Jim Baker (1818-1898)

[Steve Jajo]

Jim Baker (1818-1898) - Born at Belleville, Illinois on December 19, 1818, he was recruited by Jim Bridger as a trapper for the American Fur Company when he was 21. Leaving St. Louis, Missouri with a large trapping party in May, 1838, he spent two years in the Rocky Mountains before briefly returning to Illinois in 1840. He soon returned westward, accompanying an emigrant train. In August of 1841 he was involved in a desperate fight at the junction of Bitter Creek and the Snake River when 35 trappers beat off a large band of Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho. He spent the next several years in the mountains before he was hired as chief scout for General William S. Harney of Fort Laramie, Wyoming. He guided Randolph Marcy from Fort Bridger, Wyoming to Fort Union, New Mexico, in late 1857. In 1859, he settled in Denver and guided numerous parties into the mountains.

However, in 1873 he moved to a homestead near Dixon, Wyoming, where he raised livestock until his death on May 15, 1898. He was buried at Savery, Wyoming. During his lifetime, he was married six times, each time to an Indian woman, and sired numerous children.

[Cap't Bridger]

That is one TOUGH lookin' hombre !

[jeffp]

Capt. Randolph Marcy's book is an excellent read, if you've never read it.
It of course deals with the Overland Trail period, but is full of tracking info,
and other woodslore. It's called the "Prairie Traveler"

[sean]

I like Marcy's books. I have 'Prairie Traveler' and '30 years of Army Life on the Border'. I'm going to order a copy of his Red River Expedition journal from 1852. I've seen his descriptions of the country I'm living in now from that trip. Neat resource. I also like the fact that Marcy is a really good resources on Delaware, Shawnee, and Cherokee scouts in the West. His writings on Black Beaver are one of the primary resources on him.

Sean