Born in Kentucky on Christmas Eve 1809, Christopher "Kit" Carson was reared in Missouri "in the small family group which surrounded the death-bed of Daniel Boone." Unschooled--he eventually was able to sign his name--he was learning the saddler's trade when his name appeared in a newspaper for the first time:

To whom it may concern: That Christopher Carson, a boy about 16 years old, small of his age, but thick-set, light hair, ran away from the subscriber...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 said boy.

The boy ran far, making his way to New Mexico, where he begged for food and odd jobs. He was often hungry, and always on the move. Over the next 40 years the shy, diminutive ("five and one half feet tall, with blue eyes and sandy hair") Carson became one of the most enduring, and endearing, men of the rising west. From kitchen boy to trapper, tracker, hunter, trader, mountain man, to Indian fighter, Indian friend, Indian agent, interpreter and negotiator, to mule driver, livestock raiser, and businessman, he more than made his mark.

The legend of Kit Carson, larger than he was, sometimes eclipses the astute, concerned, extraordinary accomplishments of the man.

He rode and tramped the west and southwest with other memorable mountain men, American explorers, and traders, such as the Bent Brothers, who were among his closest friends.

Carson was explorer John Charles Frémont's favorite guide. Without him the Lieutenant got into trouble.

When the U.S. Army sent Carson for help to rescue besieged Army troops, he returned with Marines and sailors, much to the embarrassment of the Army brass. Carson began his military life as a Lieutenant and ended it as a Brigadier General, one who rode beside his men, sang Indian medicine chants over his rifle in battle, and "ordered" his troops to call him "Kit." (His quite ordinary military deeds were embellished by fellow officers writing reports for the illiterate Carson.) He was the commander at Fort Union, and at Fort Garland, where he kept "this Indian Pot from boiling in these parts by his will alone." (Carson worked with Chief Ouray, and he wrote the 1868 U.S. Treaty with the Utes. In 1861, Lt. Col. Carson managed the "extraordinary, almost bloodless campaigns that outmaneuvered and forced the surrender of the Mescalero Apaches and Navajos--the greatest feat of Indian warfare, it is said, ever accomplished by an American soldier.")

Drawing of Fort Garland, 1868

Carson married three times: to Waa-nibe ("Singing Wind"), an Arapaho girl, who bore him a daughter; to Making Out Road, a southern Cheyenne "belle" who left him; and Josefa Jaramillo, who came from a prominent New Mexico family, and was the sister of Charles Bent's wife. Carson had seven children by her.

The face of Kit Carson (1809-1868) as seen on the statue on the Legislative Mall. Nevada's capital, Carson City, was named in honor of this legendary frontiersman.

New York newspaperman A. D. Richardson rode with Carson from Santa Fe to Taos in 1859, and described him:

[Carson was] a stout middle-aged man, with straight brown hair, mild eye and kindly face. He wore a suit of gray, and looked like an Illinois farmer; but when he took off his hat the face and head indicated character....Kit's special delight was to dash down steep hills at full gallop...he sits a horse splendidly and rides with rare grace and skill....He is a gentleman by instinct; upright, pure and simple-hearted, beloved alike by Indians, Mexicans, and Americans. He speaks fluently English, French, Spanish, and several Indian tongues, all acquired orally. As if figuring fancifully in romances numerous and yellow-covered were not misfortune enough, he is also the victim of a biographer.

Kit Carson could have been the action figure of his day. He was a favorite subject for newspaper feature articles and penny-dreadfuls, though given a chance to "edit" one book he took out all the exciting parts, fictional or not, complained the author.

In 1867 Carson escorted a delegation of Utes, on whose behalf he was working, to Washington. Returning west to his Purgatory River ranch, the continual chest pains he had been having, which he attributed to a horseback accident, worsened. Adding to his suffering, Josefa died. Carson was grief-stricken. Taken to the army surgeon at Fort Lyon, Kit Carson died at the Fort, May 23, 1868, "between the hours of four and five o'clock, afternoon, this day, from disease of the heart...."

A long-time friend said, "Kit wasn't afraid of hell or high water, in private life he was clean as a hound's tooth, his word was as sure as the sun's coming up, and he never cussed more'n necessary. We shall not see his like again."

In addition to a county, the name Kit Carson is honored by a town in Cheyenne County, and countless streets, parks, buildings, and monuments in Colorado and New Mexico.

In 1861 the United States was at war with itself. In April, Carson became a Union lieutenant colonel with the 1st New Mexico Volunteer Infantry. He moved his family to Albuquerque, where he was charged with training the New Mexico recruits. In October, he was promoted to colonel.

Carson took part in the February 21, 1862, Battle of Valverde, the first major Civil War engagement on New Mexico soil, but he spent most of the war dealing with Indians. Major General James H. Carleton, who had been given command of the Department of New Mexico in September 1862, was intent on pacifying the Navajos and Mescalero Apaches. Carson was ordered to subdue both tribes as soon as possible and then take them to their new reservation at the Bosque Redondo in eastern New Mexico Territory.

While Carson's campaign of 1863-64 was considered a success, it took a tremendous toll on the Indians. In recent years he has been accused of actions that were not his own. Carleton masterminded the command, and any atrocities committed against the Navajo prisoners were done against Carson's direct orders. Although he did his best to keep order within his ranks, the fact was that his best soldiers were back East fighting the war. Many of his volunteers drank heavily and were disreputable. It can be argued that he failed to maintain military discipline.

Kit Carson's most glorious moment came in late November 1864, in Texas, when he led some 325 soldiers and 75 Ute scouts against at least 1,500 Apaches, Comanches, Kiowas and Arapahos in the Battle of Adobe Walls. Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer would face similar bad odds at the Battle of the Little Bighorn a decade later. Unlike Custer, however, Carson, with the help of 10 mountain howitzers, successfully fought off the enemy. Carson eventually headed back to New Mexico with most of his force intact. Carson's performance at Adobe Walls particularly impressed General Carleton. "This brilliant affair adds another green leaf to the laurel wreath which you have so nobly won in the service of your country," Carleton wrote to Carson. Carleton also forwarded a copy of his letter to the adjutant general, who was constantly receiving glowing reports of Carson's exploits.

William T. Ranney
Kit Carson
1854
oil on canvas

A few days after the Battle of Adobe Walls, Colonel John M. Chivington led the infamous massacre of Cheyennes at Sand Creek in Colorado Territory (see story in December 1998 Wild West). Chivington gloated, "I have eclipsed Carson and posterity will shortly speak of me as the great Indian killer." Carson was livid: "To think of that dog Chivington, and his hounds, up thar at Sand Creek! Whoever heerd of sich doins among christians! Them pore Injuns had our flag flyin' over 'em....Well, here come along that durned Chivington and his cusses. They'd bin out huntin' hostile Injuns, and couldn't find non....So they just pitched into these friendlies, and massa-creed them...in cold blood....And ye call these civilized men Christians and the Injuns savages, du, ye?...I never yit draw a bead on a squaw or papoose, and I loath and hate the man who would. 'Taint natural for brave men to kill women and little children."

In March 1866, Kit Carson was brevetted a brigadier general, but by then, his health was rapidly failing. He was pale, haggard and obviously in pain. He tried to leave the military, but wasn't allowed to do so. On April 21 he was given command of Fort Garland, north of Taos in Colorado Territory. There was another Indian problem. Major General John Pope wrote General Sherman: "Carson is the best man in the country to control these Indians and prevent war....He is personally known and liked by every Indian...no man is so certain to insure it as Kit Carson."

Carson was mustered out of the army in November 1867. By then, it was apparent that he was quite ill. He moved his family to Boggsville (near present-day Las Animas, Colo.). In January 1868, General Kit Carson, frontiersman, was appointed superintendent of Indian Affairs for Colorado Territory, and he soon traveled to Washington with a group of Ute chiefs to negotiate a treaty. He also consulted with a number of doctors on the East Coast about chest pains and other health problems.

Kit Carson returned home in time for the birth of his seventh child, Josefita, in April 1868. It was a difficult birth, however, and his beloved Josefa died within two weeks. The general lost the will to live. He made arrangements for his children, wrote his will and then died at Fort Lyon, Colorado Territory, on May 23, one month to the day after his wife's death. Theirs had been one of the great love stories of the American frontier, and their final resting place was near their old home in Taos.

S.J. Reidhead

Additional Sources:

campuspress.colorado.edu
www.historynet.com
www.museumtrail.org
www.nexusgames.com
216.74.109.125
klesinger.com
www.slvdweller.com
www.leg.state.nv.us
www.sfmuseum.org
www.mrsedivy.com
www.historichwy49.com
www.cozine.com
www2.worldbook.com
www.artnet.com
www.lbbcarson.com
www.rmpbs.org
personal.readysoft.es
www.niulib.niu.edu
www.koolpages.com
www.longcamp.com
home.earthlink.net/ ~travel180
www.tias.com
hex.oucs.ox.ac.uk

'If Thomas Jefferson was right that a natural aristocracy existed among men, grounded in virtue, talents, and merit, then Kit Carson unquestionably qualified for membership.'

-- Marc Simmons
"Kit Carson: Indian Fighter or Indian Killer?"

'WHEREAS, It has pleased the Supreme Ruler to remove from our midst one of the most honored of our associates, in the person of General Kit Carson, therefore,

Resolved, That in the death of General Carson, Colorado mourns the loss of a single minded true-hearted patriot, who, whether in the character of citizen or soldier was stainless and above reproach;

Resolved, That as citizens of Colorado, we cherish with deep reverence the memory of General Carson as the real path-finder; as a model of unobtrusive heroism; a pattern of true chivalry; as a true representative man of the west, whose character and services are justly the pride of his countrymen....

Resolved, That the secretary of the [Pueblo democratic club] is hereby instructed to transmit for publication a copy of these resolutions to the different newspapers of the territory; the World, New York; Missouri Republican, St. Louis; and Intelligencer, Washington, D.C.'

-- Wilbur F. Stone, President pro tempore
A notice in the Pueblo Colorado Chieftain.

SUPPORT FOR UPCOMING ELECTION

If you support the policies and character that our current President, George W. Bush, stands for, please drive with your headlights on during the day this coming Sunday.

If you support John Kerry, please drive with your headlights off at night.

John Kerry told the world we were war criminals who raped, tortured and murdered in Vietnam. Now, thirty-three years later, we will tell America the truth.

Join us at the rally we call:

What: A peaceful remembrance of those with whom we served in Vietnam - those who lived and those who died.
We will tell the story of their virtues and how that contrasts with the lies told by John Kerry.

When: Sunday, Sept. 12, 2004 @ 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM EDT

Where: The West Front of the U.S. Capitol Building, Washington, DC

All Vietnam veterans and their families and supporters are asked to attend. Other veterans are invited as honored guests. This will be a peaceful event--no shouting or contact with others with different opinions. We fought for their rights then, and we respect their rights now. This is NOT a Republican or a pro-Bush rally. Democrats, Republicans and independents alike are warmly invited.

Our gathering is to remember those with whom we served, thereby giving the lie to John Kerry's smear against a generation of fine young men. B.G. "Jug" Burkett, author of "Stolen Valor," will be one of our speakers. Jug has debunked countless impostors who falsely claimed to be Vietnam veterans or who falsely claimed awards for heroism. Jug recommends that we refrain from dragging fatigues out of mothballs. Dress like America, like you do every day. Dress code: business casual, nice slacks, and shirt and shoes. No uniform remnants, please. Unit hats OK.

Selected members will wear badges identifying them as authorized to speak to the media about our event. Others who speak to the media will speak only for themselves.

The program will be controlled in an attempt to stay on-message. Speakers are encouraged not to engage in speculative criticism of John Kerry but (1) to stick to known and undisputed facts about John Kerry’s lies while (2) reminding America of the true honor and courage of our brothers in battle in Vietnam.

Send this announcement to 10 or more of your brothers! Bring them by car, bus, train or plane! Make this event one of pride in America, an event you would be proud to have your mother or your children attend.

Contact: kerrylied.com

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

UPDATED THROUGH APRIL 2004

The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul

Click on Hagar for
"The FReeper Foxhole Compiled List of Daily Threads"

The Mountain Howitzer

A howitzer is a short-barreled, large-caliber cannon designed to throw shells at a higher trajectory than regular field guns. This makes them useful against enemy troops behind fortifications or concealed in rugged terrain. The mountain howitzer was a special gun, designed on such a small scale that the entire piece could be taken apart and carried on pack animals. Although its 4.62-inch bore could handle the same 12-pounder ammunition as a regular 12-pounder gun, a complete mountain howitzer, including the carriage, wheels and barrel, weighed less than the barrel alone of a larger 12-pounder field gun. Instead of needing a six-horse team like most other Civil War cannons, a mountain howitzer and two ammunition chests could be carried by three mules through trackless forests, across swampy ground, or over rough mountain trails where no other gun could go.

Mountain howitzers figured prominently in several Indian battles fought during the Civil War years, from fighting at Fort Ridgely, Minn., during the 1862 Sioux Uprising to the infamous Sand Creek Massacre in Colorado in 1864. The famous mountain man turned Union general, Christopher "Kit" Carson, credited a pair of mountain howitzers with saving his command during the Battle of Adobe Walls, Texas, on November 25, 1864. Carson's force of about 400 men attacked and overran a Kiowa village before they were confronted by 1,000 Comanche warriors camped nearby. The soldiers barely escaped with their lives after a long, running battle.

Part of Carson's command was a two-gun mountain howitzer section with 26 men of the 1st California Volunteer Infantry, under Lieutenant George Pettis. Pettis' men had traveled on foot to the site of the battle, using horse teams to pull the cannons. A cavalry detachment had remained with them for their protection, and their mountain howitzers proved very useful during the battle. The little cannons forced the Comanche and Kiowa to stay out of their range and remain scattered so as not to make attractive targets.

At one point, Pettis' guns were set up on a sand hill that made a sort of natural fortification. The soldiers loaded them out of sight at the bottom of the hill, then pushed them by hand to the top. A gunner would aim the piece, then lie on his stomach to avoid Indian bullets until he was ordered to fire. When fired, the mountain howitzers violently recoiled, sometimes tumbling over and over and sometimes rolling on their wheels to the bottom of the hill. At last the Indians withdrew, and Carson ordered a return to the expedition's wagon train. The most seriously wounded men were loaded onto the gun carriages and limbers for the journey.

After the war, Pettis met some Mexican traders who had been in the Comanche village on the day of the battle. They told him that the Comanche had said that only "the guns that shot twice" - meaning the mountain howitzers with their exploding shells - had kept them from destroying Carson's entire command that day.

August 16, 2004

Think Young

Read: Isaiah 40:25-31

Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. —Isaiah 40:31

Bible In One Year: Psalms 94-96; Romans 15:14-33

In the book Geeks and Geezers, authors Warren Bennis and Robert Thomas present a fascinating look at "how era, values, and defining moments shape leaders" of two very different generations—the geeks (those 21-35) and the geezers (those over 70).

One of their findings is that among the older group of "geezers," every person who was able to continue to play a leadership role retained the qualities of curiosity, playfulness, eagerness, fearlessness, warmth, and energy. Instead of being defeated by time and age, they were "open, willing to take risks, hungry for knowledge and experience, courageous, eager to see what the new day brings."

That's a great attitude to have, but how can a Christian get it and keep it? The Bible says that our strength comes from a trusting relationship with God: "Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint" (Isaiah 40:31).

Our minds more than our bodies cause us to lose heart and give up. The young are not immune, because "even the youths shall faint and be weary" (v.30). God gives power to young and old who place their hope in Him. He stirs our spirits to run, walk, and soar for Him. —David McCasland

We're often weary in life's race,
Driven by its hurried pace,
But when we wait upon the Lord,
His strength becomes our sure reward. —D. De Haan

No one is old who is young at heart.

The Life of Kit Carson, by Edward S. Ellis

CHAPTER XII.

Carson's Duel

Such a large party as were gathered at the summer rendezvous was certain to include many varieties of people. The frank, brave and open hearted, the sly and treacherous, the considerate and courteous, the quarrelsome and overbearing -- indeed the temperaments of the individuals composing the company were as varied as it is possible to imagine.

Among them was a powerful Frenchman known as Captain Shunan. He had won his title by hard fighting, possessed a magnificent physique, was brave and skilled in the use of arms, and was the most quarrelsome individual in camp. It is impossible to picture a more irascible and disagreeable personage than Captain Shunan, who appeared to spend all his spare time in trying to provoke quarrels with those around him. Sometimes he succeeded, but more often his insolence was submitted to by men as brave as he, but who wished to avoid trouble with him.

The activity and strength of the Frenchman were so great that a skilful pugilist would have found difficulty in handling him. The only ground upon which he could be met with anything like fairness was where firearms were used.

On one of these occasions, the bully became unbearable in his behavior. He knocked down several weak and inoffensive persons, and swaggered back and forth through camp, boasting that he could trounce any one there. In the midst of his bluster, Carson walked up in front of him and said in a voice loud enough to be heard by those around:

"Captain Shunan, there are plenty here who can easily chastise you, but they prefer to submit to your impudence for the sake of peace: however, we have had enough and now I notify you to stop at once or I shall kill you!"

These were astounding words, and, as may be supposed, when uttered by a man six inches shorter and many pounds lighter than the blustering Captain, they fairly took away his breath. Carson spoke in his quiet, soft voice, as though there was not the least cause for excitement; but those who knew him, noted the flash of his clear, gray eye and understood his deadly earnestness.

Captain Shunan was infuriated by the words of Carson. As soon as he could recover himself, he turned about and without speaking a word, walked to his quarters. Kit did not need be told what that meant. He did the same, walking to his own lodge, from which he speedily emerged holding a single barrel pistol. He was so anxious to be on the ground in time, that he caught up the first weapon that presented itself.

Almost at the same moment, Captain Shunan appeared with his rifle. Carson observed him, and, though he could have secured without difficulty a similar weapon, he did not do so. He was willing to give his burly antagonist the advantage, if it should prove such. The other trappers as may be supposed, watched the actions of the two men with breathless interest. The quarrel had taken such a course that they were convinced that one or the other of the combatants would be killed. Captain Shunan had been so loud in his boasts that he did not dare swallow the insult, put on him by the fragile Kit Carson. Had he done so, he would have been hooted out of camp and probably lynched.

As for Kit, his courage was beyond suspicion. He feared no man and was sure to acquit himself creditably no matter in what circumstances he was placed. He was the most popular member of the large company, while his antagonist was the most detested; but the love of fair play was such that no one would interfere, no matter how great the need for doing so.

The duellists, as they may be called, mounted each his horse and circling about the plain, speedily headed toward each other and dashed forward on a dead run. As they approached, they reined up and halted face to face, within arm's length.

Looking his antagonist straight in the eye, Carson demanded:

"Are you looking for me?"

"Have you any business with me?"

"No," growled the savage Frenchman; but, while the words were in his mouth, brought his rifle to his shoulder, and, pointing it at the breast of Carson, pulled the trigger; but Kit expected some such treacherous act, and, before the gun could be fired, he threw up his pistol and discharged it as may be said, across the barrel of the leveled weapon.

The ball broke the forearm of Captain Shunan, at the very moment he discharged his gun. The shock diverted the aim so that the bullet grazed his scalp, inflicting a trifling wound; but the combatants were so close that the powder of the rifle scorched the face of the mountaineer.

Captain Shunan had been badly worsted, and was disabled for weeks afterward. He accepted his fate without complaint and was effectually cured of his overbearing manner toward his associates.

Kit Carson

by Harvey L. Carter

Mountain Men and Fur Traders of the Far West

Of all the hardy and adventurous trappers who roamed the western mountains, only Kit Carson became so widely known that he achieved the status of a national hero. As this is written, nearly a century after his death, his name and fame are still familiar to the general public. As Daniel Boone typified the early frontier, so Kit Carson typified the frontier of the Far West. It is a curious fact that Carson was born within a few miles of Boonnesborough, Kentucky, and grew up in the Boone's Lick Country in Missouri, near which the last years of the older pioneer were spent.

Christopher Houston Carson, called Kit from a very early age, was born on his father's farm two miles northwest of Richmond, Madison County, Kentucky, on December 24, 1809, being the the sixth of ten children of Lindsey Carson and his second wife, Rebecca Robinson Carson. In October 1811, Lindsey Carson sold his farm, and then moved to Howard County, Missouri, probably in the summer of 1812. Lindsey Carson was killed by a falling tree in 1818 and his widow, in 1821, remarried Joseph Martinby whom she had other children.

At the age of fourteen, Kit was apprenticed to David Workman of Franklin, Missouri, to learn the saddle making trade. Acquiring an increasing dislike for the work, he ran away in August 1826 to Independence, where he joined a wagon train bound for Sante Fe. The advertisement of the saddler for the return of the runaway apprentice described him as a light-haired boy, who was smal for his age, but thick-set. a reward of one cent was offered for his return!

Upon the arrival of the wagon train in Santa Fe, in November 1826, young Carson went almost immediately to Taos. Ther he spent the winter with Mathew Kinkead, who was fifteen years older than Kit and already a Mountain Man of two seasons' experience.

In the spring of 1827, Kit started back to Missouri with a wagon train but, meeting a west bound train on the Arkansas River, he transferred to it as a teamster and went as far as El Paso. Returning to Taos for the winter, he worked as a cook for Ewing Young, in return for his board. In the spring, he repeated his experience of the previous year by changing form an east-bound to a west-bound train. This time he went all the way to Chihuahua, as interpreter for a merchant, Colonel Trammell. He then worked as a teamster for Robert McKnight at the Santa Rita copper mine. Tiring of this, he returned to Taos in August 1828. Just a year later, he left Taos as a member of Ewing Young's first great trapping expedition to California. It was under Young, an old and capable hand at the game, that Kit learned the secrets of successful beaver trapping and the arduous art of survival under difficult conditions. Young found in Carson an apt pupil, who became a trusted lieutenant before they arrived back in taos in April 1831. They had trapped the Arizona streams, both going out and coming back, and had penetrated as far as the Sacramento River in California.

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