Louis Vasquez
Encyclopedia
Pierre Luis Vasquez was a mountain man
and trader
. He was born and raised at St. Louis, Missouri
. Pierre Luis Vasquez was the son of Benito Vasquez and Marie-Julie Papin (daughter of Pierre Papin & Catherine Guichard. Benito was born in Galicia, Spain in 1738 son of Francisco Vasquez and Marie de La Ponte. Many historians write that Pierre Luis was a Mexican-American but his genealogy proves he was not. He was French and Spanish. In 1823, he became a fur man, receiving his first license to trade with the Pawnee. By the early 1830s he had shifted his operations to the mountains, a popular and active mountain man and trader. Pierre Luis was nicknamed "Old Vaskiss" by other Mountain men. Vasquez became a partner of Andrew Sublette
, perhaps in 1834, returned to St. Louis in 1835, and went back to trade on the South Platte that winter and built Fort Vasquez that year after obtaining a trading license in St. Louis, Missouri, from William Clark, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs. He traveled back and forth between the mountains and St. Louis almost yearly, his reputation growing. Unable to turn a profit, they sold Fort Vasquez to Lock and Randolph in 1840 who subsequently went bankrupt and abandoned the structures in 1842. Due to the bankruptcy, Luis Vasquez and Andrew Sublette could not collect the sum owed to them for the sale. Vasquez then became associated with Jim Bridger
. By 1843 they had built Fort Bridger
on Blacks Fork
of the Green River, which became as much an emigrant station as trading post. At St. Louis in 1846 Vasquez married a widow, Mrs. Narcissa Land Ashcraft and took his new family, her son and daughter, to Fort Bridger. Vasquez opened a store at Salt Lake City
in 1855. He and Bridger sold their fort in 1858, but Vasquez already had retired to Missouri
. He died at his Westport home, and was buried at St. Mary's Church cemetery.
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...
and trader
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
. He was born and raised at St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. Pierre Luis Vasquez was the son of Benito Vasquez and Marie-Julie Papin (daughter of Pierre Papin & Catherine Guichard. Benito was born in Galicia, Spain in 1738 son of Francisco Vasquez and Marie de La Ponte. Many historians write that Pierre Luis was a Mexican-American but his genealogy proves he was not. He was French and Spanish. In 1823, he became a fur man, receiving his first license to trade with the Pawnee. By the early 1830s he had shifted his operations to the mountains, a popular and active mountain man and trader. Pierre Luis was nicknamed "Old Vaskiss" by other Mountain men. Vasquez became a partner of Andrew Sublette
Andrew Sublette
Andrew Whitley Sublette, brother to William, Milton, and Solomon, helped established a trading post with Louis Vasquez in 1835. The present day, Fort Vasquez, located on Highway 85, next to Platteville, Colorado, is a reconstruction...
, perhaps in 1834, returned to St. Louis in 1835, and went back to trade on the South Platte that winter and built Fort Vasquez that year after obtaining a trading license in St. Louis, Missouri, from William Clark, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs. He traveled back and forth between the mountains and St. Louis almost yearly, his reputation growing. Unable to turn a profit, they sold Fort Vasquez to Lock and Randolph in 1840 who subsequently went bankrupt and abandoned the structures in 1842. Due to the bankruptcy, Luis Vasquez and Andrew Sublette could not collect the sum owed to them for the sale. Vasquez then became associated with Jim Bridger
Jim Bridger
James Felix "Jim" Bridger was among the foremost mountain men, trappers, scouts and guides who explored and trapped the Western United States during the decades of 1820-1850, as well as mediating between native tribes and encroaching whites...
. By 1843 they had built Fort Bridger
Fort Bridger
Fort Bridger was originally a 19th century fur trading outpost established in 1842 on Blacks Fork of the Green River and later a vital resupply point for wagon trains on the Oregon Trail, California Trail and Mormon Trail. The Army established a military post here in 1858 during the Utah War until...
on Blacks Fork
Blacks Fork
Blacks Fork is a tributary of the Green River in Utah and Wyoming. The river rises on the northern side of the Uinta Mountains as the combination of three streams draining the area around Tokewanna Peak near the Utah-Wyoming border...
of the Green River, which became as much an emigrant station as trading post. At St. Louis in 1846 Vasquez married a widow, Mrs. Narcissa Land Ashcraft and took his new family, her son and daughter, to Fort Bridger. Vasquez opened a store at Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
in 1855. He and Bridger sold their fort in 1858, but Vasquez already had retired to Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. He died at his Westport home, and was buried at St. Mary's Church cemetery.