Who is Sergeant Patrick Gass from The Journals of Lewis and Clark and what is their importance?

Sergeant Patrick Gass was born in June of 1771. He joined the Corps at his own request in January 1803, and he was elected sergeant after the untimely death of Charles Floyd. Gass was a carpenter whose skills proved invaluable in building the winter camps. He was also instrumental in building the chariots used to transport the canoes by land around the waterfalls in July of 1806.

Gass kept his own diary of the Corps' journey, and his Journals, substantially edited for readability and stylistic purposes, were published in 1807. the original copy was lost. Patrick Gass died on April 1870; he was 99 years old.