Spanish Explorers and Mountain Men

“The Great Encounter”• The first interaction between the white people and the Native

Americans is called “The Great Encounter”• Some of the encounters were peaceful and some of them

were violent• Both the lives of the white people and the lives of the Native

Americans changed dramatically due to the Great Encounter

Age of Exploration• Europeans began exploring the

world in the late 1400s• This led to Christopher

Columbus landing in America in 1492

• The Europeans had no idea that America was there or that it was populated by many groups of people

• Columbus claimed the land, the wealth, and the native people for Spain

• After Columbus, Spain began to send more explorers to this new land

The Spanish Spread Out• Spanish explorers begin to spread from the area of Mexico to

the north to what is now Arizona, New Mexico, and California• Coronado explored the area around the Grand Canyon and

Great Plains looking for gold• The city of Santa Fe, now in New Mexico, was a central hub for

these Spanish explorations into the West• Juan Rivera was the first Spanish explorer to make it into Utah• He explored the areas around the Colorado River including Moab

and Monticello

Spanish Settlements• The Spanish had two types of settlements• Missions – religious settlement where priests lived• These priests worked to convert the Native Americans to

Christianity• They also taught the Natives how to live like the Europeans• The Natives would also help the priests by showing them where

to hunt and farm and where to explore• Many US cities started out as missions

• Presidios – military posts• Used to protect the Spanish settlers from Indian attacks

Thought Question• The Spanish explored for gold, conquered Indians, and

brought missionaries to spread Christianity• What do you think about their mixed desire for wealth, power,

and religion? Think of instances of these ideas in the world today. Why do people often think “my way, or the highway” when it comes to power and religion?

The Dominguez-Escalante Expedition• In 1776, Father Dominguez and

Escalante and mapmaker Miera were the first non-Indians to explore the Great Basin region• They were looking for a better

route from Santa Fe to Monterey

• They traveled north to Colorado and crossed into Utah near Flaming Gorge and Vernal

• They met with the Ute Indians• The Utes gave them an Indian

guide that Escalante called Silvestre

Dominguez-Escalante cont.• They party started to head south with their new guide• They came out of a canyon near Provo and saw many Indians

around Utah Lake• These were ready to fight, but Silvestre told the Indians the the

Spanish party was peaceful• The Spanish party continued south with their guides• However, lack of food, hardship, and an early winter forced

the party to return to Santa Fe• Father Escalante’s journal and Miera’s map became very useful

to future explorations of the area

• Ethnocentricity – The belief in the superiority of one’s ethnic group or culture

• Escalante believed that the Indians should be more like the Europeans

• They tried to convert them to Christianity• They were concerned with Indians lack of steel weapons and

pots, guns, and horses• Give some examples of ethnocentricity today.

Mountain Men• The fur traders came into the

area of Utah to trap beavers for their pelts • These pelts were used to make

fashionable hats for people in the East and Europe

• They interacted and traded with the Indians of the area

• Most fur trappers worked for American, English, or French companies

Rendezvous• Mountain men would trap during the fall, winter, and spring• They would have so many furs that they would need to hide

the in caches, holes in the ground or trees where they could hide their furs

• When summer came, the mountain went to their caches to retrieve their furs

• They then headed to a preselected sight to trade with other mountain men and fur companies• These gatherings were called rendezvous

Rendezvous cont.• 500 mountain men, 1-2 thousand Indians, and thousands of

horses made up these rendezvous• The mountain men would trade, or barter, the furs that they

got during the year for supplies for the next year• A mountain man could get about $10 for each beaver pelt,

which would be about $100 dollars today• Most rendezvous were held in Wyoming, but many were held

in what is now Cache Valley up in Cache county

Indian-Trapper Conflict• Not all Indians and trappers got along• Page 74, “What do you think?”

Trapping Companies• There were two main fur companies that sent trappers to Utah• Hudson Bay Company – British trappers from the North• They sent people down the Bear River to Bear Lake and explored

Cache Valley• Their main trapper was Peter Skene Ogden

• Ashley-Henry Fur Company – American fur trappers from St. Louis• Mostly explored Wyoming and Uinta Mountain region• Started the rendezvous• Main trappers were Jim Bridger, Jedediah Smith, Jim Beckworth,

John Weber, and John Clyman

Other Trappers• Many trappers did not

exclusively work for one company

• These main freelance trappers were Etienne Provost, Antoine Robidoux, Joseph Walker, Osborn Russell, and Miles Goodyear

Old Spanish Trail• It is a trail from Santa Fe to Los Angeles• The trail was used to send goods across the country to the

ports in Los Angeles• Many Indian men, women, and children were traded on the trail

along with other goods• The Indian slave trade was most popular in the 1830 and 1840s

The End of the Fur Trade• The age of the mountain man only lasted about 20 years• The beaver were almost hunted to extinction and fashion

trends changed• Most mountain men become guides for coming pioneers