Pueblo County CO Archives History - Books .....Chapter 2 Trappers And Trader Of The Valley Region 1917
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Book Title: Pathbreakers And Pioneers Of The Pueblo Region

CHAPTER II.
TRAPPERS AND TRADERS OF THE VALLEY REGION.

    The story of the Rocky Mountain trapper and his influence upon the destiny
of this land beyond the Mississippi has never been written, nor has the debt,
which the nation owes this brave man, ever been fully appreciated. It is true,
as has been pointed out by other writers, that these western trappers were in
many respects reduced almost to savagery and that "all the romance and most of
the poetry (about these trappers) are the creation of highly imaginative people
who know very little about them," but to dismiss the whole subject by
characterizing them as a class of men who "built nothing, founded nothing, and
with the exception of a trading post here and there, left no trace of anything
that could lead to the betterment of mankind," and that they were "marauders,
bent only upon pillage,"* is to fail utterly to comprehend or to appreciate the
character of these trappers or their profound influence upon the development of
our western frontier.

*See Hall's History of Colorado, Vol. I, Pages 146-47.

    These men would surely fail to measure up to our standard of morals or to
meet our present day requirements in etiquette. They would make a mean
appearance in our social circles of today, but in the fundamentals of
character-in loyalty, in faithfulness to friend, in honesty of heart-these men
as a class were not wanting. Robbery or theft were of rare occurrence; very
seldom would they rob even an avowed enemy. Wilful murder was very unusual and
occurred usually as the result of their drunken debauches which took place
whenever liquor was smuggled in from the states by representatives of the great
fur companies. The fraternity of trappers possessed a code of morals which was
straightforward and simple. The person who violated this code was summarily
dealt with.

    It was the trapper and the trader who were the real discoverers of the great
West, yet posterity has erected no monuments to their memory. It was the trapper
and not the government official who knew the geography of the West and to whom
appeal had to be made when boundary lines were in dispute, yet he was never
pensioned or his services in any other way recognized. It was the trapper and
hunter who had well-nigh taken possession of this western empire before the
nation had gained a title to it, and a part of which was in possession of
Mexico, and the remainder in the disputed possession of Great Britain. It was
the trapper who led the military expedition through the mountain passes to Santa
Fe in 1846. When gold was discovered in California a continuous highway to that
region had already been established, not by any government action but by the
trapper. "Finally, the nation owes a debt of gratitude to those resolute
pioneers (the trappers), who, single handed and alone, stood their ground
against their British rivals between the Great Lakes and the Rocky Mountains.
Their valiant bearing prevented in a large degree those international
complications which so often threatened the peace of the two nations along other
portions of the frontier."*

    *"The American Fur Trade in the Far West," by H. M. Chittenden.

    The beginning of western development is so intricately related to the fur
trade as to make any discussion of the former impossible without a comprehensive
review of this industry. In the early part of the nineteenth century practically
every stream of any considerable size, from the Gulf to the Pacific, abounded in
fur-bearing animals of many varieties, especially the beaver, and the woods and
prairies were well peopled with mink, fox, deer and buffalo. There were three
common methods of procuring furs. The first and by far the most fruitful source
was from the Indians. The trader had only to resort to the Indian village, laden
with such cheap trifles as would touch the fancy of the Indian. The red man
usually placed a very small value upon his stock of furs and he could never
understand why the trader was willing to part with wares of such value for
articles of such trifling worth as beaver skins. The second means of obtaining
the much-sought-after furs was by means of paid trappers and hunters. These men
were employed at a fixed salary and their term of service was usually for a year
or even longer in some cases. The third method consisted in purchasing the furs
from what were known as free trappers and hunters, i. e., men who were not
connected with any fur company but who came and went at will, disposing of the
product of their efforts, either at a "rendezvous," or by taking them to St.
Louis, the great fur market for the entire West.

    The lives led by these trappers and hunters affected them iiva very
pronounced way. Their lives of solitude were broken only by an occasional
meeting with one of their kind, and it was not unusual for a trapper to go for
weeks without seeing a human being. For this reason he was gruff in demeanor and
of few words. His life was in constant peril as he went about his daily tasks.
He never knew at what moment he might be ambushed by some treacherous band of
savages. His living depended upon his ability in pitting his wit against the
keen instinct of the beaver, but his life depended upon his being able to outwit
the wily savage. All this made of him a bold but silent man. His eye was keen,
his nerve tense, his mind always alert to anything that betokened danger.
Sometimes a savage would follow him for days or even weeks, awaiting an
opportunity to ambush him. Although many a trapper lost his life at the hands of
these savages, it more often occurred that the trapper was more than a match for
his crafty enemy.

    His life of physical hardship influenced his appearance in a marked degree.
He was gaunt and brown, with matted hair, and skin as dark as the savage. His
brow was deeply furrowed and his countenance bore evidence of the life of danger
and exposure to which he was subjected. Largely through necessity, the trapper
adopted the garb of the Indian. He soon found that the costume of civilization
was useless in his rough life in the wilderness.

    The presence of the Indian caused the fur industry to take on a character
that it would never otherwise have assumed. Had it not been for the presence of
these savages no permanent forts or posts would have been erected in the West,
but all furs would have been collected and transported at once to the fur
market. The enmity of the savage caused trappers to move in groups, thus
establishing definite trails. To more effectively protect themselves against
their enemies, the trappers were obliged to give a more careful and painstaking
scrutiny to the country surrounding them. Thus it will be observed that the
enmity existing between the trappers and the aborigines, while it resulted in
the loss of many lives, was nevertheless a definite influence in the development
of the West.

    It was around the trading post that much of the so-called romance of early
western life had its center. But as has already been intimated, the romance of
the trapper's life existed largely in the imagination of those who knew very
little about him. The two most famous rendezvous of the Arkansas valley were
Bent's old fort and Fort Pueblo. Here, at the close of the season, came hunters
and trappers laden with skins and furs, the result of many months of arduous
toil; to these places came the Indians also, with the results of their season's
labor, while waiting to meet them was the trader with an adequate supply of
currency and supplies for the white trappers and plenty of trinkets, consisting
largely of beads and vermilion, for the Indians. A liberal supply of liquor was
always on hand in spite of a prohibitory law against its importation into Indian
territory. If we add to this assemblage another person who, although not a
necessary part of the group, was nevertheless an important actor in the scene
about to be described, our cast is complete. Remember that these trappers and
hunters have been in seclusion for the greater part of a year and have been
separated from such luxuries as gambling and liquor, also that they have in
their possession from $1,000 to $5,000 in money or its equivalent; one can now
see that an ordinary police reporter, and not a poet, would be required to
describe the scene which would usually be enacted. After the furs had been sold
and accounts settled, the gambling and drinking began and for a period of many
days, in fact as long as money and liquor lasted, debauchery and drunkenness
ensued. After the trapper had squandered all of his possessions he shouldered
his pack and once more turned his face toward the hills for another year's work,
having saved barely enough to purchase a small quantity of sugar, tobacco and a
supply of powder and bullets. Often rifles, saddles, horses and even clothing
were staked and the trapper returned to his work, in debt for the very outfit in
his possession. Year after year these men returned penniless to the hills to
earn a few more dollars by trapping a few more beaver, only to squander it all,
sometimes in a few hours, but at best in a few days, at the trading post. Yet in
what way did they differ from many other men of their time? Only that their
"sprees" were more extravagant and prolonged because they occurred with less
frequency, their pay day occurring yearly instead of weekly or monthly.

    It should not be understood that all trappers indulged in such excesses as
have just been described. While it is probably true that such was the general
rule there were many notable exceptions. The annals of the hunters and trappers
contain the names of many who were temperate in their habits, and who died
leaving fortunes of considerable size which they had accumulated in their
occupation.

    An entire volume might easily be devoted to the stories of the lives of
these hunters and trappers, and the adventures in which they were engaged. The
foremost among these was the far-famed Kit Carson, trapper, hunter, Indian
fighter, scout and, above all, a true western gentleman. Kit, as a lad of
sixteen, had been bound out to a Missouri saddlemaker, but in the year 1826, as
a party of traders was passing the home of his master, he decided to run away.
Although but sixteen, his restless spirit impelled him to leave the humdrum of
existence in the shop and seek a more exciting life in the West. Accordingly he
joined the party of traders which was bound for Santa Fe. The following notice
appeared in the Missouri Intelligencer immediately following the boy's
disappearance:

    "Notice: To whom it may concern: That Christopher Carson, a boy about
sixteen years old, small of his age, but thick set, light hair, ran away from
the subscriber, living at Franklin, Howard County, Mo., to whom he had been
bound to learn the saddler's trade, on or about the first day of September last.
He is supposed to have made his way to the upper part of the state. All persons
are notified not to harbor, support or subsist said boy under penalty of the
law. One cent reward will be given to any person who will bring back the said boy.

" (Signed)                       DAVID WORKMAN,
                                        "Franklin, Oct. 6, 1826."

    This was the beginning of a long career in the West, for he never saw his
home again and did not even return to his native state for sixteen years. With
the restless energy of his young manhood he traversed every section of the great
West; we see him now hunting in New Mexico; again we get a glimpse of him
trapping in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado; he is next heard of in California
with Captain Ewing and a party of American trappers, operating on Spanish soil
without a license, barely saving the trappers from arrest by his prompt action
in getting them under way and out of the forbidden territory before the
authorities could apprehend them. Soon after this adventure we hear of him in
the employ of the newly organized Rocky Mountain Fur Company, a deadly rival of
that better known organization, The American Fur Company.

    Carson engaged himself to this new company, not as a hired trapper, but by
merely agreeing to sell his furs to it. His party left Taos in the fall of 1830
and passed over the usual trail of the trapper to Bent's Fort, and from there up
the Arkansas to the Fountain, and from thence north to the Ute pass. The party
very likely passed through this vicinity by easy stages, trapping as they went,
as beaver abounded both in the Fountain and the Arkansas at that time. Again we
hear of this intrepid trapper, at the age of twenty-one, in the great Northwest,
trapping on the Snake river in the region occupied by the dreaded Blackfeet
Indians. Once more, unable to curb his restless spirit, he severed his
connection with the Rocky Mountain Fur Company and joined a party bound for
Taos. They pushed directly south from the Laramie plains to South Park, over one
of the most rugged regions of the entire range, and entered the Arkansas valley
at the present site of Canon City. Passing down the river the party went into
winter quarters not far from the present site of Pueblo. It was at this place
that an adventure with the Crow Indians took place, an account of which appears
in Chapter VI.

    In 1842 he engaged as guide to Fremont, upon the latter's first expedition
into this western region. Again in the following year he met Fremont at the old
Pueblo fort, at which time he rendered an important service to the noted
explorer. Fremont had started south from Fort St. Vrain, his destination being
Taos and his purpose being to purchase horses and mules for his expedition. Upon
his arrival at Pueblo, Fremont found that all trade with New Mexico had been
forbidden. Fortunately he met Kit Carson at this place and prevailed on him to
go to Bent's Fort and endeavor to procure the needed animals for him. Carson
rendered the service requested of him by Fremont, meeting the explorer at St.
Vrain's fort with the horses and mules which he had succeeded in procuring at
Bent's fort.

    In 1846 we find Carson once more in the far west; this time he is a member
of that famous military force under Fremont, taking part in that important
expedition which made California a part of America.

    Once, as Kit Carson was traveling the Taos trail, an incident occurred which
illustrates not only the alertness of this famous hunter, but also indicates, in
a measure, his mercy to his enemies: Carson and four associates were taking a
number of horses from Santa Fe to Taos and had just entered the Kiowa country,
when several warriors of that tribe rode into their camp. Carson had been away
from that vicinity so long that the younger generation of savages did not
recognize him, or it is highly improbable that they would have hazarded an
attack of the kind which they had planned. Carson, understanding their language,
soon learned that they intended to fall suddenly upon the party and murder them;
the signal for the attack was to be the passing of the peace-pipe for the third
time. Carson immediately apprised the other members of his party of the
murderous intentions of the Indians and instructed each one to be ready to shoot
the moment he gave the signal.

    The circle was formed and the peace-pipe was passed according to the usual
custom; just as it was started for the third time around the circle the Indians
suddenly threw off their blankets and brandished their weapons, but Carson and
his men were too quick for them for, as the Indians sprang to their feet, they
found themselves facing the rifles of those whom they had planned to kill.
Carson addressed them in the following words: "You red dogs! You thought you
could murder us; do you know who I am? I am Kit Carson! Take a good look at me
before you die." The Indians dropped their bows in astonishment. "Go," said
Carson to them as they slunk away, "go and tell your cowardly tribe that you
have looked upon Kit Carson and he let you live. Take your bows and arrows with
you, for you might have to protect yourselves against the rabbits on your way
home."

    Kit Carson's long and eventful life came to an end at Fort Lyon, near Las
Animas, Colorado, in 1868. Scarcely an event occurred from 1830 to the time of
his death, the influence of which made for the development of this western
region, that did not bear the imprint of his hand. As guide to government
expedition, as soldier in the Mexican and Civil wars, as Indian agent and as
pathfinder and scout in the trackless West, his service to his country was of
the highest order. We record with pride the fact that Pueblo and vicinity was
the scene of some of the most interesting and thrilling experiences of this
illustrious man.

    One of the most picturesque of these western trappers was Jacob Fowler, to
whom reference has already been made. An account of his journey up the Arkansas
is given here, not because of any vital influence exerted by him upon the region
which he traversed, but because the record of this expedition gives us one of
the earliest, as well as one of the most accurate views of the Pueblo region.

    Jacob Fowler and a company of trappers, of whom Colonel Glenn was the
leader, set out from Fort Smith, Arkansas, "thorsday, 6th September, 1821,"
according to the diary kept by Fowler. His was the first party to traverse the
Arkansas river from that point to the Pueblo region, and was among the first to
traverse the trail from Pueblo to Taos by way of the Sangre de Cristo pass.

    Fowler kept a very careful diary in which he recorded the daily events of
the expedition. His spelling and punctuation are a wonder to behold-totally
unlike anything on the earth or in the sky or in the waters under the earth, so
far as is known. Bits of this diary will be inserted from time to time as the
account of this interesting journey is presented.

    This party had no sooner entered the Colorado region than a serious accident
befell them, which resulted in the loss of one of their members. It was while
passing a point near the mouth of the Purgatoire river that one of their men was
attacked by a bear, and, before assistance could be rendered, was so badly
injured that he died. The unfortunate man was buried on the banks of the
Arkansas, near the place where he met his death.

    The remainder of the party continued up the valley and camped near the mouth
of the Huerfano river. Here they were joined by a large band of Kiowa Indians,
from whom Fowler endeavored to procure some additional horses. At this point of
his diary appears the very improbable statement that these Kiowas, together with
a band of Arapahoes, who had joined them here, had in their possession about
20,000 horses. Although these Kiowas were almost destitute of anything else, the
trappers experienced the greatest difficulty in persuading them to part with a
few of their horses.

    On reaching the mouth of the St. Charles, about seven miles below Pueblo,
the party came upon a band of about sixty Spaniards, who had come into this
region to trade with the Indians. Fowler tried to purchase some corn from them,
but found the price, ten dollars a bushel, prohibitive.

    The following interesting paragraph from the diary gives a glimpse of an
interesting New Year's incident of the camp:

    "Jan. 1, 1822. this being a holaday With our nibours We lay by all
day-Haveing about two pounds of bacon Which I Head kept as a Reserve I Here
Shewed it to the Indeans-the Cheaf asked What kind of anemel maid that meat When
He was told a Hog He Requested the shape of it to be maid on the Sand When that
was (done) all the Indeans said the(y) Head never seen Such an animal and
appeared to Wonder and think it Strange that the(y) Head never Seen the like
soposing them Selves to Have seen all kinds of Anemels-"

    Fowler observed that the location of his camp here on the St. Charles was
somewhat dangerous, as they were in the heart of the Indian country and directly
in the path of war parties against other tribes, as well as against the
Spaniards, with whom the Indians seemed to be at war. In order to more
effectually defend themselves against the depredations of these war parties,
they erected at the mouth of the St. Charles, a "hors pen" and "a Hous with two
pens four logs High-Which maid part of the Horse pen Which Was so Strong that a
few Indeans cold not take the Horses out With out Choping Some of the logs."
Fearing that some attempt might be made by the Spanish authorities to take them
prisoners, Fowler decided, after making a thorough reconnoisance of the
surrounding country, to remove his camp to a more defensible location. He
selected a site at the mouth of the Fountain river, not far from the spot where
the old brewery building now stands. The camp had no sooner been removed to this
place than a war party of Crows passing by, stopped, and under the guise of
friendship, began stealing anything they could lay hands upon. Their experience
was similar to that of Pike's party a few years before. Fowler showed a more
militant spirit, however, than Pike did under similar circumstances, for we
read, "on fellow came into my tent threw down his old Roab and took a new one-I
took it from him and toled him to take his own-and on his takeing it he took my
Saddle Bagg al so-I took it from Him and Pushed him out of the Tent." One
fellow, coming back, "Presented his gun at Simpson-on which We were All ready
for Battle In an Instent"? The Indians made no further attempt to intimidate the
party, and soon filed away, but not without stealing a few small articles, such
as blankets, knives and shot-pouches.

    Immediately after this episode the trappers began erecting a house. This
house contained three rooms, with but one outside door, and was built so near
the horse pen that it would be impossible for the Indians to take horses out of
the pen without the knowledge of the owners. This house was built, "seven logs
high and well chinked/' Fearing that the Indians would return that night and
drive off their horses, of which they had thirty-eight, they chopped down trees,
letting them fall across the gate to the pen. The Crows gave them no further
trouble at this time, but on their return trip the same scene was enacted as
before.

    It should be noted that this little house, erected by Fowler's party, was
the first permanent building erected on the present site of Pueblo, of which we
have any definite record. This building was probably near the foot of "sugar
loaf" hill, the summit of which Fowler used as a lookout to prevent being
surprised by the "Indeans." The party remained here until January 30, when they
broke camp, abandoned the little cabin and took up their march toward the
Greenhorn mountains.

    These two sketches represent two extreme types of hunter and trapper. Carson
was one of the class whose love of the wilderness life far outweighed his desire
to gain financially from the profits of his labor. He took far greater delight
in leading an expedition safely through the enemy's country or in playing the
gallant in a spectacular rescue of a friend from danger, than he did in all the
beaver skins he was able to accumulate, yet he was a successful trapper. Fowler
was of the prosaic type, whose only love for the wilderness consisted in a
desire to exploit its products-the beaver and buffalo, and whose forward trail
always lay where furs were most abundant and whose back trail was a straight one
ending at the fur market.

    Two factors, the influence of which seemed to begin simultaneously, spelled
the doom of the fur trade. One was the growing use of the silk hat, which began
to supersede the beaver hat, and the other was the gradual disappearance of the
beaver from western streams, as no attempt was ever made to conserve this vast
resource of the wilderness. As early as 1832, John Jacob Astor prophesied the
destruction of the beaver fur industry because of the growing use of the silk
hat. Two years later Sillman's Journal stated as follows: "It appears that
henceforth the fur trade must decline. The advanced state of geographical
science shows that no new countries remain to be explored. In North America the
animals are slowly decreasing, from the persevering efforts and the
indiscriminate slaughter practiced by hunters, and by the appropriation to the
use of man of those forests and rivers which have afforded them food and
protection. They recede with the aborigines, before the tide of civilization;
but a diminished supply will remain in the mountains and uncultivated tracts of
this, and other countries, if the avidity of the hunter can be restrained within
proper limitations."*

    *Sabin's "Kit Carson Days."

    With the receding of the aborigines and the beaver, began the disappearance
of that most picturesque of westerner-the trapper. His tribe is now extinct and
his sturdy deeds and sterling character remain alive only as a fond memory of
the days that have gone by. While few monuments have been erected to the memory
of these heroic men, yet posterity has given them more fitting monuments than
any that could be erected by man, in naming, in their memory, nature's
landmarks, her rivers and mountain peaks-the most fitting monuments that could
be erected to the memory of nature's noblemen.


Additional Comments:

Extracted from:

Pathbreakers and Pioneers of the Pueblo Region
Comprising
A History of Pueblo from the Earliest Times
By MILO LEE WHITTAKER
THE FRANKLIN PRESS COMPANY 
1917


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