James Beckwourth
Encyclopedia
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...
– October 29, 1866, Denver) was an American mountain man
Mountain man
Mountain men were trappers and explorers who roamed the North American Rocky Mountains from about 1810 through the 1880s where they were instrumental in opening up the various Emigrant Trails allowing Americans in the east to settle the new territories of the far west by organized wagon trains...
, fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
r, and explorer. An African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
mulatto
Mulatto
Mulatto denotes a person with one white parent and one black parent, or more broadly, a person of mixed black and white ancestry. Contemporary usage of the term varies greatly, and the broader sense of the term makes its application rather subjective, as not all people of mixed white and black...
born into slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, he later moved to the American West
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
. As a fur trapper, he lived with the Crow
Crow Nation
The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsáalooke, are a Siouan people of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota. They now live on a reservation south of Billings, Montana and in several...
for years. He is credited with the discovery of Beckwourth Pass
Beckwourth Pass
Beckwourth Pass is the lowest Sierra Crest mountain pass and is located at the Sierra Valley's eastern edge near Chilcoot-Vinton, Plumas County, California. Beckwourth Pass is east of Beckwourth, California, in the Sierra Nevada, and is northwest of Reno, Nevada. The pass carries California State...
through the Sierra Nevada (U.S.) Mountains between present day Reno
Reno
Reno is the fourth most populous city in Nevada, US.Reno may also refer to:-Places:Italy*The Reno River, in Northern ItalyCanada*Reno No...
, Nevada and Portola, California
Portola, California
Portola is the only incorporated city in Plumas County, California, United States. The population was 2,104 at the 2010 census, down from 2,227 at the 2000 census...
during the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
years, and improved the Beckwourth Trail, which thousands of settlers followed to central California.
He narrated his life story to Thomas D. Bonner, an itinerant justice of the peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
. The book was published in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1856 as The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout and Pioneer, and Chief of the Crow Nation of Indians. A translation was published in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1860.
Early historians of the Old West originally considered the book little more than campfire lore. It has since been reassessed as a valuable source of social history, especially for life among the Crow, although not all its details are reliable or accurate. The civil rights movement
Civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
of the 1960s celebrated Beckwourth as an early African-American pioneer. He has since been featured as a role model
Role model
The term role model generally means any "person who serves as an example, whose behaviour is emulated by others".The term first appeared in Robert K. Merton's socialization research of medical students...
in children's literature
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
and textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
s.
Early life and education
Beckwourth was born into slavery in Virginia, but sources differ as to the year: 1798 or 1800. His father was Sir Jennings Beckwith, a descendant of IrishIrish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
and English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
nobility, and his mother was an enslaved African-American mulatto
Mulatto
Mulatto denotes a person with one white parent and one black parent, or more broadly, a person of mixed black and white ancestry. Contemporary usage of the term varies greatly, and the broader sense of the term makes its application rather subjective, as not all people of mixed white and black...
woman held by Beckwith. Little was known about her. He apprenticed to a blacksmith but got fired when he had an argument with him. The boy was said to be third of her thirteen children.
In the American West
Jennings Beckwith moved to Missouri around 1809, when the boy was young, taking all the family with him. Although Beckwith raised the boy as his own son, he legally held him as master until manumitting him by deed of emancipationEmancipation
Emancipation means the act of setting an individual or social group free or making equal to citizens in a political society.Emancipation may also refer to:* Emancipation , a champion Australian thoroughbred racehorse foaled in 1979...
in court in 1824, 1825, and 1826. The young Beckwourth attended school in St. Louis for four years. He was apprenticed to a blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
until age 19 to learn a trade.
In 1824 as a young man, Beckwourth joined Gen. William Ashley
William Henry Ashley
William Henry Ashley was a pioneering fur trader, entrepreneur, and politician. Though a native of Virginia, Ashley had already moved to St. Genevieve in what was then called Louisiana, when it was purchased by the United States from France in 1803...
's fur trapping company as a wrangler
Wrangler (profession)
In North America, a wrangler is someone employed to handle animals professionally, especially horses, but also other types of animals. Wranglers also handle the horses and other animals during the making of motion pictures...
on Ashley's expedition to explore the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
. In the following years, Beckwourth became known as a prominent trapper and mountain man
Mountain man
Mountain men were trappers and explorers who roamed the North American Rocky Mountains from about 1810 through the 1880s where they were instrumental in opening up the various Emigrant Trails allowing Americans in the east to settle the new territories of the far west by organized wagon trains...
. He worked with the Rocky Mountain Fur Company
Rocky Mountain Fur Company
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company, sometimes called Ashley's Hundred, was organized in St. Louis, Missouri in 1823 by General William H. Ashley and Major Andrew Henry . They posted advertisements in St. Louis newspapers seeking "One Hundred enterprising young men . ....
and was an Indian fighter. He was well known for telling lore about his adventures.
On an 1826 rendezvous, trapper and colleague Caleb Greenwood told the campfire story of Beckwourth's being the child of a Crow
Crow Nation
The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsáalooke, are a Siouan people of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota. They now live on a reservation south of Billings, Montana and in several...
chief. He claimed to have been stolen as a baby by raiding Cheyenne
Cheyenne
Cheyenne are a Native American people of the Great Plains, who are of the Algonquian language family. The Cheyenne Nation is composed of two united tribes, the Só'taeo'o and the Tsétsêhéstâhese .The Cheyenne are thought to have branched off other tribes of Algonquian stock inhabiting lands...
and sold to whites. This lore was widely believed, as Beckwourth had looked and acted like a Native American for years.
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy or Niitsítapi is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana....
. According to his account, they thought he was the lost son of a Crow chief, so they admitted him to the nation. Independent accounts suggest his stay with the Crow was planned by the Rocky Mountain Fur Company to advance its trade with the tribe. Beckwourth married the daughter of a chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
, and may have had multiple wives. (Marriages between Native Americans and fur trappers were common for the valuable alliances they provided both parties.)
For the next eight to nine years, Beckwourth lived with a Crow band. He rose in their society from warrior to chief (a respected man) and leader of the "Dog clan". According to his book, he eventually ascended to the highest-ranking war chief of the Crow Nation. He still trapped but did not sell his or Crow furs to his former partners of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company
Rocky Mountain Fur Company
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company, sometimes called Ashley's Hundred, was organized in St. Louis, Missouri in 1823 by General William H. Ashley and Major Andrew Henry . They posted advertisements in St. Louis newspapers seeking "One Hundred enterprising young men . ....
. Instead, he sold to John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American business magnate and investor who was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
's competing American Fur Company
American Fur Company
The American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
. Beckwourth participated in raids by the Crow on neighboring nations and the occasional white party. Sometimes such raids escalated to warfare, most often against bands of their traditional Blackfoot
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy or Niitsítapi is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana....
enemy.
In 1837, when the American Fur Company did not renew his contract, Beckwourth returned to St. Louis and volunteered for the Second Seminole War
Second Seminole War
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as Seminoles and the United States, part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars...
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. In his book, he claimed to have been a soldier and courier. According to historical records, he was a civilian wagon master in the baggage division.
From 1838-1840, Beckwourth was an Indian trader to the Cheyenne
Cheyenne
Cheyenne are a Native American people of the Great Plains, who are of the Algonquian language family. The Cheyenne Nation is composed of two united tribes, the Só'taeo'o and the Tsétsêhéstâhese .The Cheyenne are thought to have branched off other tribes of Algonquian stock inhabiting lands...
on the Arkansas River
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
, working out of Fort Vasquez
Fort Vasquez
-External links:*...
, Colorado, near Platteville, Colorado
Platteville, Colorado
Platteville is a Statutory Town in Weld County, Colorado, United States. The population was 2,370 at the 2000 census. It is adjacent to Fort Vasquez on U.S. Route 85.-Geography:Platteville is located at ....
. In 1840, he moved to the Bent & St. Vrain Company (the Bent brothers built Fort Bent on the Arkansas River.) Later that same year, Beckwourth became an independent trader. Together with other partners, he built the trading post
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
Pueblo in Colorado. From it the city Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....
developed.
From 1844 he traded on the Old Spanish Trail
Old Spanish Trail
Old Spanish Trail may refer to:*Old Spanish Trail , connecting Santa Fe, New Mexico with Los Angeles, California in the 19th century...
between the Arkansas River and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, then controlled by Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. When the Mexican-American War began in 1846, Beckwourth returned to the United States. He brought along nearly 1800 stolen Mexican horses as spoils of war. In the war, he was a courier with the US Army and helped suppress the Taos Revolt
Taos Revolt
The Taos Revolt was a popular insurrection in January 1847 by Mexicans and Pueblo allies against the United States' occupation of present-day northern New Mexico during the Mexican–American War. In two short campaigns, United States troops and militia crushed the rebellion of the Mexicans and...
. His former employer Charles Bent
Charles Bent
Charles Bent was appointed as the first Governor of the newly acquired New Mexico Territory by Governor Stephen Watts Kearny in September 1846....
, then interim governor of New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, was slain in that revolt.
By 1848 and the start of the Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
, Beckwourth went to California. He opened a store at Sonoma
Sonoma, California
Sonoma is a historically significant city in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA, surrounding its historic town plaza, a remnant of the town's Mexican colonial past. It was the capital of the short-lived California Republic...
, but he sold quickly. He went to Sacramento
Sacramento
Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...
, then a boomtown, to live as a professional card player.
In 1850 he was credited with discovering what came to be called Beckwourth Pass
Beckwourth Pass
Beckwourth Pass is the lowest Sierra Crest mountain pass and is located at the Sierra Valley's eastern edge near Chilcoot-Vinton, Plumas County, California. Beckwourth Pass is east of Beckwourth, California, in the Sierra Nevada, and is northwest of Reno, Nevada. The pass carries California State...
, a low-elevation pass through the Sierra Nevada. In 1851 he improved what became called Beckwourth Trail, originally a Native American path through the mountains. It began near Pyramid Lake
Pyramid Lake
Pyramid Lake is the geographic sink of the Truckee River Basin and is located northeast of Reno. The inflow is moderately high silt-loaded surface runoff....
and the Truckee Meadows
Truckee Meadows
The Truckee Meadows is a valley in Northern Nevada which contains the cities of Reno and Sparks. The valley is approximately 10 miles square.Truckee Meadows is bounded by the Carson Range in the west and the Virginia Range in the east...
east of the mountains, climbed to the pass named for him, and went along a ridge between two forks of Feather River
Feather River
The Feather River is the principal tributary of the Sacramento River, in the Sacramento Valley of Northern California. The river's main stem is about long. Its length to its most distant headwater tributary is about . Its drainage basin is about...
before passing down to the gold fields of northern California at Marysville
Marysville, California
Marysville is the county seat of Yuba County, California, United States. The population was 12,072 at the 2010 census, down from 12,268 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, often referred to as the Yuba-Sutter Area after the two counties, Yuba and...
. The trail spared the settlers and gold seekers about 150 miles (241.4 km) and several steep grades and dangerous passes, such as Donner Pass
Donner Pass
Donner Pass is a mountain pass in the northern Sierra Nevada, located above Donner Lake about nine miles west of Truckee, California. It has a steep approach from the east and a gradual approach from the west....
.
By his account, the business communities of the gold towns in California were supposed to fund making the trail. When Beckwourth tried to collect his payment in 1851 after leading a party through, Marysville had suffered from two huge fires and town leaders were unable to pay. (In 1996, in recognition of his contribution to the city's development and of the outstanding debt to him, the City of Marysville officially renamed the town's largest park Beckwourth Riverfront Park).
Beckwourth began ranching in the Sierra. His ranch, trading post and hotel in today's Sierra Valley were the starting settlement of Beckwourth, California
Beckwourth, California
Beckwourth is a census-designated place in Plumas County, California, United States. Beckwourth is located on the Middle Fork Feather River east of Portola...
. In the winter of 1854/55, Thomas D. Bonner stayed in the hotel, and on winter nights Beckwourth told him his life story. Bonner wrote it down, edited the material the following year, and offered the book to Harper & Brothers
Harper & Brothers
Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins.-History:James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishing business J. & J. Harper in 1817. Their two brothers, Joseph Wesley Harper and Fletcher Harper, joined them...
in New York. The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth was published in 1856. According to the contract, Beckwourth was entitled to one half of the proceeds, but he never received any income from Bonner.
In 1859, Beckwourth returned to Missouri briefly, but settled later that year in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
. He was a storekeeper and local agent for Indian affairs. In 1864 Beckwourth was hired by Governor John M. Chivington of the Third Colorado Volunteers to act as a scout for a campaign against the Cheyenne and Arapaho
Arapaho
The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...
. The territory's campaign resulted in the Sand Creek Massacre
Sand Creek Massacre
As conflict between Indians and white settlers and soldiers in Colorado continued, many of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, including bands under Cheyenne chiefs Black Kettle and White Antelope, were resigned to negotiate peace. The chiefs had sought to maintain peace in spite of pressures from whites...
, in which the militia killed an estimated 70-163 friendly Cheyenne men, women and children who had camped in an area suggested by the previous commander of Fort Lyon
Fort Lyon
Fort Lyon, first named Fort Wise, was operated on the Colorado eastern plains until 1867. That year a new fort called Fort Lyon, and later Las Animas, Colorado, U.S. Naval Hospital and 5BN117, was built near the present-day town of Las Animas, Colorado. First named after Virginia governor Henry...
and flew an American flag to show their status.
Outraged by the massacre, the Cheyenne interdicted Beckwourth from trading with them. Well into his 60s by then, Beckwourth returned to trapping. The US Army employed him as a scout at Fort Laramie and Fort Phil Kearny
Fort Phil Kearny
Fort Phil Kearny was an outpost of the United States Army that existed in the late 1860s in present-day northeastern Wyoming along the Bozeman Trail. Construction began Friday July 13, 1866 by Companies A, C, E and H of the 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry, under the direction of the regimental...
in 1866. While guiding a military column to a Crow band in Montana, he complained of severe headaches and suffered nosebleeds (most probably a severe case of hypertension).
Beckwourth returned to the Crow village, where he died on October 29, 1866 with unstoppable nose bleeding. The founder of the Rocky Mountain News
Rocky Mountain News
The Rocky Mountain News was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As of March 2006, the Monday-Friday circulation was 255,427...
, William Byers
William Byers
William Newton Byers was a founding figure of Omaha, Nebraska, serving as the first deputy surveyor of the Nebraska Territory, on the first Omaha City Council, and as a member of the first Nebraska Territorial Legislature....
, claimed the Crow had poisoned Beckwourth without any supporting facts.
"Jim Beckwith, who knew, said that though the Indian could never become a white man, the white man lapsed easily into an Indian." - Bernard DeVotoBernard DeVotoBernard Augustine DeVoto was an American historian and author who specialized in the history of the American West.- Life and work :He was born in Ogden, Utah...
, The Year of Decision: 1846 Boston: Little, Brown, 1943) p. 65.
Marriage and family
At different times, Beckwourth had married at least four women: two Native Americans, a Hispanic and an African American. He likely had numerous children by them, although he spent most of his time exploring and on the move.Beckwourth's memoir
Beckwourth recounted his life history to Thomas D. Bonner, who wrote the book The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout, Pioneer and Chief of the Crow Nation. Beckwourth's language and style (as written by Bonner) were as notable as the reported adventures. The book provides historical information on how US government officials used alcohol; how occupations affect those who work in the field; the historical relationship to diseases, wildlife, and the environment; as well as reports dealing with massacres and war.Legacy and honors
- Beckwourth Pass, named in honor of James Beckwourth, is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Plumas County, CaliforniaPlumas County, CaliforniaPlumas County is a county located in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. The county gets its name from the Spanish words for the Feather River , which flows through the county. As of the 2010 census, the population 20,007, down from 20,824 at the 2000 census...
. State Route 70California State Route 70State Route 70 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. Connecting Sacramento with U.S. Route 395 near Beckwourth Pass via the Feather River Canyon, it was formerly known as U.S. Route 40 Alternate, crossing the Sierra Nevada at a lower elevation than Donner Pass on U.S. Route 40...
crosses the Sierras at an elevation of 1,591 m (5,221 ft), making it one of the lowest crossings of the Sierra Nevadas in California. It is also the route that the Western Pacific RailroadWestern Pacific RailroadThe Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
used to cross the Sierras along their Feather RiverFeather RiverThe Feather River is the principal tributary of the Sacramento River, in the Sacramento Valley of Northern California. The river's main stem is about long. Its length to its most distant headwater tributary is about . Its drainage basin is about...
route. The pass is located east of Portola, CaliforniaPortola, CaliforniaPortola is the only incorporated city in Plumas County, California, United States. The population was 2,104 at the 2010 census, down from 2,227 at the 2000 census...
.
- Beckwourth improved a Native American path to create what became known as the Beckwourth Trail through Plumas, Butte and Yuba counties. In August 1851, he led the first intact wagon train into the burgeoning Gold Rush city of Marysville, CaliforniaMarysville, CaliforniaMarysville is the county seat of Yuba County, California, United States. The population was 12,072 at the 2010 census, down from 12,268 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, often referred to as the Yuba-Sutter Area after the two counties, Yuba and...
. Beckwourth demanded payment for improving the trail, claiming he had an agreement with the city and its merchants. The city failed to pay him because it had suffered two fires and had extensive property damage. Beckwourth could not sue for damages. The former major had lost not only the town but the state and the council claimed there was no paper record. The trail was heavily used through 1855, when people began to shift to the newly constructed railroad for passage.
- In 1996, the city of Marysville renamed its largest park Beckwourth Riverfront Park in recognition of Beckwourth's significance to the growth of the city. The city sponsored for a few years the former "Beckwourth Frontier Days" annually held in October, then the only living historyLiving historyLiving history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to reenact a specific event in history, living history is...
festival in northern California.
See also
- Beckwourth PassBeckwourth PassBeckwourth Pass is the lowest Sierra Crest mountain pass and is located at the Sierra Valley's eastern edge near Chilcoot-Vinton, Plumas County, California. Beckwourth Pass is east of Beckwourth, California, in the Sierra Nevada, and is northwest of Reno, Nevada. The pass carries California State...
- Bent's Old Fort National Historic SiteBent's Old Fort National Historic SiteBent's Old Fort is an 1833 fort located in Otero County in southeastern Colorado, USA. William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the fort to trade with Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Plains Indians and trappers for buffalo robes...
- Sand Creek MassacreSand Creek MassacreAs conflict between Indians and white settlers and soldiers in Colorado continued, many of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, including bands under Cheyenne chiefs Black Kettle and White Antelope, were resigned to negotiate peace. The chiefs had sought to maintain peace in spite of pressures from whites...
Further reading
- Thomas D. Bonner (Hrsg.), The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout and Pioneer, and Chief of the Crow Nation of Indians, New York: Harper and Brothers; London: Sampson, Low, Son & Co., 1856); (online: The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth)
- Oswald, Delmot R. "James P. Bechwourth", in Trappers of the Far West, Leroy R. HafenLeRoy R. HafenLeRoy Reuben Hafen was a historian of the American West and a Latter-day Saint. For many years he was a professor of history at Brigham Young University .-Biography:...
, editor. 1972, Arthur H. Clark Company, reprint: Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, October 1983. ISBN 0-8032-7218-9 - John W. Ravage, Black Pioneers: Images of the Black Experience on the North American Frontier, Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1997, 2002
- Sifakis, Carl, The Encyclopedia of American Crime, Facts of File Inc., 1982
- Elinor Wilson, Jim Beckwourth: Black Mountain Man, War Chief of the Crows, Trader, Trapper, Explorer, Frontiersman, Guide, Scout, Interpreter, Adventurer and Gaudy Liar, Norman, OK and London: University of Oklahoma Press, 1972, ISBN 0-8061-1555-6
Fiction
- Bill Hotchkiss, The Medicine Calf, New York: Norton, 1981, ISBN 0393013898 (novel based on Beckwourth's life.)
- Matt Braun, "Bloody Hand," New York: St Martin's Press, 1996, ISBN 0312958390. (novel about Beckwourth's life with the Crow)