Joseph Reddeford Walker
Encyclopedia
Joseph R. Walker was a mountain man
and experienced scout
.
sent a party of men under Joseph Walker to explore the Great Salt Lake
and to find an overland route to California
. Eventually the party discovered a route along the Humboldt River
across present-day Nevada
, ascending the Sierra Nevada following the Carson River
and descending via Stanislaus River
drainages to the Central Valley of California and on west as far as Monterey
. His return route across the southern Sierra was via Walker Pass
, named after Walker by John Charles Fremont. The approach of the Sierra via the Carson River route later became known as the California Trail
, the primary route for the emigrants to the gold
fields during the California gold rush
. Walker was likely the first white man to gaze upon Yosemite Valley
.
At Fort Hall
he met Joseph Chiles
who convinced him to lead half the settlers traveling in wagons with Chiles back to California up the Humboldt River. Chiles led the rest in a pack train party down the Malheur River
to California. Walker's party in 1843 also abandoned their wagons and finished getting to California by pack train.
In 1862-63, Walker led a well-known gold-hunting expedition of 34 men into the mountains of central Arizona
, near what is now the city of Prescott
. The company struck gold along the Hassayampa River
and Lynx Creek, which was the impetus for subsequent white settlement in the area. The village of Walker, Arizona is named for him. He died at his home in Walnut Creek, California
, and is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery in Martinez, California
.
Mountain man
Mountain men were trappers and explorers who roamed the North American Rocky Mountains from about 1810 through the 1880s where they were instrumental in opening up the various Emigrant Trails allowing Americans in the east to settle the new territories of the far west by organized wagon trains...
and experienced scout
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
.
Biography
Walker was born in Roane County, Tennessee. In the spring of 1833, Benjamin BonnevilleBenjamin Bonneville
Benjamin Louis Eulalie de Bonneville was a French-born officer in the United States Army, fur trapper, and explorer in the American West...
sent a party of men under Joseph Walker to explore the Great Salt Lake
Great Salt Lake
The Great Salt Lake, located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah, is the largest salt water lake in the western hemisphere, the fourth-largest terminal lake in the world. In an average year the lake covers an area of around , but the lake's size fluctuates substantially due to its...
and to find an overland route to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Eventually the party discovered a route along the Humboldt River
Humboldt River
The Humboldt River runs through northern Nevada in the western United States. At approximately long it is the second longest river in the Great Basin, after the Bear River. It has no outlet to the ocean, but instead empties into the Humboldt Sink...
across present-day Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, ascending the Sierra Nevada following the Carson River
Carson River
The Carson River is a northwestern Nevada river that empties into the Carson Sink, an endorheic basin. The main stem of the river is long....
and descending via Stanislaus River
Stanislaus River
The Stanislaus River in California is one of the largest tributaries of the San Joaquin River. The river is long and has north, middle and south forks...
drainages to the Central Valley of California and on west as far as Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
. His return route across the southern Sierra was via Walker Pass
Walker Pass
Walker Pass is a mountain pass by Lake Isabella in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains. It is located in northeastern Kern County, approximately 53 mi ENE of Bakersfield and 10 mi WNW of Ridgecrest...
, named after Walker by John Charles Fremont. The approach of the Sierra via the Carson River route later became known as the California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
, the primary route for the emigrants to the gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
fields during the California gold rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. Walker was likely the first white man to gaze upon Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley is a glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada mountains of California, carved out by the Merced River. The valley is about long and up to a mile deep, surrounded by high granite summits such as Half Dome and El Capitan, and densely forested with pines...
.
At Fort Hall
Fort Hall
Fort Hall, sitting athwart the end of the common stretch shared by the three far west emigrant trails was a 19th century outpost in the eastern Oregon Country, which eventually became part of the present-day United States, and is located in southeastern Idaho near Fort Hall, Idaho...
he met Joseph Chiles
Joseph Chiles
Colonel Joseph Ballinger Chiles was an early California pioneer and guide.Born in Kentucky, Chiles moved to Missouri around 1830 and fought for the United States Army in the Seminole Wars. Widowed, he abandoned his children to join the Bartleson-Bidwell Party of 1841, the first wagon train to...
who convinced him to lead half the settlers traveling in wagons with Chiles back to California up the Humboldt River. Chiles led the rest in a pack train party down the Malheur River
Malheur River
The Malheur River is a tributary of the Snake River in eastern Oregon in the United States. It drains a high desert area, between the Harney Basin and the Blue Mountains and the Snake....
to California. Walker's party in 1843 also abandoned their wagons and finished getting to California by pack train.
In 1862-63, Walker led a well-known gold-hunting expedition of 34 men into the mountains of central Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, near what is now the city of Prescott
Prescott, Arizona
Prescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, USA. It was designated "Arizona's Christmas City" by Arizona Governor Rose Mofford in the late 1980s....
. The company struck gold along the Hassayampa River
Hassayampa River
The Hassayampa River is a mostly underground river, the headwaters of which are just south of Prescott, Arizona, and flows mostly south towards Wickenburg entering the Gila River near Hassayampa, Arizona...
and Lynx Creek, which was the impetus for subsequent white settlement in the area. The village of Walker, Arizona is named for him. He died at his home in Walnut Creek, California
Walnut Creek, California
Walnut Creek is an incorporated city located east of the city of Oakland. It lies in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. While not as large as neighboring Concord, Walnut Creek serves as the business and entertainment hub for the neighboring cities within central Contra Costa...
, and is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery in Martinez, California
Martinez, California
Martinez is a city and the county seat of Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 35,824 at the 2010 census. The downtown is notable for its large number of preserved old buildings...
.
Further reading
- Betts, Jerry, Joseph Walker Finds Passage West to California
- Miller, G. Andrew, "The Travels of Captain Joseph R. Walker" in RE Brammer, Introduction to Captain Joseph R. Walker.