I came across this roadside monument while driving from Salmon, Idaho to Missoula, Montana. It was situated on the west side of the road in the small town of North Fork (by the intersection of U.S. Highway 93 and the Salmon River Road). Besides being very beautiful, the area is know for its ties with the Lewis and Clark expedition, who traveled through here more than 200 years ago on their journey to the Pacific Ocean.
Being curious, I stopped to see what this monument was commemorating. As you can see it is an acknowledgement of “Old Toby”. As someone who lives close to Lewis and Clark country and who has always been fascinated by their story, I was not familiar with Old Toby and needed to do a little research about him. This is what I learned:
Old Toby was a Western Shoshone man who served as a key guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805. His given Shoshone name was Pikee Queenah, meaning “Swooping Eagle.” The name “Toby” appears in the expedition journals and may have been derived from a Shoshone phrase (Tosa-tive koo-be) roughly meaning “gave brains to the white man,” referring to the knowledge he imparted as a guide (an explanation I like!). He lived in what is now eastern Idaho.
In August 1805, after the Lewis and Clark Corps met the Shoshones and obtained horses, Toby was recommended as someone familiar with the country north and west of the Salmon River. He first guided William Clark on a reconnaissance of the Salmon River, confirming it was impassable by canoe or easy overland travel (earning it the nickname “River of No Return”). He then led the full party from the Lemhi River valley near present-day Salmon, Idaho, over the Bitterroot Mountains and across the snowbound Lolo Trail to the Clearwater River country in western Idaho.
Toby spent about 50 consecutive days with the expedition more time than any other Native American guide except Sacagawea. He is credited with playing an indispensable role in getting the Corps across one of the most difficult sections of the journey, where the party faced bitter cold and near-starvation.
Once the expedition reached navigable water on the Clearwater River and began encountering large rapids, Toby returned home. He apparently received no formal payment. He died many years later of typhoid (in 1858).
He is a man worthy of recognition.
