During lean times the peasants resorted to the prickly-pear cactus, neither particularly palatable nor wholesome. The universal spice was the fiery red pepper, which was used in almost every dish. The one gourmet luxury was a thick, aromatic chocolate, out of reach to all but the most wealthy.
New Mexican clothing, although of homespun cotton or wool, was garishly decorated. The fandango, a native feast day, was celebrated for a variety of special occasions. Such celebrations were usually signaled with the ringing of the church bell summoning the populace to the central courtyard. Large amounts of a pale, strong alcoholic beverage called aguardiente were served freely to men and women. The women usually braided their lustrous black hair and decorated themselves with earrings, necklaces, heavy bracelets and massive crosses of gold and silver.
Pike saw something more attractive in Santa Fe society:
Being cut off from the more inhabited parts of the kingdom…they are the bravest and most hardy subjects of New Spain…we saw men, women and children of all ages and sexes at the joyful labor which was to crown with rich abundance the future harvest and insure them plenty for the coming year…they exhibit a superior degree of heaven—like qualities of hospitality and kindness in which they appear to endeavor to fulfill the injunction of the scripture, which enjoins us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and give comfort to the oppressed in spirit.
This description proved to be far different than what later, more racist chroniclers saw. Many were disappointed with the towns, describing them as “drab,” “squalid” and “poor”; and saw the people as “lazy,” “ignorant” or “indolent.” The actual fact of the matter is that the cultural differences between the New Mexican and the United States citizen accounts for harsh judgments from puritanical Anglos and suspicion from the Latinos. The main difference between the societies lay in the severe social and religious structure of the Spanish and the more independent structure of the Americans. Where Anglo society allowed a commoner to rise from his station, the Mexican was generally held to his. The poor Mexican was not denied the salvation of the church while the repressive Puritan society of the Anglos tended to believe that the “poor were disfavored by God.” These critical differences accounted for much of the misunderstandings between the two cultures for centuries. It can also help us understand the ethnocentric comments and judgments made by many of the Missouri chroniclers of later years.
Eventually, Pike was paroled and sent back to the United States as Wilkinson had planned. Wilkinson and Burr were soon discredited and their scheme of an Empire of the Southwest evaporated. Pike was killed in action during the War of 1812.
Although most of his papers were confiscated, Pike saved a journal by rolling the pages tightly and inserting them in gun barrels. Upon his return the journal, published in 1810, created a stir of interest in the States. The aggressive entrepreneur of the western frontier saw New Mexico as a potential source of profitable revenue. Other, less scrupulous factions viewed the colony as a weak link in the Spanish Empire that could be rather easily absorbed by the larger more dynamic economy of the United States. As it turned out, both were right.
Chapter 2
The Trailblazer
William Becknell
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.
Although he was to serve and associate with men of substantially greater fame in several critical historical incidents, if it had not been for financial desperation, William Becknell would have been another forgotten name in the history of western expansion. The “Father of the Santa Fe Trail” was not a particularly noteworthy man nor prominent among his contemporaries. He was a common frontiersman placed in an uncommon situation because of circumstances and coincidence. Twists of fate and Becknell’s resilient character dictated that he would take the initiative to become the recognized trailblazer of the Santa Fe Trade.
Whether or not thirty-four year old William Becknell planned to make his 1821 trading trek all the way to Santa Fe from Franklin, Missouri, has always been a matter of historical debate. He does not mention such plans in a notice published in the June 25, 1821, edition of the Franklin, Missouri Intelligencer which called for a company of men “destined westward for the purpose of trading horses & mules, and catching wild animals of every description, that we may think advantageous to the company.” Considering the politics of the day, it would have been an imprudent act to do so.
After the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, the Spanish northern provinces were constantly under the threat of invasion by bands of American trappers, traders, and filibusters. The failure of the United States and Spain to reach a definite boundary between their holdings until the partially successful Adams-Onin Treaty of 1819 did not help matters. Several invasions of Texas by filibusters from the United States did not lessen hostility, either. Spain jealously guarded Santa Fe and took advantage of the trade monopoly it held over the Chihuahua Trail from the south. When Americanos were found in Spanish Territory, they were often imprisoned and always made officially unwelcome. Zebulon Pike’s expedition for President Jefferson in 1807 ended with imprisonment. In 1810, James McLanahan, Reuben Smith and James Patterson were arrested and imprisoned for several years. Robert McKnight’s party of 1812 tried under the assumption that the failed Hidalgo revolution would be successful. McKnight and his men spent eight years in prison for their trouble.
It seems unlikely that Becknell would have ventured west, risking years in a Spanish dungeon on a blind gamble, although he was seriously pressed to take some sort of action. Becknell was on the verge of financial ruin and had to take some action to satisfy his creditors. It is also unlikely for him to have made such a venture public knowledge, for fear of competition, if for no other reason. News of his plans might have also caused a rush of early foreclosure by his creditors and ruined his chance of making the trek at all. It is known that Becknell spoke with a trusted friend, Ezekiel Williams, on the best route and possible encounters with New Mexican patrols on the plains. Becknell received intelligence from George Sibley of Fort Osage concerning the uprising against Spain in Mexico and knew that it had not been crushed. He realized the extensive trading potential of inexpensive American goods in isolated and product famished Santa Fe.
A week after the Becknell party left Franklin, creditors descended upon his property. His wife, Mary, faced a deluge of court actions and seizures. Resources from a failed salt business, slaves and land were taken until a settlement could be adjudicated. Her only response was to act as witness and try to uphold the family honor until William’s return.
Becknell was just the sort of man to attempt such a bold enterprise. Born on the Virginia frontier, he was a veteran of the War of 1812, an experienced Indian fighter, member of legislature, friend of the Daniel Boone family, and had held a number of positions in and around the Boone’s Lick area of central Missouri. Contemporaries described Becknell as a man of good character, great personal bravery, hardy and enterprising. Although poorly educated and an unsophisticated merchant, he was considered shrewd and intelligent. He had a good enough reputation that he was able to assemble a number of investors and a band of men to join him for a three-month tour onto the plains of the West. Every man was to supply his own clothing, horse, rifle and ammunition. The party members and a few outside investors purchased trade goods by pooling cash resources. Like so many frontier ventures, the enterprise was short on capital and long on guts.
Becknell’s party braved a land that was far different from the eastern forest expanses of previous American colonization. Missouri was a land of clustered woods and peaceful prairie. Beyond the last outposts of civilization to the west lay open dry plains, with little or no wood for cooking, virtually no cover, and vast expanses of bewildering short grass desert. Rivers were shallow and often too alkaline to drink from. Nomadic Indian
tribes ruled the land by subsisting on the great herds of bison. They jealously guarded their territories and were constantly involved in disputes with their neighbors. White men could never be sure whether or not they would be greeted peacefully or viciously assaulted by any individual group of Indians. Subdued hostility and mistrust was the rule for all chance encounters between the cultures. Few white men were experienced enough or of sufficient suicidal persuasion to venture onto the plains alone.
Three river systems provided a path across the plains to the Rocky Mountains. The Missouri to the far north had been the route of Lewis and Clark barely two decades earlier.
Farther south stretched the vast and shallow Platte River that would become the anchor for the Oregon and Mormon Trails. Farther south was the quicksand laced and alkaline Arkansas River, serving as the semi-official border between Spanish and United States land claims. By following the Arkansas, a traveler could be reasonably assured of water and food resources while maintaining some claim to United States jurisdiction and protection.
Becknell’s account of the journey was published in 1823, in the Franklin Intelligencer and Boone’s Lick Advertiser. The story has been challenged as being heavily edited and perhaps not as accurate as a first-hand version. Becknell did not have the writing skills to have produced the journal. Becknell was certainly interviewed for the piece, however, and there were a number of party members in the area who chose not to challenge the story. Chances are that the journal portrays a reasonably accurate description of events.
Becknell and his four companions began their journey west from Franklin, Missouri, on September 1, 1821, with packhorses loaded with trade goods. They made six miles the first day and camped at Arrow Rock after crossing the Missouri River. The weather was rainy and cold. They proceeded to Fort Osage about eleven miles east of present-day Kansas City where they “wrote letters, purchased medicines and arranged such affairs as we thought necessary previous to leaving the confines of civilization.” It was at Fort Osage that Becknell discussed his plans with George Sibley, the commander. Amid heavy cold rains and discouraging sickness the party reached the Osage River on September 20. They made camp and hunted buffalo to renew their strength. They saw vast herds of bison and reached the banks of the Arkansas by September 24 holding to the north side of the river. The journal observes that Becknell noted at this point, “It is a circumstance of surprise to us that we have seen no Indians, or fresh signs of them, although we have traversed their most frequented hunting grounds; but considering their furtive habits and predatory disposition, the absence of their company during our journey, will not be a matter of regret.”
This is a highly unusual observation, if as Josiah Gregg claimed in The Commerce of the Prairies, written in 1844, that Becknell accidentally met with a party of Mexican rangers while looking for Indians to trade with. It is also circumstantially logical proof for arguing that Becknell planned to attempt the Santa Fe Trade from the beginning. This is especially credible logic in face of the fact that the group traveled for nearly 800 miles across the plains without locating a single Indian.
Becknell’s company crossed the Arkansas at a shallow ford and camped on the south bank. They came upon a prairie dog village the following midday. They tried eating one and found the meat “strong and unpalatable.” They also noted the presence of jackrabbits and made note of the fact that they had never seen such a critter before.
On the evening of September 28, the company made camp near some white sand hills and cooked with buffalo chips since wood was nonexistent. A buffalo was killed for breakfast the following morning. That afternoon the group approached “the celebrated salt plain of the Arkansas.” Constant rains caused a mile-wide stretch of salty sand, covered with three inches of water. Becknell also mentions seeing organized packs of wolves killing buffalo.
October 15, Becknell’s group found a brackish lake and camped for three days to renew the strength of the men and horses after weeks of the grinding pace of the journey. On October 21, they found a fork in the Arkansas and decided to take the course of the left-hand side. They were on the plains of present-day eastern Colorado and the fork was probably the Purgatorie River. The country began to change, becoming more rugged and difficult. On the 23rd, they heard a distant gunshot, reasoned it was probably an Indian and plodded on without attempting to make contact.
After two months of travel the men had made their way to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and struggled south against cliffs and boulder strewn trails of the Raton Mountains. They probably went over Trinchera Pass without attempting the formidable Raton path. Becknell described the crossing as having “difficulties almost insurmountable.” A horse was killed when it lost its footing along a cliff face. By November 1, the group had crossed the Canadian River and was in northeastern New Mexico. They were traveling a course roughly parallel to the Rio Grande River.
On Monday, November 12, they camped among cottonwood and pine trees and noted signs of herded cattle and sheep in the area. The following day, they encountered Mexican troops and were greeted with friendly signs of welcome. The Mexicans escorted the group south to the village of San Miguel del Bado. A Frenchman was encountered at the village and engaged as an interpreter since Becknell understood his language.
On Friday, November 16, 1821, the party entered Santa Fe. Becknell noted that the city was “about two miles long and one mile wide and compactly settled.” It was the seat of the provincial government, administered by Governor Facundo Melgares. Melgares was “well informed and gentlemanly in manners; his demeanor courteous and friendly.” Melgares had recently received a circular addressed to all provincial officers from Mexico City that opened the area to commercial relations.
Becknell remained in the Santa Fe area for almost a month. Trade goods were easily disposed at a substantial profit and several contracts for future trading were negotiated, especially for difficult to procure gunpowder. The Missourian was not impressed with the living standard or conditions of the common people. It was difficult for him to accept the double standards for the “have” and “have nots.” In true 19th century Yankee fashion, he expressed a prejudicial judgment of the inferiority of the people and their culture.
Becknell started back to Missouri from San Miguel with one man named McLaughlin and two other men who were not of his original party. The rest elected to stay in New Mexico, either to consolidate trading connections or try their hands at other ventures. Becknell made a decision that would insure his historical importance to trade history. He elected to return by blazing an alternate route overland across the plains rather than the passes over the Raton Mountains. The passes were simply too difficult for planned wagon usage during the next attempt. The route he chose was over what became the dreaded Cimarron Cut-off of the Santa Fe Trail, a more dangerous but almost 100 miles shorter passage. It became the most popular alternative for the first decade of the Trail’s existence.
Forty-eight days later on January 30, 1822, Becknell arrived home at Franklin. According to the son of a neighbor, “My father saw them unload when they returned, and when their rawhide packages of silver dollars were dumped on the sidewalk one of the men cut the thongs and the money spilled out and clinking on the stone pavement rolled into the gutter.”
Some question this account as being a bit too melodramatic. If one takes into account that there were several investors and creditors who were probably extremely concerned about Becknell’s scheme and their money, and the fact that Becknell probably needed investment capital for the next trip, such a dramatic gesture makes perfect sense.
Becknell’s bold act publicly reaffirmed his credibility, pride and would be a perfect celebration of achievement. With such handsome profits to show off, who would do differently. Becknell was able to repay at least part of his debts and demonstrated the potential of future profits from another venture to Santa Fe. How profitable was the venture? One investor, Miss Fanny Marshall, received nine hundred dollars back from an original sixty,
a whopping 1500% profit.
Becknell set out on a second trip May 22, 1822, with twenty-one men and three wagons. After crossing the Arkansas and making camp, their horses were scattered by buffalo. While the men searched for their animals on foot, two were captured, stripped, whipped and robbed of all possessions by Indians. Becknell did not attempt revenge as several other competitive trading parties seriously pressed him. Profits would be highest to whoever returned to Santa Fe first.
Josiah Gregg, in The Commerce of the Prairies, relates that Becknell’s crossing of the Cimarron on this second trip nearly brought about ruin. Short of water and unable to secure fresh reserves, the men were reduced to sucking blood from the ends of mules’ ears. Becoming desperate, some of the band tried to return to the Arkansas River and might well have perished had not they shot a buffalo and drank the contents of his stomach. Becknell made no mention of such an incident in the Intelligencer account. Whether the incident happened to Becknell’s group is uncertain, but other caravans experienced similar situations and the story is probably representative of the difficulty of the Cimarron crossing. Becknell is quoted in the June, 1825, issue of the Franklin, Missouri Intelligencer that he tried to avoid “the so much dreaded sand hills, where adventurers have frequently been forced drink the blood of their mules to allay their thirst.”
Becknell made a solid profit from his second venture. On his third, in 1825, he attempted a disappointing beaver trapping expedition into the Rockies. The following year he was an important member and consultant of the George Sibley government sponsored expedition to mark the trail. By 1826, Becknell ended his association with Santa Fe Trail activities. He decided to remain home and enter politics by seeking and gaining a position in the Missouri House of Representatives.
Heroes of the Santa Fe Trail Page 2