Tl C D.f W fk.w.
Forty-Niners Needed
Old California Trail
Leading West Out
""SNE SHARP'S rifle, a hundred cartridges,
and two pairs of thick drawers." These
pertinent articles head the list of what the trav
eller should wear and bear on the California trail
heading west in 18-19.
A San Diego newspaper thoughtfully made out
the complete wardrobe necessary for those who
undertook the month-long journey from Texas
to California. It was: "One Sharp's rifle, a hun
dred cartridges; a Colt's navy revolver and two
pounds of balls, a knife, a sheath, a pair of
thick boots and woolen pants; half dozen pairs
of thick woolen socks; six undershirts; a wide
awake hat; a cheap sack coat; a soldier's over
coat; one pair of blankets in summer; two pairs
in winter; a piece of Indian rubber for the blan
kets; a pair ot gauntlets; a small bag of needles,
pins, a sponge, hair brush, comb, soap, etc., in
an oiled silk bag; three or four towels and two
pairs of thick drawers,"
The California Trail, established by Captain
E. B, Marcy in 1849, was also known as Marcy'i
Keturn Route. It was for almost a decade ;he
only route to California out of Te:;as, and had
its own extensive immigrant travel. Along its
way many will travel to Texas tlra year as the
Lone Star State celebrates its 100th Anniver
sary with the Texas Centennial Exposition aJ
Dallas.
This old immigrant route crossed the Red
River at Old Preston in Grayson County, r.wung
south into Cooke County and passed through
Gainesville, where in the year of 1936 the prin
cipal street of this thriving town is still called
California Street from the days of the early
overland trail.
The road then ran through Montague County,
through Clay and Young Counties and passed
old Fort Belknap. It also swung by Camp Cooper
and the Comanche Indian Reservation located in
what is now Throckmorton County; from
Throckmorton it ran through Haskell and Jones
Counties and took a southwesterly course toward
El Paso, passing Fort Phantom Hill and Fort
Chadbourne. $
TRACES of the old trail still can be found,
although almost a century has passed since
the great coaches drawn by four horses thun
dered through the Guadalupe Mountains and
headed toward the Pacific Coast Grave stones
marked its way in '49. Today graves still guard
the route which linked together the two states,
both settled first by Spaniards; both fought for
and won by pioneers who early set their faces
to the west
A few miles from old Camp Cooper, (on the
ranch of J. A. Matthews) a lonely grave of a
little girl marks the route of this famous over
land trail. The crumbling gravestone which
guards the head bears the almost undecipherable
date of 1852. Daughter of forward looking pa
rents, she perished on the trail and the gallop
ing horses were reined in long enough for spade
and shovel to dig deep; for ax and saw to form
a crude coffin. Then stones were piled on the
earth above the still figure, the driver shouted
to his team and the coach leaped forward west
ward, always westward. Sometime, somewhere,
they must have arranged these westward
people to have a stone set up above the lit
tle grave. But they did not turn back. The peo
ple who made the West never turned back.
Near the foot of the Guadalupe Mountains in
the extreme western portion of Texas lies yet
another lonely grave, marker for the California
trail, bearing the same date upon its tomb stone,
1S52. But time and the elements have obliterated
all else from th mospgrov-n marble save the
!ate.
Nor are graves the only marks which the first
trail lrid upon the land of the Tejas, linking It
with the land of California. Both Young and
Haskell Counties have streama called California
Cre-ek, because they were crossed by this early
trail almost a century ago.
Another route eventually superseded the Cali
fornia Trail. This was the highroad followed by
the coaches bearing the San Antonio-San Diegn
Mail, established in 1S57.
As soon as circumstances would permit aftet
the annexation of Texas to the Union, a chain
of military posts was established between San
Antonio, El Paso, and points further west This
made safety havens across the land for those
who went westward. It also provided way sta ,
tions for rest and change of horses.
In 18S7 the post office department, feeling
that the opportune time had arrived, for such a
tep, called for contractors to carry the mail
V Jan Isabel FortUnc " r U YSpl f ' S " ' - l, I
Great mule-drawn coaches thundered through the mountain! and 1 t L. Ulfe ' '1 Jf ' V V J
Was Only Route
of Lone Star State
headed toward the Pacific Coast. Grave siones marked io way j " Pj V , Yjfj
in '49, Gravel still guard the route which linked Texas and " 7 J, 1 ' """""Xw
from San Antonio to San Diego and back once , SkjC "' N4 f V .
A certain N. P. Cook made the lowest bid. and
was accepted. Cook transferred his interest to
a daring soul named James E, Burch.
AFTER careful consideration, the weekly mail
was considered unnecessary, and a contract
was made with Mr. Burch for bi-monthly mail
Jw-yv- JC V v:'- .v ;..rr I
There was always the chance that a man might lose his scalp on the Texas
California trail. Travelers might pray but they never stopped to kneel.
service. He was to bring and return the mail
between the designated points for four years for
the sum of $149,800. The contract became ef
fective July 1, 1857.
It was agreed that the mails would leave both
San Antonio and San Diego on the same days,
namely, the 3th and 21st of each month at 6 a.m.
This distance between the two cities was to be
covered In not leu than thirty days,
Mr. Burch went himself to California to ar
range for the establishing of the mails on the
Pacific Coast. But, on September 11, returning
to New York on the Steamer Central America,
he was shipwrecked and perished. Wherever
Cook was when this news came, one may be
A Rifl e And A Bag
?
sure that he felt he had bees justified in leav
ing the mails alone.
Major J. C. Woods, general superintendent of
the route, left New York for Sss Antonio on
June 24, 1857. He arrived at his destination on
July 11, two days after the first mail had left
But he immediately began to make preparations
for the second mail and the first coach, sched
uled to leave San Antonio July 24. Major Woods
accompanied the second mail all the way to Cali
fornia, and arrived in San Diego before learn
ing of Burchs death.
The Major found himself with the mail route
in his lap. There was any amount of adverse
criticism from old timers and new comer as to
whether or not there was a well defined road;
Recbklns were m constant menace to the Sut
terficld Overland Matt, called the "horseshoe
trail and the "oxbow route" feat this road
was widely used by the famous Concord coaches,
finest of its time.
was U all wilderness T Were the dangers great?
In short, was the mail route worth a tinker's
damn? Or was St merely another idea is grab
money? What was wrong with the old Califor
nia Trail? Why desert an established read for
this? The Major arose nobly and took the stand
in the defense of N. P. Cook's idea.
"Have we a well defined route V roared the
Major. Kven an ignorant immigrant would find
It as Impossible to miss his way when once on
our road, either going or returning Califor
nia, as he would if travelling in a country with
guide posts every half mile!
So much for that, you doubters!
Furthermore " continued the Major belliger
ently, 'we assume nay we know that the es
tablishment of this line will lead to the speedy
and rapid . settlement f the country sH along
the road, giving us with a very few yars time
a continuous succession ef farms, ranches, ho
tels, military posts, stage offices, etc., from one
ocean to another,
Major Woods was right in his surmises and
his contentions. The estahlishmenta of the San
Antonio-San Diego Mail was an important step
in pioneering of the great West. For many years
siity-five men, fifty coaches and four hundred
mules were constantly employed to carry the
bi-monthly mail.
Bf greatest swindle ever perpetrated upon
I the country by the slave holders, screamed
the Chicago Tribune in the thick of the fight.
But this route, toe, had its part in the making
of Use west. The Butterfield Overisnd Mail
biased the trail for the route of the first grea
railroad to the Pacific,
According to the provisions of the Pout Of
fice Appropriation bill of 1857, the pest-master
general was authorized to contract for the con
vef&nce of the entire letter mail from such a
point on the Mississippi Klver as the contractor
might select, to Ssn Francisco. Each trip mutt
be completed is record time, only twenty-five
days being allowed for it. Speed was even then
taking a hold on the people.
Of Needles
Every wagon was fair jjame to the Indian wht
hailed news of the Overland Routes with joy. Peo
ple using this route did well to pay up their life
insurance, for safe arrival was problematical. They
prayed and "tnfed guns".
The postmaster-general as a Mr. Brown
from Tennessee, and wVten tne route was
ranjtcQ t& swmg aown irom at Louis & Mem
phis, across to Little Uor.kt Arkansas, thenee
ihrougn Texas to the Jbo Ctanue, Yuma and
eventually San FTantncat some unchariU&b
souls mamuated that perhaps Mr. Brown hati
dehberalely favored a sounern route. WheVner
or not UJis was true, ttte Overland Mail went &
southern route for many reasons. It was safe
comfortable and certain during every season sf
the year.
Again, there was Mexico is consider. Troops
still had a tendency to boil ever the Rio Grands
and invade Texas at odd and unexpected mo
nients. The southern routs would provide s
splendid highway over wfekh United States sol
di era ssuH be rushed to the border In ease ef
need. Without a doubly Mr Brown had masy
shafts is his bow and wag well heeled for a!!
sorts of criticism. And thers was plenty ef it
Hie Butterfield Overland Mail was described
variously and derisively sm the horseshoe" trail
and the exbow route", and it was widely pre
dicted that iks good would come of it But time
proved that the carping critics didn't know their
stuff. President Buchanan staunchly declared
that "It wsuld bind the East and West together
by a chain of living Americans which never ean
be broken, And for once, a President was right
all the way, much to the discomfort ef many
politicians who were out after the Postmaster
Oenerars scalp, and werent adverse to taking
a tittle hide off the President In the process.
The Butterfield rout brought Into bring the
wide um ef Concord coaches, the most perfect
vehicle ever built for travel, till the coming of
paved highways and the modem automobile.
THEY carried from six to nine passengers on
the Inside and from one is ten outside, plus
their baggage and the mail. Four horsea drew
the coaches, and for the bad stretches, more
were added. It became s tradition in the west
that if a horse owner csuidn! manege his horses
1 promptly sold them to the Overland Matt
which whipped their ears down in no time at sit
Eves In those early days Califomians were
rather vainglorious about their state and went
on the general theory that any wrsos who
finally managed to get there wouldn't ever wast
to go back. Therefore, tbs fare from Texas to
California was twice the amount of the fare
from California to Texas. To go west cost $230
plus forty pounds of allowed baggage. To re
turn was enly $100, Arni in stay wherever you
were required, like the fed Queen, that you ran
as fast as you cmtld all the time.
BIT in this year of 1330, the tables will at
last he turned. Cattfnrniana will head Texas
ward, And though the rates won't be doubled,
retaliation for the past, the Caltfornians whs set
their face toward the Tesas Centennial Expo
sition In 1sHa from June 6 to Novemher 29 f
will travel over the same trails which their as
eesfcsrs rode going west in S843 to the land f
weaith and sunshine. Several times California
has ceiehrated her glorious past with expositions,
But the Centennial KxbosWob marks Texas first
birthday partv. one which commemorates fosr
centuries ef history and a hundred years gf
freedom.
And just as thousands of Texans have re
spended many times to Califomis's cordis! in
vtUtios to Mcome over for m visit, so 5M thou
sands of California ritixens accept Texas Ttqufsf
to light stranger come is ana set. Corns i
The Cavalcade!