Today, I’m thankful for those pioneers who pave the path for others to follow.
Individuals who help usher in a new way of thinking are routinely characterized as pioneers. In today’s world, we tend to think of pioneers as those who help trailblaze a new approach. For instance, Walter Cronkite, whose birthday we celebrate today (Nov 4), was a trusted pioneer in television broadcasting and journalistic integrity. His trustworthy, matter-of-fact approach towards delivering the evening news to the American populace was transformative at a time when television was becoming a common medium for communication and entertainment. Another stalwart example of a pioneer is Thomas Elkins, a noted African-American abolitionist, surgeon, and inventor. On this day in 1879, he received a patent for an apparatus in which food could avoid spoilage. His invention of the refrigerator pioneered a new way for the American life at home. A third example might be story of the renowned archeologist, Howard Carter, who on this day in 1922 unearthed the outer passageway to the tomb of the boy king, Tutankhamun. Carter’s pioneering work in the Valley of the Kings gave us a more cogent comprehension of Egyptian culture.
So, we can look upon ‘pioneers’ in sundry ways. However, when I consider the origin of the word itself, I appreciate that the term ‘pioneer’ is best applied to those early colonists who chose to migrate west beyond the outermost borders of the United States to settle the unchartered regions of Louisiana, Oregon, and California Territories. In fact, the word ‘pioneer’ comes from the French word ‘paonier,’ which translates as “a person walking ahead on foot to prepare the way for others.”
We tend to look upon Army Captain Meriwether Lewis and Infantry Lieutenant William Clark as the first true pioneers of this nation. In May 1804, Lewis and Clark embarked with 29 others, mostly US Army personnel, on an 8,000-mile trek to the Pacific Ocean. By November 1805, they had reached the mouth of the Columbia River in what would become Oregon. However, they never truly settled the West. Instead, in 1806, the Lewis and Clark troupe returned to St. Louis.
So, the question remains who exactly was the first to traverse the United States in a classic Conestoga wagon?
Well, the answer to this question is something I hope to share with you today. Prior to the gold rush of 1849, very few Americans lived in the region we now call California. In fact, in 1840, fewer than 100 Americans had colonized what was then the Mexican territory of California. This would all change when a Harvard-trained physician named John Marsh began encouraging Americans to join him out West. Marsh had taken his practice out West, settling on a farm and ranch with his family in what is today Contra Costa County. Fearing his lucrative livelihood might be jeopardized by British, French, and Russian explorers seeking to lay claim to California, Marsh undertook a large letter-writing campaign encouraging Americans to immigrate to California. In these accounts, Marsh chronicled the breathtaking beauty, temperate climate, and fertile land in California, and he invited these emigrant settlers to come join him on his ranch, where they could stay until they became more settled in the surrounding California countryside. His letters were printed and reprinted in newspapers throughout the East, and many began to notice.
So, on May 1, 1841, a total of 64 men, 5 women, and a few infants and children who designated themselves the Western Emigration Society opted to head west from western Missouri. Although Marsh had provided some instructions on how to reach his ranch, the details as to how to cross through the Sierra Nevada Mountains into the heartland of California were absent. Consisting of 9 Conestoga wagons, and numerous oxen, horses, and mules, the group would become the first wagon train to cross the Rocky Mountains. Notably, not all 69 were destined for California. In fact, two thirds of the crew, led by Jesuit missionaries, split off in Soda Springs, Idaho, to follow the established Oregon Trail and settle in the Willamette Valley of the Northwest. However, the other third, 33 in all, set out to find the Marsh Ranch in what is now modern-day Brentwood, California. Led by 21-year old Jon Bidwell and their 60-year old captain John Bartleson, this California-bound crew headed south from Idaho into Utah and then crossed into Nevada north of the Great Salt Lake. As winter approached in early October, they continued to follow the ‘vague’ instructions from Marsh on their westward route until they reached the foot of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. At that point, the troupe abandoned their wagons and crossed the mountainous terrain on foot and horseback, before finally arriving into the San Joaquin Valley of central California. Miraculously, they found their way to the Marsh Ranch, but not before exhausting their entire water supply; they arrived with just a few days’ worth of meager rations. How glorious must it have been on this day (Nov 4) in 1841 for Dr. Marsh to welcome the first pioneers to California.
Now, the Bidwell-Bartleson Trail was never repeated by others, so it’s hard to say they were true trailblazers. In fact, two years later, Joseph Walker led a smaller crew across the southern end of the Sierra Nevada range, after also abandoning their wagons. Unfortunately, the Walker trail took folks way south of their desired destination of Sutter’s Fort (now Sacramento). Finally, in 1845, Elisha Stephens and his posse managed to navigate their wagons across what is now the present day Donner Pass, where Interstate Route 80 crosses the mountains into Sacramento. Stephens’ wagon party would become the first to make their way into California using wagons. When gold was discovered a few years later, the Stephens Trail became the preferred path for passage to the Pacific Ocean.
Today, I’m grateful for all the pioneers who have left their mark on this great nation. Yet, I reserve a special place in my hear to those who walked ahead on foot – like a true ‘pioneer’ – to settle the rugged West.
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