1. John Skenandoa was the father-in-law of the Mohawk war leader Joseph Brant.

So he did indeed have a daughter.

2. For the earliest explorers, the Missouri offered a north-south route, rather than a barrier to westward expansion.

So crossing the Missouri may have had a different significance then. It might even have represented crossing the border between two cultures.

3. The shanty may well have travelled down the Missouri and to the sea as the settlers were making their difficult journey west.

From a distance, the idea of crossing the wide Missouri may have had a romantic or adventurous appeal.