress, and his fiddle playing provided entertainment and helped establish friendly relations with Native peoples during councils and celebrations. Cruzatte is also notable for accidentally shooting Meriwether Lewis in the buttock during a hunting excursion on August 11, 1806, near the end of the return journey.
Biography
Pierre Cruzatte (c. 1770-c. 1828) was a one-eyed French-Canadian boatman who served as the expedition’s chief waterman and fiddle player. Despite his visual impairment, Cruzatte was an expert riverman whose knowledge of the Missouri proved invaluable.
Cruzatte’s French-Omaha heritage and fluency in the Omaha language made him an important interpreter during encounters with Missouri River tribes. His fiddle playing was a constant source of morale for the party — the captains frequently ordered him to play for both their own men and for Native audiences, where dancing became a form of cross-cultural communication.
Cruzatte is perhaps best remembered for accidentally shooting Lewis in the left buttock during an elk hunt on August 11, 1806, near the end of the return journey. Cruzatte denied responsibility, but Lewis found a ball matching Cruzatte’s short rifle in his own leggings. Lewis attributed the accident to Cruzatte’s poor eyesight.
After the expedition, Cruzatte disappeared from the historical record. He likely returned to the fur trade on the Missouri River.
