Category Archives: Santa Fe Trail

Arizona Territory Santa Fe Trail

Governor Goodwin’s Expedition

June 7, 2011 – 3:25 pm


While the Arizona Territory formed in February, 1863, it was not until December 29, 1863, that the governor was inaugurated into office on the territory’s soil.  The journey from the east took many months of planning and several more months of travel.

In my book, A Dream Unfolding, my fictional characters, Drew and Hannah Anderson, arrive at Fort Larned in Kansas.  Their wagon train stops and waits for the governor’s arrival.  From that point in the journey forward, the Andersons travel with the governor’s party all the way to their final destination.  The route the wagon train took was accurate, inspired by letters written by Jonathan Richmond, one of the men in the governor’s expedition.

From Fort Larned, Kansas, the group traveled west to Fort Lyon in Colorado, following the Santa Fe Trail.  Once in Colorado, the group turned south making brief stops in Picketware, Trinidad, and Raton.  Once inside the New Mexico Territory, they stopped at Fort Union before heading on to Santa Fe.  From Santa Fe, the expedition traveled through Albuquerque and Laguna before camping at Fort Wingate, the last western fort before the vastly desolate Arizona Territory.  Traveling on Pishon’s road, the group headed almost due west along the 35th parallel.  Stopping in the San Francisco Mountains (near present day Flagstaff), the party was delayed two weeks due to a blizzard.  Once leaving the San Francisco Mountains, they headed south towards Fort Whipple, arriving on January 22, 1864.

The journey was long.  The governor’s party left Cincinnati, Ohio, in late August, 1863.  For five months the group traveled the great distance to their new home, often stopping for a week or two at the major forts.  Accompanied by the military and part of a large group of nearly 55 wagons, the group stayed safe through the journey.  The encountered many strange sights, such as a fandango dance in Santa Fe, and the native dances of the peaceful Laguna Indians.

For an account of some of the more colorful things they experienced along the way, pick up a copy of my book, A Dream Unfolding, now available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, and more.

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Santa Fe Trail Women in the West

Busting Myths: Wagon Trains

February 26, 2011 – 8:49 pm

Remember the opening credits of Little House On The Prairie, when they pull into the beautiful grasslands in their covered wagon pulled by two horses?  Maybe you’ve seen an old western movie where the wagon train is surrounded by Indians and the only animals to be found are horses and buffalo.

Along the Santa Fe, the primary route westward to Arizona and California, most settlers used a four or six team of oxen.  Some chose a team of mules.  Very rarely did they make the cross country trip with horses pulling the wagons.

Why oxen?  First, the oxen were much hardier than horses, able to cover the miles with less injury when pulling heavy laden wagons.  Oxen grazed on the tall prairie grass, unlike the horses or mules.  This meant the settlers brought less feed for their livestock.  If an ox did go lame, it could be left at a settlement or fort along the way.  Usually a new one could be purchased, for a hefty sum.  In the case of horses, there were no ready replacements strong enough for pulling the wagons.

The downside of oxen—they were slower.  Horses covered more miles in a day, which is why they were used for stage coaches, pulling lighter vehicles, and individual riders.  The oxen required a midday break of an hour or so, then the evening to rest.

So, for the purpose of relocating all of your family and belongings across the country, oxen were the livestock of choice for west bound settlers.  This is why I chose to use them as the livestock my characters purchased for their cross country move in my book, A Dream Unfolding.

 

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Arizona Territory Santa Fe Trail Women in the West

The 1860’s Woman Part 3: On The Santa Fe Trail

February 26, 2011 – 8:47 pm

While many women headed west on the Santa Fe Trail with their families, some hired on with the Army or freighters.

Regardless of why these women traveled west, their responsibilities remained the same.  Cooking, laundry, and medical care were their primary responsibilities.  If they had small children, they squeezed caring for their children in between other duties.

What stood out to these women along the journey?  Diaries and journals showed most women were concerned about the number of grave markers along the trail.  Some documented the varying plants, animals, and landscapes along the trail.  Disease and death topped their list of things feared.

Despite the tough journey, many women traveled west.  While their presence was often seen as objectionable on the wagon trains, their presence alone prompted better sanitation, better meals, and the men traveling with them tended to take fewer risks.

 

References:

Dary, David. The Santa Fe Trail: Its History, Legends and Lore. New York: Penguin Group, 2000.

Georgi-Findlay, Brigitte. The Frontiers Of Women’s Writing : Women’s Narratives And The Rhetoric Of Westward Expansion. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1996.

 

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Arizona Territory Santa Fe Trail

California Column: An Introduction

February 26, 2011 – 9:35 am

Any writing about territorial Arizona would not be complete without discussing the presence of the California Column (or California Volunteers).  Without the military presence it would have been impossible to safely settle in the territory, especially during the first few decades.

The California Column was a volunteer force, most serving only three years.  They were farmers, freighters, miners, mechanics, or farmers prior to volunteering.  They were primarily educated men.  When the Civil War started, the early volunteers of the California Column benefitted from training by the regulars before the regulars were sent east.

Covering a large geographic area, the California Column spanned as far east as Fort Leavenworth, Missouri, north to the border with Canada, south to the border with Mexico, and west to the Pacific Ocean.  To manage this, the California Column was broken up into several departments and subdivided into districts.  The Department of New Mexico, led by General Carleton, covered Arizona and New Mexico.

The primary mission of the California Column was to protect the citizens of the western territories from Confederate attacks, especially in Arizona.  Their mission expanded to include protection from warring Indians.  Because of the dangers of traveling from eastern states to settle in the west, many wagon trains were accompanied by a company or two of soldiers and mounted cavalry.  In some cases, the military went only as far as the next fort, leaving settlers in the hands of the next company of military.  In other cases, the company traveled the entire length of the journey.

Without the presence of the California Column in the western territories, the settlement of the west would have been far more dangerous and many more lives would have been lost.

 

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