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Friday, May 05, 2023

Bidwell-Bartleson Party – Blazing the California Trail

The Bidwell-Bartleson Party, led by Captain John Bartleson and John Bidwell, became the first American emigrants to attempt a wagon crossing from Missouri to California.

In the winter of 1840, the Western Emigration Society was founded in Missouri with 500 people pledging to trek west into Mexican California. Members included Baldridge, Barnett, Bartleson, Bidwell, and Nye. The Society resolved to follow the route suggested by Dr. John Marsh, who owned a great rancho in California. As early as 1837, Marsh realized owning the rancho was problematic if he could not hold it. The corrupt and unpredictable court rulings in Mexican California made this questionable. With evidence that the Russians, French, and English were preparing to seize the province, he determined to make it a part of the United States. He felt that the best way to go about this was to encourage emigration by Americans to California; in this way, the history of Texas would be repeated.
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2 comments:

  1. ShermMay 5, 2023 at 9:27 AM

    Bidwell's house is state historic park in Chico, California.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ElmoMay 5, 2023 at 12:54 PM

    John Bidwell's original NorCal settlement of Bidwell's Bar currently sits several hundred feet below the water level of Lake Oroville.

    ReplyDelete

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