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Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail, 1821-1900 PDF

137 Pages·2005·2.251 MB·English
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Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail WARNING THE MATERIALS AND WORKS MADE AVAILABLE BY C&M ONLINE MEDIA INC. THROUGH BOSON BOOKS ARE COPYRIGHTED. YOU ARE PERMITTED TO DOWNLOAD LOCALLY MATERIALS AND WORKS FROM BOSON BOOKS AND TO MAKE ONE (1) HARD COPY OF SUCH MATERIALS AND WORKS FOR YOUR PERSONAL USE. FEDERAL COPYRIGHT LAWS, HOWEVER, PROHIBIT ANY FURTHER COPYING OR REPRODUCTION OF SUCH MATERIALS AND WORKS, OR ANY REPUBLICATION OF ANY KIND. ILLEGAL COPYING OR DISTRIBUTION OF MATERIALS AND WORKS OBTAINED FROM BOSON BOOKS CONSTITUTES COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT. ILLEGAL COPIES OF SUCH MATERIAL AND WORKS CAN BE SEIZED AND DESTROYED. FURTHERMORE, MATERIALS AND WORKS CREATED BY YOU OR OTHERS USING COPYRIGHTED MATERIALS OBTAINED FROM BOSON BOOKS WITHOUT THE WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION OF C&M ONLINE MEDIA, INC. ALSO CAN BE SEIZED AND DESTROYED. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT CAN BE INVESTIGATED BY THE FBI. CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS MAY RESULT IN IMPRISONMENT OR A FINE OF UP TO $250,000, OR BOTH. ________________________________________________________ BOSON BOOKS 2 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Published by Boson Books 3905 Meadow Field Lane Raleigh, NC 27606 ISBN: 1-932482-31-8 An imprint of C&M Online Media Inc. Copyright 2006 Randy D. Smith All rights reserved For information contact C&M Online Media Inc. 3905 Meadow Field Lane Raleigh, NC 27606 Tel: (919) 233-8164 Fax: (919) 233-8578 e-mail: [email protected] URL: http://www.bosonbooks.com http://www.bosonromances.com Maps courtesy of the Kansas Heritage Center BOSON BOOKS 3 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail _____________________________________________ Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail: 1821-1900 by Randy D. Smith ______________________________________ BOSON BOOKS 4 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Table of Contents Foreword Maps of the Santa Fe Trail Chapter 1 - Culture of Isolation For hundreds of years the New Mexicans lived on a knife edge balance of survival, the stability of power in danger of tilting at any moment. Chapter 2 - The Trailblazer William Becknell was not the first to use the Santa Fe Trail but he was the one who made the first successful trading venture from Missouri to Santa Fe. Ironically, he probably would not have made the trip if he had not been forced into it. Chapter 3 - Standoff Along the Cimarron, McKnight-James Santa Fe Expedition of 1821 While William Becknell blazed the Santa Fe Trail, another group of men attempted an alternative route. It was a journey that almost ended in disaster. Chapter 4 - Jornada Crossing By almost any standard, Jedediah Smith, not John C. Fremont, should be remembered as the West’s great Pathfinder. Yet, perhaps the irony of history or perhaps simply his bad luck, one of the West’s greatest explorers was defeated by a 60-mile stretch of the Cimarron Cut-off of the Santa Fe Trail. Chapter 5 - Tough Night in Taos, the Death of Charles Bent Together with Ceran St. Vrain, William and Charles Bent established a vast adobe castle on the banks of the Arkansas River along the mountain branch of the Santa Fe Trail that became the spearhead of American expansion to the Southwest. The success of the Bent-St.Vrain trading empire, however, was not gained without a terrible toll. Chapter 6 - Mexican Traders of Santa Fe Although generally overlooked by historians, a powerful group of New Mexican natives took advantage of the Santa Fe Trail and exerted substantial influence upon trade, regulation, government and even justice. Chapter 7 - With Riley, On the Border The First Military Escort of the Santa Fe Trail was an adventure of Indian fighting, bravery, cowardice and endurance. Chapter 8 - Nathan Boone’s Expedition of the Prairies Investigating the Chavez murder of 1843, Daniel Boone’s youngest son made a significant trek through the heart of Indian country as a Captain of Dragoons. Chapter 9 - Fiasco of the Battalion of Invincibles, The Warfield-Snively Texas Invasion of the Santa Fe Trail - 1843. Chapter 10 - Fort Garland’s Tom Tobin BOSON BOOKS 5 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Fated to remain in the shadows of men with greater reputations, trapper, scout and Indian fighter, Tom Tobin was a major figure in the turbulent history of the Southwest. Chapter 11 - Lucien Maxwell and Rayado Ranch Destined to become one of the largest and richest landholdings of the frontier, the early years of settlement of the Rayado Ranch were plagued by hostile encounters with Indians along the Santa Fe Trail. Chapter 12 - Fort Larned, The Central Anchor Once a military guardian of the central leg of the Santa Fe Trail, Fort Larned is now a national historic site. It is the best remaining example of Santa Fe Trail garrisons. Chapter 13 - Kit Carson & the First Battle of Adobe Walls An almost-forgotten battle between Indians and whites for control of the Santa Fe Trail demonstrates the brilliant leadership capabilities of one of the West’s most famous names. Chapter 14 - Booth & Helliwell’s Race for Life Throughout the annals of the West, few men experienced such a narrow escape and lived to tell about it. Chapter 15 - Early Years of the Mud Fort Medical records of the early years of Fort Dodge, Kansas are marked with sacrifice, sickness, exposure and death. The problem was that military engagements against hostiles accounted for a small percentage of the soldiers’ ailments. Chapter 16 - The Buffalo Runners Myths, misunderstanding and legends abound surrounding the American Bison and the men who hunted it. Chapter 17 - Battle Canyon and Squaws’ Den Only the wind sings a sad song of confrontation and survival at the lonely site of Battle Canyon and Squaws’ Den. Chapter 18 - The Ranch at Cimarron Crossing For two years men struggled to maintain a lonely outpost at the Santa Fe Trail Cimarron Crossing of the Arkansas River. Isolation and the threat of death from Indian raids constantly skewed their lives and their fortunes. Chapter 19 - Winter Campaign While George Custer found glory along the banks of the Washita River during the winter of 1868-69, a force of soldiers left Fort Lyon, Colorado, for a campaign of suffering, near-starvation and freezing death. Some of the most legendary names in the West were involved in this forgotten saga of survival. Chapter 20 - Charlie Rath, Kansas Frontiersman One act of heroism exemplifies the character and strength of a man who may be one of the most overlooked figures in the history of the settlement of Kansas. Chapter 21 - Fort Union, Defender of the Union Southwest BOSON BOOKS 6 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail An earthen star fort was built to defend the Santa Fe Trail that one officer claimed “All Texas Cannot Take.” The entire structure was a boondoggle that could be pounded to dust by artillery if the Confederacy took the mesa to the west. Chapter 22 - Ham Bell, The Quiet Lawman An acquaintance of the likes of Pat Garrett, Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp, Bill Tilghman and Pat Sughrue during Dodge City’s most turbulent era, Hamilton Butler Bell served as a lawman for thirty-six years, arresting more people for warrants handled than any other western lawman, and never shot a man. BOSON BOOKS 7 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Foreword For over a decade I made good wages writing about the Santa Fe Trail for historical magazines. Since I lived in the Dodge City and Garden City, Kansas, area at that time and was raised within twenty-eight miles of Fort Larned, I conducted original field studies on many aspects of the trail and the people who used it. Much of this research came out of source study for my first print book, The Black Powder Plainsman, and for my Master’s degree thesis research on historical reenactment as a communication tool. I also spent six years doing a historical gun column for Old West magazine. Magazine editors and formats change. Today, it seems to be the gunslinging lawman or wild cowboy that appeals to editors. That is a pity because the real heroes of the Old West, men such as Charlie Rath, Ham Bell or Henry Booth are generally minor characters in history who were only involved in one or two sensational events. Still, I enjoyed this fascinating study and want to share some of my best material with you. To my knowledge nearly all of the material that you’ll read in this book was taken from primary sources or from field studies that I conducted on my own at the locations. Any secondary sources had at least three collaborative sources to verify accuracy. The stories are presented in a rough chronological order but are not in the order they were originally written. All of the previously published stories have been updated with additional research or insights I have gained since their publication. I have personally visited every site mentioned in the stories and walked the ground where these occurrences took place. The problem with this text, however, is that it cannot stand on its own as a scholarly work because I lost all of my original files and notes in a fire. In fact, I thought I had lost the entire text until I found a backup disc written in Professional Write 2.2 software of the original manuscripts during an office move several years later. In spite of this weakness, the stories should be a valuable base for anyone interested in the history of the Santa Fe Trail. It has been a fascinating study for me and I hope you enjoy what I’ve learned. —RDS BOSON BOOKS 8 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Maps of the Santa Fe Trail Kansas Heritage Center Western Part of the Santa Fe Trail BOSON BOOKS 9 Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Eastern Part of the Santa Fe Trail BOSON BOOKS 10

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