History books tell much about Lewis and Clark''s expedition West. But what is less known is how far the explorers went to ensure their entire team had an equal voice in decision-making, even though women and slaves were excluded from democracy in the nation.

Maggie Mead has written numerous biographies, news articles, and plays. A former editor of Weekly Reader's newsmagazine Current Events, she is currently assistant editor of Scholastic's science periodical SuperScience.