O. M. Wozencraft
Encyclopedia
Oliver M. Wozencraft was a prominent early American settler in California
. He had substantial involvement in negotiating treaties between California Native American
Indian tribes and the United States of America
. Wozencraft also promoted a plan to provide irrigation to the Imperial Valley.
, June 26, 1814.
He graduated with a degree in medicine from St Joseph's College
in Bardstown, Kentucky
. Wozencraft married Lamiza A. Ramsey (June 13, 1818 – August 30, 1905) in Nashville, Tennessee
on February 23, 1837. In 1848, leaving his wife and three small children in New Orleans directly after a cholera epidemic
, he relocated to Brownsville, Texas
.
After the cholera epidemic swept Brownsville in February through April 1849, upon hearing news of gold being discovered
, Wozencraft decided to seek his fortune in California. Wozencraft arrived at Yuma, Arizona
in May 1849, crossed the Colorado Desert
in difficult circumstances, then arrived in California.
and was elected as delegate to the California Constitution
al Convention in Monterey
in 1849 representing the district of San Joaquin
.
Wozencraft spoke against the admission of African Americans to California:
He also moved that a two term limit
apply to the position of Governor of California
. That question was debated then rejected.
Wozencraft's signature appears on the handwritten parchment copy of the constitution signed by the delegates on October 13, 1849.
appointed Wozencraft as an Indian Agent
of the United States. Salary and expenses were not provided to Wozencraft for this appointment. On October 15, 1850 his title as Indian Agent was suspended and he, Redick McKee and George W. Barbour were appointed "commissioners 'to hold treaties with various Indian tribes in the State of California,' as provided in the act of Congress approved September 30, 1850." In that role Wozencraft was paid eight dollars per day plus ten cents per mile travelled.
Between March 19, 1851 and January 7, 1852 Wozencraft, McKee and Barbour traversed California and negotiated 18 treaties with Native American tribes. The treaties were submitted to the United States Senate
on June 1, 1852. They were considered and rejected for ratification by the Senate in closed session
. The treaties were then sealed from public record until January 18, 1905.
Fillmore removed Wozencraft's standing as an Indian Agent on August 28, 1852.
to provide irrigation
to the Salton Sink
area of the Colorado Desert (now known as the Imperial Valley). Around 1854 to 1855 he hired Ebenezer Hadley, County Surveyor of Los Angeles
and Deputy County Surveyor of San Bernardino
, to survey a route for the canal. In 1859 Wozencraft successfully lobbied the California State Legislature
to provisionally allocate 3000000 acres (12,141 km²) of the Colorado Desert to himself for the scheme.
Wozencraft required passage of federal legislation (e.g. H.R.3219) to finalize the land allocation approved by the state legislature. This would allow him to secure capital to complete the project. He unsuccessfully lobbied the United States Congress
for this allocation for the remainder of his life.
He had been in Washington to again present a Colorado Desert irrigation scheme bill to Congress. Just prior to his death the bill had been killed in committee. In committee the bill was described as a "fantastic folly of an old man".
Work began on the Alamo Canal
13 years after Wozencraft's death, ultimately providing irrigation to the Imperial Valley in a manner similar to that first proposed by Wozencraft almost 50 years earlier. He has been declared the "Father of the Imperial Valley."
Modern evaluations of the treaties he negotiated with California Native Americans are critical:
Nineteenth century evaluations are likewise scathing:
Wozencraft is buried at the San Bernardino Pioneer Cemetery.
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...
. He had substantial involvement in negotiating treaties between California Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
Indian tribes and the United States of America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Wozencraft also promoted a plan to provide irrigation to the Imperial Valley.
Early years
Wozencraft was born in Clermont County, OhioClermont County, Ohio
Clermont County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, just east of Cincinnati. As of 2010, the population was 197,363. Its county seat is Batavia...
, June 26, 1814.
He graduated with a degree in medicine from St Joseph's College
Spalding Hall
Spalding Hall is a building on the National Register of Historic Places in Bardstown, Kentucky, USA. It was built in conjunction with the Basilica of Saint Joseph Proto-Cathedral. The building houses the Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey and the Bardstown Historical Museum.The hall was built in 1826...
in Bardstown, Kentucky
Bardstown, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 11,700 people, 4,712 households, and 2,949 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,113 housing units at an average density of...
. Wozencraft married Lamiza A. Ramsey (June 13, 1818 – August 30, 1905) in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
on February 23, 1837. In 1848, leaving his wife and three small children in New Orleans directly after a cholera epidemic
Second cholera pandemic
The second cholera pandemic also known as the Asiatic Cholera Pandemic was a Cholera pandemic from 1829-1849.-History:This pandemic began, like the first, with outbreaks along the Ganges River delta. From there the disease spread along trade routes to cover most of India. By 1828 the disease had...
, he relocated to Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...
.
After the cholera epidemic swept Brownsville in February through April 1849, upon hearing news of gold being discovered
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...
, Wozencraft decided to seek his fortune in California. Wozencraft arrived at Yuma, Arizona
Yuma, Arizona
Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. It is located in the southwestern corner of the state, and the population of the city was 77,515 at the 2000 census, with a 2008 Census Bureau estimated population of 90,041....
in May 1849, crossed the Colorado Desert
Colorado Desert
California's Colorado Desert is a part of the larger Sonoran Desert, which extends across southwest North America. The Colorado Desert region encompasses approximately , reaching from the Mexican border in the south to the higher-elevation Mojave Desert in the north and from the Colorado River in...
in difficult circumstances, then arrived in California.
California Constitutional Convention
Wozencraft settled in Stockton, CaliforniaStockton, California
Stockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
and was elected as delegate to the California Constitution
California Constitution
The document that establishes and describes the duties, powers, structure and function of the government of the U.S. state of California. The original constitution, adopted in November 1849 in advance of California attaining U.S. statehood in 1850, was superseded by the current constitution, which...
al Convention in Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
in 1849 representing the district of San Joaquin
San Joaquin County, California
San Joaquin County is a county located in Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, just east of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 685,306. The county seat is Stockton.-History:...
.
Wozencraft spoke against the admission of African Americans to California:
He also moved that a two term limit
Term limit
A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method to curb the potential for monopoly, where a leader effectively becomes "president for...
apply to the position of Governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
. That question was debated then rejected.
Wozencraft's signature appears on the handwritten parchment copy of the constitution signed by the delegates on October 13, 1849.
Treaties with Native Americans
On July 8, 1850, President Millard FillmoreMillard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
appointed Wozencraft as an Indian Agent
Indian agent
In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with Native American tribes on behalf of the U.S. government.-Indian agents:*Leander Clark was agent for the Sac and Fox in Iowa beginning in 1866....
of the United States. Salary and expenses were not provided to Wozencraft for this appointment. On October 15, 1850 his title as Indian Agent was suspended and he, Redick McKee and George W. Barbour were appointed "commissioners 'to hold treaties with various Indian tribes in the State of California,' as provided in the act of Congress approved September 30, 1850." In that role Wozencraft was paid eight dollars per day plus ten cents per mile travelled.
Between March 19, 1851 and January 7, 1852 Wozencraft, McKee and Barbour traversed California and negotiated 18 treaties with Native American tribes. The treaties were submitted to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on June 1, 1852. They were considered and rejected for ratification by the Senate in closed session
Closed sessions of the United States Senate
The United States Senate has the authority for meeting in closed session, as described in the Standing Rules of the Senate.The Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention met in secret. The Senate met in secret until 1794...
. The treaties were then sealed from public record until January 18, 1905.
Fillmore removed Wozencraft's standing as an Indian Agent on August 28, 1852.
Imperial Valley Irrigation
Wozencraft was an advocate for creating a canal from the Colorado RiverColorado River
The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...
to provide irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
to the Salton Sink
Salton Sink
The Salton Sink is a geographic sink in the Coachella and Imperial valleys of southeastern California. It is in the Colorado Desert subregion of the Sonoran Desert ecoregion...
area of the Colorado Desert (now known as the Imperial Valley). Around 1854 to 1855 he hired Ebenezer Hadley, County Surveyor of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and Deputy County Surveyor of San Bernardino
San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area , and serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States...
, to survey a route for the canal. In 1859 Wozencraft successfully lobbied the California State Legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
to provisionally allocate 3000000 acres (12,141 km²) of the Colorado Desert to himself for the scheme.
Wozencraft required passage of federal legislation (e.g. H.R.3219) to finalize the land allocation approved by the state legislature. This would allow him to secure capital to complete the project. He unsuccessfully lobbied the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
for this allocation for the remainder of his life.
Death and legacy
Wozencraft died of a heart attack on November 22, 1887 in a boardinghouse in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
He had been in Washington to again present a Colorado Desert irrigation scheme bill to Congress. Just prior to his death the bill had been killed in committee. In committee the bill was described as a "fantastic folly of an old man".
Work began on the Alamo Canal
Alamo Canal
The Alamo Canal was a long waterway that connected the Colorado River to the head of the Alamo River. The canal was constructed to provide irrigation to the Imperial Valley. A small portion of the canal was located in the United States but the majority of the canal was located in Mexico...
13 years after Wozencraft's death, ultimately providing irrigation to the Imperial Valley in a manner similar to that first proposed by Wozencraft almost 50 years earlier. He has been declared the "Father of the Imperial Valley."
Modern evaluations of the treaties he negotiated with California Native Americans are critical:
Nineteenth century evaluations are likewise scathing:
Wozencraft is buried at the San Bernardino Pioneer Cemetery.
Further reading
- Wozencraft letter to Hon. Luke Lea, Commissioner Indian Affairs, Washington requesting $500,000 to cover treaty commitments to California Native Americans.
- Wozencraft accused of demanding kickback from contract to supply cattle to Native American bands as part of treaty negotiations.
- Magazine article with Wozencraft claims of finding baby Shasta abandoned by mother; picture of Shasta in 1882.
- Gunfight with Willis brothers. Willis accuses Wozencraft of being drunk, abusive and the first to draw a pistol.
- 1864 newspaper article by Mark TwainMark TwainSamuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
describing Wozencraft's oration in praise of the Democratic Party and SecessionConfederate States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the Confederate States of America was the supreme law of the Confederate States of America, as adopted on March 11, 1861 and in effect through the conclusion of the American Civil War. The Confederacy also operated under a Provisional Constitution from February 8, 1861 to March...
; "His speech was simply a rehash of all the whinings and hypocrisy of CopperheadsCopperheads (politics)The Copperheads were a vocal group of Democrats in the Northern United States who opposed the American Civil War, wanting an immediate peace settlement with the Confederates. Republicans started calling anti-war Democrats "Copperheads," likening them to the venomous snake...
since the conflictAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
began."