Ohio History Journal

CHARLES TINKER'S JOURNAL

A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA IN 1849

edited by EUGENE H. ROSEBOOM

Professor of History, Ohio State University

 

I. INTRODUCTION

Don't go to California, boys,

Don't go to Oregon,

There's wealth for you in the Buckeye State,

And wealth that may be won,

Aye, wealth that may be won, boys,

By true hearts, strong and bold,

Then don't go to California,

Stay at home and gather gold.1

If this somewhat belated appeal had appeared in print in the

spring of 1849, the hundreds of Ohioans then starting on the long

journey to the land of gold would have scoffed at it. A year later

many of them, sadder and wiser but not wealthier, were offering

the same advice in letters home but in language more forceful than

that of Mrs. Frances Dana Gage's sentimental verses. A sure cure

for the California fever was an overland trip to the gold country

and a few weeks in the diggings. The number of Ohioans who suc-

cumbed to the lure of Sutter's gold may only be conjectured, but

5,500 were in California when the census of 1850 was taken and

thousands more were on the way.² How many returned home in the

next few years is an even more elusive conjecture, but the dis-

illusioned far outnumbered those who had struck it rich. Many

remained in the land of gold but usually found material success in

 

1 From a poem by Mrs. Frances Dana Gage in the Ohio Cultivator, VIII (May 15,

1852), 151, and Ashtabula Sentinel, May 8, 1852. The Cleveland True Democrat,

issue not located, had printed it earlier.

2 For an excellent account of Ohio's connection with the gold rush, see an un-

published master's thesis, The Impact of the California Gold Rush on Ohio and

Ohioans (Ohio State University, 1949), by Robert Thomas, one chapter of which

appeared in the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly, LIX (1950),

256-269.

64

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Charles Tinker's Journal                        65

more prosaic occupations than the one they had envisioned as a

short cut to riches when they started on the Overland Trail.

But posterity has paid slight attention to the material success

of the Argonauts. Their achievement lay in their participation in an

epic American adventure, and the name Forty-niners is inscribed in

golden letters high on the Independence Rock of the nation's im-

mortals. Historians have kept their memory green by a steady

flow of books and articles about them, and the publication of their

diaries, letters, and reminiscences continues to add to their saga.

Many of the gold seekers started diaries or journals but too often

discontinued them under the strain of the long trek. A goodly

number of faithful souls, however, persisted to the end, and even

more important, preserved these records of their trials and hazards

for the enlightenment of their children and their children's children.

The immortality of the printed page has been their reward in some

instances, but many diaries still remain as their authors wrote them,

in family possession or in the archives of libraries and museums.

Over twenty-five contemporary accounts of those who followed the

South Pass route in the first year of the gold rush existed in printed

form in 1945 and the number has been added to since then.3

The journal of Charles Tinker, which follows this introduction,

was brought to the attention of Dr. James H. Rodabaugh, editor

of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society, by Miss

Henrietta McKinsey, principal of Bunker Hill Elementary School,

Ashtabula, Ohio. It was in the possession of Mr. Tinker's grand-

daughter, Mrs. A. T. Faulkner, who kindly consented to its pub-

3 David M. Potter, ed., Trail to California: The Overland Journal of Vincent

Geiger and Wakeman Bryarly (New Haven, 1945), lists twenty-six such contemporary

accounts for 1849 in print. Several are by Ohioans. See pp. 237-243. Merrill J.

Mattes, regional historian, Region Two, National Park Service, Omaha, Nebraska,

puts the number of overland journals of 1849, in print or in manuscript, of which

he had personal knowledge, at "over one hundred." Merrill J. Mattes and Esley J.

Kirk, "From Ohio to California in 1849: The Gold Rush Journal of Elijah Bryan

Farnham," Indiana Magazine of History, XLVI (1950), 298. Neither Potter nor

Mattes apparently knew about the Tinker journal and one written by J. E. Armstrong,

now in possession of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society, and one

kept by Dr. Charles E. Boyle of London, Ohio, which was printed--unfortunately

in incomplete form--in several issues of the Columbus Dispatch beginning October 2,

1949. It should be remembered that many gold-seekers reached California by other

routes than the South Pass overland road, and that 1849 was only the first year

of the gold rush.

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66       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

lication. Mrs. Faulkner and Mrs. Nettie Curtis, another grand-

daughter, both of Ashtabula, have preserved this and other in-

teresting possessions of their grandfather. The journal was written in

a little leather notebook, three by five inches in size, which is in an

excellent state of preservation. The entries are not separated in day-

by-day diary form but were written rather as a running account of

the journey with dates sometimes inserted in the texts of sentences.

There are no entries for some days when apparently the writer had

nothing significant to record or was too weary to bother with his

chronicle. The earliest entries were evidently inserted later to pro-

vide a suitable introduction, for they appear at the end of the

journal in the original manuscript. They have been put in their

proper place in the printed version.

Charles Tinker was born near Kingsville, Ohio, on September 7,

1821.⁴ He was brought up on a farm and received a limited common

school education. His father, a Connecticut Yankee, taught the son

a trade he had learned, that of wagon making, a skill that must have

proved very useful on the California trail. Young Tinker must have

had a mechanical turn of mind, for he built a sawmill in 1843, and

then an oil mill. He married Mary Webster in 1842 and five chil-

dren were born to them, four before the father left for California.

Why a family man in his late twenties succumbed to the gold fever

is not made clear in his journal or elsewhere. A biographical sketch

in a county history does reveal that he was never very successful at

farming, which he tried soon after his marriage, and twice in his

later years. Perhaps this initial failure and the needs of a growing

family entered the picture. But it is equally possible that the lure of

adventure and the influence of friends who were going may have

played their part. His journal ends with his arrival in California,

but apparently he did not remain there very long. He was back in

Ohio the next year, returning by boat "around the Horn," and was

4 Williams Bros., History of Ashtabula County, Ohio, with Illustrations and Bio-

graphical Sketches of Its Pioneers and Most Prominent Men (Philadelphia, 1878),

sketch on unnumbered page between pages 176 and 177, accompanied by a photo-

graph. On the fly leaf of his journal, "September 7, 1819," is written in as the date

of his birth, but after it is inserted the words "(mistake) should be 1821." Since

the sketch in the county history was evidently written from information supplied by

the subject and it gives the year as 1821, it may be presumed to be correct. His

granddaughter, Mrs. A. T. Faulkner, also confirms this conclusion.

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Charles Tinker's Journal               67

soon applying his mechanical aptitude to the manufacture of farm

machinery and tools. He became an active figure in several enter-

prises, eventually becoming president of the Phoenix Iron Works,

and for many years was a respected citizen of Ashtabula County.

He died on December 29, 1908, fifty-nine years after his California

adventure. His granddaughter, Mrs. A. T. Faulkner, remembers

him as "a splendid family man" and an indulgent grandfather,

living in a big house surrounded by flowers and fruit trees.⁵

Tinker's journal is the brief, matter-of-fact record of a prac-

tical man, quite observant, but unaccustomed to putting his thoughts

on paper and not too familiar with the orthodox rules of grammar

and spelling. Except for the desert crossing there are no striking

descriptive passages nor is the reader permitted more than a fleeting

glimpse or two into the feelings and thoughts of the writer. If he

was ever exasperated at his companions, the journal does not reveal

it, for he religiously refrained from censuring anyone. Generally he

is content to write of what he saw and did, not of what he thought.

On only two occasions do his emotions break into the journal. When

he was ill with mountain fever (July 23 entry), he wrote, "I was

hard sick all the way and had to ride it seamed as though the wagon

hit all the stones on the road every bone in me was on the aiche

it made me think of home some." The other occasion was the diffi-

cult desert crossing. Tinker reveals himself here as a young man of

kind heart and simple faith, distressed at the abandonment of faithful

oxen and happy to see trees again and to hear a Sunday sermon by

an elder from a nearby camp. "It seamed the most like home to me

here than it had in any place since I left the States" (August 5).

In one respect the journal is disappointing, a result of its brevity.

It contains too little about the details of daily life--company organi-

zation and assignment of duties, menus of the trail, liquor consump-

tion, sleeping accommodations, health problems, the handling of

animals and equipment, recreations, the weather from day to day,

insect pests, and so on. Forage, water, fuel, Indians, river crossings,

hunting luck, road conditions-these are the meat of the journal.

Tinker wastes no words on non--essentials but there is one exception

5 Information supplied by Mrs. A. T. Faulkner of Ashtabula, Ohio.

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68       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

-he could not overlook the changing scenery and the wonders of

nature in the Great West.

The Ashtabula Sentinel supplies some meager additional informa-

tion about the Kingsville company. A news item in the issue of

May 5, 1849, evidently copied from a Missouri newspaper, reported

the presence of two Ohio companies at St. Joseph on April 14, ready

to move, one of them from Ashtabula County.⁶ The list of names is

that of the Kingsville group.⁷ H. B. Stone ("Henry A." in the

diary) was the captain, Charles Tinker the lieutenant. Tinker's

journal is silent as to the first officers but later refers to the election

of James Haynes as captain. This is also confirmed by the Sentinel.

Another Western Reserve group--from Painesville--started from

Independence, Missouri,⁸ and joined forces with the Kingsville party

shortly before the crossing of the South Platte. A California letter

from John Packer, printed in the Sentinel of March 23, 1850, states

that James Haines (spelled "Haynes" by Tinker) was elected cap-

tain, apparently of both organizations, as they were traveling to-

gether.⁹ Since the Kingsville men were accompanied from the start

by a small Springfield group (organized at neighboring Springfield,

Erie County, Pennsylvania), the traveling "train" consisted of three

little companies with a total of over thirty men.

These companies were typical of the hundreds of organized parties

that followed the overland trail in 1849. Each usually had some kind

of constitution or articles of agreement, for cooperative organiza-

tions were essential for protection and in coping with the hardships

and difficulties of overland wagon travel.¹⁰ The constitution of the

 

6 Thomas, loc. cit., 265, citing other sources, states that nine Ohio companies were

at St. Joseph on April 14, the largest number from any one state.

7 There are minor discrepancies in the names and only one of the Springfield (Erie

County, Pennsylvania) group is listed. Tinker states that they traveled with the

Kingsville men and gives the names of six men. See the first entry in his journal.

8 Thomas, loc. cit., 262. It had sixteen members. See Painesville Telegraph extract in

Cleveland Herald, March 30, 1849, for list of names.

9 Packer wrote as follows: "A few days previous to crossing the south fork of the

Platte River, we were joined by the Painesville company. We then chose James Haines

as our captain." In Tinker's journal (entry for June 7) is a reference to Turner and

Ely of the Painesville group, an indication that they were traveling together.

10 Potter, op. cit., 213-222, gives the complete text of the constitution of the

Charlestown, Virginia, Company. Most constitutions or company agreements were

simpler and less detailed.

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Charles Tinker's Journal                      69

Kingsville group is not given in Tinker's journal, but there are

references to the election of officers for fixed terms. The Ashtabula

Sentinel's reprint of a Missouri newspaper article, referred to

earlier, has this revealing sentence: "They go as a joint stock com-

pany, bound together for two years, and carry with them two tents,

four wagons, twelve yoke of oxen and provisions for nine months."

Near the end of the journey Tinker records that the constitution

was missing, that an election could not be held, and so the company

decided to divide the money in the treasury. "The provisions we

agreed to consume together and divide the rest when we got through"

(entry of August 6). At least the Kingsville men, unlike so many

other parties, held together until the trek was completed, though

dissolving as a company.

Although Tinker seemed unaware of it, his group had a surpris-

ingly successful trip. One man was injured before the start from

St. Joseph, but he recovered, and all the others made the journey

safely. Cholera, gunshot accidents, Indian raids, and the other

dangers of the overland train passed them by. They made good time,

requiring 114 days to reach some outlying diggings, forty miles from

Johnson's Ranch.11 This was well below the average for the transit

and requires explanation.

Three factors may be suggested to account for their success,

namely, the size and homogeneity of the party, an early start, and

the fortunate assistance of a Missouri company in crossing both the

North Platte and the Green rivers. The Kingsville-Painesville com-

panies, traveling together but maintaining separate organizations,

constituted a party of some thirty men, all from the same general

locality. Larger groups, unless well organized and skillfully managed,

traveled more slowly, found grass for animals more of a problem,

and developed feuds and dissensions that often split them apart. The

advice of a member of another Ohio company, written from Cali-

11 Ibid., 230-232, for tables showing the travel schedules and number of days on the

road of thirty-one groups. Table II has one error. Isham's total should be 107 days

instead of 117. Nineteen required more than 114 days for the trip, and the totals of

three could not be tabulated. If Johnson's Ranch is regarded as the terminal point,

three days should be added to the Kingsville company's total. This would still leave

them well below the average. Dr. Charles E. Boyle's party (see footnote 3), using

mules and carrying corn until grass was available, required only 106 days.

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70      Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

fornia, is the voice of experience: "A company of 15 is enough, I do

not mean joint-stock company but only for protection, two is enough

for a joint-stock company, and perhaps they will break up."¹²

The early start is not explained in the journal or elsewhere. A

late spring held back the grass, essential for forage, and few com-

panies started before the second week of May. How Tinker's group

solved the forage problem is not clear. It did not make very rapid

progress until Fort Laramie was reached, but, even so, escaped the

worst congestion by a margin of nearly two weeks. Besides the

delays occasioned by river crossings, steep hills, the narrowing of

the trail, and other obstructions, the late starters found forage used

up in more arid and barren sections and ran into severe competition

for good camp sites. Cholera was also more widespread. It came

up the Mississippi and accompanied the gold seekers for many

weeks.

A third advantage was purely accidental-the tie-up with the

Findley-McCulloch party from Missouri, an incident explained at

some length in the journal. Undoubtedly the aid of the grateful

Missourians speeded up the crossings of the North Platte and Green

rivers, two formidable obstacles. Yet even this assistance is hardly

sufficient to explain the excellent time made by the Kingsville men

between Fort Laramie and Fort Hall. Their animals must have

been in good condition to have covered one difficult stretch of fifty-

three miles (their reckoning) in twenty-three hours with an hour

and a half for rest periods. Later, marauding Indians stole four

cattle and several were lost in the desert crossing, but there is no

mention of the abandonment of any wagons. The oxen were in

poor condition at the end of the long trek, but they had brought

the party safely to California.

Did the Kingsville men make use of a guidebook such as that

of Joseph Ware, published early in 1849,13 and referred to fre-

quently in many diaries? There is no direct evidence in the Tinker

journal, but there are some parallelisms that make it seem probable.

12 Ashtabula Sentinel, March 2, 1850. Letter of Calvin Munger, member of another

Western Reserve company.

13 Joseph E. Ware, The Emigrants' Guide to California. Reprinted from the 1849

edition with introduction and notes by John Caughey (Princeton, 1932).

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Charles Tinker's Journal                        71

At least they followed the orthodox trail and did not use cut-offs

or alternate routes (except for Sublette's Cut-off), as did those who

started later.

The journal is given here exactly as Tinker wrote it with spelling

and punctuation unchanged. Dates, however, have been italicized.

Proper names are given the correct modern spelling in footnotes.

At the end of the journal is appended some additional information

about the Kingsville men after their arrival in California.

 

II. CHARLES TINKER'S JOURNAL14

Chas. Tinker Journal on trip to California in the year 1849.--he left Kings-

vill Mar 20th 1849 Ashtabula Co. O with a company of Twelve from

same Township--Names to wit. Charles Tinker Chauncey Tinker, Lyman

Luce Webster Albert Webster, Hamilton Way, Lemuel Beckwith, John

Perkins A. N. Kent Albert Kendall John Packer, Henry A. Stone Horace

Tinker--and they were accompanied by John Capron & James Haynes of

Conneaut and James Bancroft Alford Marsh Henry Marsh and Augustus

DeFor [?] of Springfield Erie Co. Pa.--James Haynes and John Capron

clubed in with the Springfield Co gott up by James Bancroft and they

started with the Kingsvill on the same day the Kingsvill Co had a general

outfit of Such tools & clothing as they thought they should need. and three

wagons & two tents--the Springfield Co had one wagon and 1 tent the

first Night after starting we stopped at the House of Mr Gould in Richmond

Ashtabula Co. the next night the 21st we Staid in Poland Trumbull Co O.15

 

14 Other accounts in print which are useful for comparison are: Georgia Willis Read

and Ruth Gaines, eds., Gold Rush, The Journals, Drawings, and Other Papers of

J. Goldsborough Bruff (New York, 1949, and in two volumes, New York, 1944);

Alonzo Delano, Life on the Plains and Among the Diggings: Being Scenes and Ad-

ventures of an Overland Journal to California (Auburn and Buffalo, N. Y., 1854);

Elizabeth Page, Wagons West, A Story of The Oregon Trail (New York, 1930);

Owen C. Coy, The Great Trek (Los Angeles and San Francisco, 1931); Potter,

op. cit.; Mattes and Kirk, loc. cit., 297-318, 403-420. The last named is the diary of

J. B. Farnham, an Ohioan, who, with many other Buckeyes, went from Zanesville on

the steamer Enterprise. Zanesville Gazette, April 11, May 9, 1849. Irene D. Paden,

The Wake of the Prairie Schooner (New York, 1943), locates and describes the

California and Oregon trails as they were a few years ago when the author and

her family followed them. The book contains much historical information from con-

temporary sources and some excellent maps of each section of the trail, together with

sketches by the author. Many other books could be cited if space permitted.

15 Tinker was unaware that Poland was in Mahoning County, created three years

earlier from parts of Trumbull and Columbiana counties. The journey to Beaver was

made by horse and wagon, probably with hired horses, as was the case of the Paines-

ville company. See Painesville Telegraph in Cleveland Herald, March 30, 1849. Draft

animals were purchased later.

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72       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

the next night the 22nd we camped at town in columbian Co. The 23rd we

stayed over night in Bever Pa The 24th we took a Boat at Rochester Pa.

at the mouth of the Beaver River.-by the Name of Germantown the 25th

day and called at Stubenville over night and one day at Cincinnati and

called a few hours at Louisville Ky. then at Paducha Evansville Cairo. and

Arrived at St. Louis April 1, 1849 we bought our provisions here for our

Journey and left on the Steamer Elexander Hamilton for St. Joseph Mo

the 3d day of April and arrived at St. Joseph April 9th 1849.16 here we

bought our cattle. ten yoke at an average of $50 each and one Horse at $40.

with saddle and bridle-an 3 cows at $10 each. April 11 Way got shot acci-

dentaley while looking at Some cattle at Mr Steven's about 4 miles out east

of Town on the 19th of April we got all things ready and Started out

with three Wagons & 10 yoke of cattle-for Savannah Landing where we

arrived the 20th near sunset17

Journal

Hamilton Way was shot in the thigh April 11th with his own gun by an

axident from James Haynes stepping on an ox bow partly straitined out

which flew up and struck the hammer of the gun which caused it to go off

and discharge its contents in his thigh Way was a sitting on the fence just

over his gun looking at some cattle that we talked of buying. This hapend

at Mr Steven's about four miles from St. Joseph where he remained till we

left for California¹⁸

Journal For California

April 19th we got all things ready for a start we started with three wagons

-ten yoak of cattle at an average price of fifty four Dollars a yoak our load

consisted of 2000 lbs hard bread at 31/2 cents pr lb 500 lb side Bacon at 4

cents, 300 lbs muton hams at 21/2 cents pr lb 600 lbs Indian meal 11/2 cent

pr lb kiln dried, 80 lb Beans @ 11/2 lb. pr cents and 400 lbs sugar at 7

cents pr lb 100 lbs of flour @ 21/4 cents pr lb, 12 Gallons vinegar @ 15¢

15 Gallons Monongahela at 65 cents pr Gall. 3 Keggs Powder @ $5.25 pr

Keg three pigs of Lead 72 lbs each @ 41/2 cents 17000 cap Purcussions @

65 cnt pr thou four chests of Tea 24 lbs at 65 cents pr lb saluratus Medicins

16 St. Joseph, farther up the Missouri, had become a rival of Independence, the

older outfitting point for the Santa Fe Trail and the South Pass emigrants. Westport

was also important.

17 The journal up to this point seems to have been written after the dates indi-

cated. It appears on pp. 55-59 of the notebook after the last California entry.

18 Such accidents were all too common. See Ashtabula Sentinel extract in the

"Epilogue" (at the end of the journal) for a fatal accidental shooting of a member

of the party in California.

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Charles Tinker's Journal                          73

 

roaps axes shovels hoes Pick Blacksmith tools Gilletts Goods & C.19 thus

rigged we left St Joseph for savannah Landing to cross the Missourie we

arrived their at sunset.²⁰ April 20th we encamped on the banks of the river.

the day was pleasant & warm. 21st we got our traps ferried acrosst the

river and encamped in the Indian teritory on the west bank of the Missourie

here we lay till the 24th of April when we hitched up our teams & moved

back to the bluff about five miles and encamped on a small brook. Thursday

April 26th we took our final leave of the fronteer and moved on our way

to california we passed over a roling paraire dotted here & their with

a few shrubby trees and encamped on moose creek 27th we arrived at the

missionaray station about 10 A.M. here uncle Sam keeps an Indian agent.²¹

we traiveled 9 miles and encamped after a dispute as to where we should

stop Beckwith was in bad humor & had a good deal to say & blamed most

of the company for being such fools as he turmed us, but after a general

confab their was a vote taken to drop the subject & the company incamped

with a general good feeling. Tuesday May 1st we arrived on the west side

of the Nimewha and encamped here we held our election which resulted in

the election of the same officers that we started with except the steward.22

we chose John Capron in the place of A. N. Kent. some dissatisfaction was

manifested by some of the company about the chois. Wednesday May 2d

we broak one of the hind wheels to way's wagon in crossing a small brook

it hindered us about 1/2 day. Friday May 4 we arrived at the Big Blue at

19 It is hard to say whether this varied much from the normal supply of a Cali-

fornia company. Ware's Guide, 5-10, has suggestions, but Tinker's list does not

conform in several respects. The absence of dried fruits is most surprising, nor is

coffee included, though the tea supply was adequate. Why a company of this size,

all male, took three cows with them is a puzzle. But the Kingsville company came

from the dairy section of Ohio. And the cows survived and proved a profitable in-

vestment! Ware, op. cit., 22-23, warned against the use of milk in the alkali sections

of the trail. Whether the recommended maximum load of 2,500 Ibs. per wagon was

exceeded is impossible to say from the evidence above. Tinker does not mention the

abandonment of provisions and equipment, a commonplace occurrence on the trail,

but the company was running low on provisions at the end of the trek.

20 For a description of the congestion at the St. Joseph ferry, see Read and Gaines,

op. cit., 7 (1949 edition). Savannah Landing (Amazonia) was a few miles up the

river from St. Joseph. Ibid., 573, footnote 43. Packer's California letter (see Intro-

duction) tells of rain and high winds for several days after the start of the journey.

Tinker says little about the weather.

21 The Sauk (or Sac) and Fox Indian agency and Presbyterian mission and school.

Potter, op. cit., 78; Paden, op. cit., 59.

22 The Nemaha River curves northward into Nebraska and empties into the Mis-

souri. The camp must have been near present Seneca, Nemaha County, Kansas. How

often elections were held is not clear. Dissensions, even in small companies, were

common. Tinker does not mention any other instances.

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74       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

1 A.M. crossed by raising our wagon boxes²³ and incamped one miles from

the river on good feed wood and water May 16th we passed Fort Charles

300 miles from St Joseph and incamped about 3 miles west of the Fort.²⁴

Sunday May 20th our boys went out onto the bluff to hunt they all returned

about noon without bringing in any game except Webster Luce & Capron,

they had better luck Luce killed two antelope at one shot they backed one to

the road & we had got so far ahead that they could not overtake us that

night so the waited till Cap Bowmans company came up and staid with them

all night.²⁵ the next morning before breakfast they got into camp with one

quarter of the antelope which we had for breakfast May 21st I with 7

others started for the bluff in search of game about 10 A.M. we got in sight

of 3 elk Beckwith & Nash shot and wounded one when we all commenced

the chase 4 of us shot 16 shots 9 of them taking effect before we got him. he

weighed about 140 lbs we see some antelope & see some fresh Buffalo

tracks but we could not get any shots at them we had two horses along &

packed the meat on to them and got into camp about 1 P.M. we had all we

could eat as long as it would keep I shot at him 4 times 3 shots taking effects

Tuesday the 22d all that could leave the teams started for the bluffs in serch

of Buffalo they see 4 but could get no shots at them deer & Antelope was

plenty Horace killed one deer & wounded another in the hips Wm. Nash

shot one Antelope but it was so far from camp that he could not fetch it

in. the boys was so tired when they came into camp that they concluded

not to hunt any more till we had eat up what fresh meat we had & got

rested from their leight tramps.²⁶ we encamped at the forks of the platt

river on a little brook the feed was poor it had been eat down by Buffalo

their is not much wood at this place 23d we passed up the south fork of the

Platt their is considerable game in the bluffs along her the Buffalo had been

driven back by the first emigration. there is but a few small bands to be

seen as we passed along Saturday 26th we crossed the south fork of the

 

23 The crossing at Marysville, Kansas. See Ware, op. cit., 14-15. Geographical de-

tails are so meager in Tinker's journal that the exact route cannot be ascertained.

There is no entry for twelve days after May 4.

24 Ft. Childs, renamed Ft. Kearny (or Kearney) was established in 1848. Farnham's

diary (Mattes and Kirk, loc. cit., 304) calls it "Ft. Carney or Charles." See Read and

Gaines, op. cit., 21-22, 583-584; Potter, op. cit., 87-88. The fort was on the south bank

of the Platte River, some seven or eight miles southeast of present Kearney, Nebraska.

It is now a state park. See Paden, op. cit., 84-87, and Lyle E. Mantor, "Fort Kearny

and the Westward Movement," Nebraska History, XXIX (1948), 175-207. The

spelling "Kearney" was the result of an error but was generally accepted, though the

fort was named after General Stephen W. Kearny, who died in 1848.

25 "Cap Bowmans company" is nowhere identified.

26 From the attention Tinker gives to their hunting luck, it must have been their

first game of any consequence.

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Charles Tinker's Journal                         75

 

Platt river. it is one of the muddyest streams that I ever saw. The crossing

is about 40 miles from the junction of the North and south fork of the

Platts.²⁷ The river here is 3/4 of a mile wide & 21/2 deep. at the time we

crossed their was some 40 wagons in the river at once their was in sight at

this time one hundred and 14 wagons we encamped for the night about a

mile up the river here we held election for capt of our train when James

Haynes was unanimously elected capt of our train. Sunday 27th we traiveled

up the south fork 12 miles and nooned at an Indian Village here was 100

lodges strung along the river and about 600 Indians. these were Sioux

Indians.²⁸ we encamped for the night about 14 miles to the north west on

our way to the north fork of the Platt river 28th we started on our way and

arrived at the North fork about 11 A. M. we passed through Ash Hollow

about 9 A. M. their is a furstrate spring of cold water here the only spring

we had seen for 60 m there was plenty of wood here for camping purposes.²⁹

their considerable sand in the road along her we killed 7 rattle snakes this

day 29th we had verry sandy roads. there is no wood on the river here &

but a few ceeders on the bluffs and them some 5 m off from the river we

had to used Buffalo manure for wood here as we had have done most of

the way for 100 m back Wednesday 30th we lay over it rained and blew

so hard that we could not traivel.³⁰ June 1st we passed castle rock & en-

camped opposite of chimney rock³¹ It was a warm sunshiny day & we had

a beautiful view of the bluffs Chimney rock is about 2 m from the river.

the bottom or bass [base] of the rock is in the form of a hay stack & on

the top of the bacement part stands a purpendicular rock 100 ft high about

as large at the top as it is at the bottom the whole stack bacement and all

is about 250 feet above the level of the river it can be seen 30 m before

you get to it the bluffs all along here are high & Picturesque their is some

scatering norway pine & seeder trees on the bluff along here which is the

 

27 This may have been the Lower California crossing near present Brule, Nebraska,

but the distance from the forks (forty miles) suggests a crossing farther down the

river. The fact that the company followed the north bank for twelve miles before

turning northwest is further evidence. See sketch map in Paden, op. cit., 101, and pp.

106-113 for an interesting account of the difficulties of the ford.

28 Most diaries contain reference to Sioux in this area. The village may have been

the same one referred to in the Geiger-Bryarly diary (Potter, op. cit., 99, entry of

June 5). See also Mattes and Kirk, loc. cit., 307-308.

29 A familiar camping spot. See Paden, op. cit., 114 et seq.

30 Delano, op. cit., 57-59, comments on the terrible storm. See also Potter, op. cit.,

90-91; Page, op. cit., 135-136.

31 Nearly every account mentions these well advertised landmarks. See Ware, op. cit.,

18-19; Page, op. cit., 146-147; Delano, op. cit., 70-71; Potter, op. cit., 103; Read and

Gaines, op. cit., 28-29; Mattes and Kirk, loc. cit., 308-309. Tinker's "Castle Rock"

was evidently Courthouse Rock.

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76       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

 

only timber their is in these parts June 2d we arrived at scotts bluff we

traiveled this day 25 m at Scotts bluff their is a Blacksmith shop owned by

Roubedoux a Frenchman He has a squaw for a wife.32 the bluff arround

this place are high and crabbed you can see the blue ridge of the rocky

mountains & Larimies Peak 150 miles off June 5th we arrived at Fort Larimie

about noon.³³ this is built in the form of a fort for a trading station of adobie

or unburnt brick the wall incloses about 1/2 acre of Land 6th we arrived at

Bitter creek about 18 miles from the Fort here we discovered a shining

substance in the bead [bed] of the stream which we took to be gold &

mica we found one piece of pure gold,³⁴ which incouraged us to cend out

June 7th four men James Haynes Turner Mason & Ely to follow up the

stream in search of the fountain all well armed and equiped for the ex-

pidition. the arrived in camp June 9th at noon they traised the stream up

to its source at Larimies Peak they found some gold but it was into small

quantities to pay for digging Mason had the bad luck to loose his horse

by the bite of a rattlesnake as they supposed

on this part of the Black hills³⁵ the feed is very scarce we could find

scarcely anough for our cattle at noon this night we stoped on a small

stream about four miles from the North fork of the Platt without any

feed we let our cattle loos & they rambled so we had to get them up and

yoak them to in keep them in sight. this caused a good deal of scolding. Beck-

with swore he would not touch an ox that night. we got the yoak without

his help and about one O.C. Sunday morning we hitched on our teams and

drove on about two miles where Capt Haynes had found some feed the night

before but bfore he could get back to us we had let our cattle loose he not

getting back as soon as some wanted to have him is what made the fuss

this patch of feed was midling good to what we had had Sunday June 10th

we drove on to Deer creek about 7 m & laid over till Monday36 we caught

some fish here and James Haynes killed one Buffalo this day Monday June

l1th we arrived at the crossing of Platt river the Oquawka company 22

32 Robidoux's trading post. See Merrill J. Mattes, "Robidoux's Trading Post at

Scott's Bluffs, and the California Gold Rush," Nebraska History, XXX (1949),

95-138.

33 Fort Laramie was transferred to the United States government by the American

Fur Company about three weeks after Tinker saw it. Its history may be read in Leroy

R. Hafen and Francis M. Young, Fort Laramie and the Pageant of the West, 1834-

1890 (Glendale, Calif., 1938).

34 Bitter Cottonwood Creek is the correct name. Paden, op. cit., 178-179. How the

Kingsville party was certain this was gold is not clear.

35 Not to be confused with the Black Hills of South Dakota and northeastern

Wyoming.

36 Deer Creek flowed into the North Platte at one of the crossings of that river.

• 13
 

Charles Tinker's Journal                      77

 

wagons Capt Findley & Capt McCullouch of the Missourie train of 17

wagons were a crossing. they had made some boats of their own and were

crossing about 4 miles below the mormon crossing³⁷ we tried to get the use

of their boats to cross in. they said they made them for their own use and

calculated to distroy them as soon as they got over so as to prevent others

from crowding them so hard from behind they said they made theirs and if

we wanted to get over we might do the same. we offered them fifty Dollars

for the use of it. but to no use so we turned out our teams & commenced

making one of our own. we had but just got to work when we heard the cry

of men a drownding we run to the river & their we found two men of

Findleys train a drownding. they had attempted to cross the river on horse

back to drive over some cattle when their horses got stalled & throwed

them off & the river ran so swift & water so cold that they could not swim

ashore but floted down and logded on a bar in water up to their waists

and would have drownded in a few minutes if we had not saved their lives

James Haynes & Charles Davis swam into one of them with a rope and

tied it arround his body and we hauled them ashore. by this time we got

this one safe our men had got word to Capt Findley and he had a canoe

cut loose and two men rowed it down and saved the life of the remaining one.

we took them up to our camp & nursed them up and keep them till morning

when they were able to go to their own camp Capt Findley & McCullouch

felt so greatfull to us for our kindness and assistance that it seamed that they

could not do to much for us. they offered us the use of their boats & men

to help us over. we accepted their offer and by 12 O.C. P.M. Tuesday we

were on the other side of the river they said any assistance that they could

render us on the road would be given freely. their whole company appeared

to be men of honor. Newton Wood of Oquawka was one of their members.

by getting acrosst as soon as we did put us ahead of about two hundred

wagons & give us about three days the satrt [start] of those that crossed

at the regular ferry they made us pledge ourselves to distroy the boats as they

intended to do. just as we were about acrosst their was a train of wagons

inder Capt. Gallaway of Mercer Co Pa because we would not give the

boats up to them they thretened to take them away from us by force. Some

of Findleys men heard the threat and scent word to their train which had

got about three [miles?] from the ferry. they ammediately stoped their

37 The North Platte had to be crossed by ferry or by rafting. Tinker puts this

crossing place four miles below a Mormon crossing, evidently the Lower Ferry. The

Upper Mormon Ferry was about twenty-eight miles from Deer Creek, too far to have

been reached in part of a day. A week later Alonzo Delano's party crossed some-

where near the place described above. Delano, op. cit., 86-92.

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78       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

train & armed seventy men to the teeth and marched them to the ferry

to protect us and see that the boats were distroyed and that we were safe

over their was no disturbance made the boats were distroyed and we traveled

13 m on our way to california this day their was in sight of us to day some

100 wagons all on the move. they were strung long for two miles. Thursday

June 14th we passed I[n]dependance rock this is a solid mass of rock

covering about 20 acres of ground and upwards of one hundred feet high

travelers passing here have put on their names & the time they passed this.³⁸

quite a noted place it is situated on the banks of the sweet water river.

Friday June 15th I took view of the Devils gate this is a narrow channel

through a high rock where the sweet water forces its waters through the

gorge is about 30 feet wide & 400 feet high one solid mass of rock. this

place is five miles from Independance rock & 1/2 mile from the road the

scenery is beautifull.³⁹ we arrived in the South Pass of the rocky Mountains

Tuesday June 19th their wa[s] nothing worthy of note up to this date here

we found snow on the north side of the hills & the Peaks at the north were

covered with snow.⁴⁰ we had a light snow storm today the pass here is

some seven thousand eight hundred feet above the gulf of mexico. the

air here is very light and windy we could hardly get our breath we passed

a company of mountaineers here incamped on the sweet water they had

started for fort Larimie with a drove of horse to sell to the emigrants but

they met the first trains here and sold out their poneys here and scent back

to fort Bridger for a hundred & thirty more they sold them from 80. to

100 Dollars each & sold them quick at that.41 the atmosphere here is so

much differant here from what people are accostomed to that they are

apt to have the mountain fever Several of our men was taken sick with it

here they were taken by having a pain all over in their boans but the worst

in the back with a chill & fever.⁴² Wednesday June 20th we laid over one

day on the sweet water river five miles from the Pacific Springs in the south

pass we found good feed here. some of our boys went upon the mountains

to look for game Horace killed one Antelope they said that they could

 

38 Called "The Great Register of the Desert," the most famous of all trail landmarks.

39 Compare with Ware's description. Ware, op. cit., 23-24.

40 Tinker skips four days with his entries. Until recently South Pass could be crossed

by automobile only with the greatest difficulty. For the Padens' experiences, see Paden,

op. cit., 223-239. Yet in covered wagon days diarists commented on its easy, gradual

ascent. For example, see Potter, op. cit., 128; Delano, op. cit., 114-116.

41 Probably the same group of trappers, or mountain men, encountered by the

Charlestown company ten days later. Potter, op. cit., 125-127.

42 Packer's letter (Ashtabula Sentinel, March 23, 1850) says that the company lay

by one day because of mountain fever. "Stone, Kent and Charles Tinker were the

worst off."

• 15
 

Charles Tinker's Journal                         79

not hardly get their breath up their and they had not strength to walk very

fast. it makes a man feel as though he had no strength. I took violent could

to day. Thursday June 21st we fairly passed the sumit of the rocky mountains

and incamped on the little sandy. I was taken sick with the mountain fever

just as we drove into camp Friday June 22nd we started and drove over

to big sandy 7 m and turned out our cattle till 3 P.M. when we made a

start for green river distant 53 m without water⁴³ we stoped at 11 O.C. at

night one half hour then we drove till daylight & baited our cattle one

hour then hitched up & drove to the river where we arrived about 2 O.C.

P.M. Saturday June 23rd I was hard sick all the way & had to ride it

seamed as though the wagon hit all the stones on the road every bone in

me was on the aiche it made me think of home some. Sunday June 24th

we commenced ferrying accrosst green river⁴⁴ Capt Findley & Capt

McCullouch joined in with us and made a boat & Tuesday June 26th we

had all things over and ready for a start I was not able to help any in

crossing over-but I managed to keep up about & sold some one hundred

dollars worth of Gillett goods

Sunday July 1st we arrived at the beer springs on Bear river⁴⁵ I had just

got able to foot it a little my fever had left me but very weak, these spring

are worth seeing. the water in some of them spurts up 2 feet & tastes

some like small beer the road from green river passes over a rough

mountainious region the road some of the way was bad we had to let our

wagons down one hill with ropes but we arrived here in safety July 4th

we arrived at Fort Hall⁴⁶ from Beer Springs to the fort the road is bad

in crossing the dividing ridge that divides the waters of the Pacific & the

 

43 They were taking Sublette's Cut-off, which left the old Oregon Trail between

the Dry Sandy and Little Sandy and ran almost due west across a waterless desert.

William Sublette used it first in 1832. The older trail led southwest to Ft. Bridger

and then northward. The cut-off saved many miles but crossed rough country and

lacked water. Hence it was usually crossed at night. Tinker's estimate of 53 miles is

high. Ware's Guide called it 35 miles from Big Sandy to Green River, but most

Forty-niners thought this far too low. For other estimates, see Ware, op. cit., footnote

40; Paden, op. cit., 256-257.

44 The help of the Missourians enabled the Kingsville men to make a speedy cross-

ing. Alonzo Delano's party spent four days waiting their turn at a regular ferry.

Delano, op. cit., 122-127. J. E. Armstrong's party also waited four days. Manuscript

diary in the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society Library, entries of July

10-14, 1849.

45 Beer Springs, near present Soda Springs in southeastern Idaho, always amazed the

Argonauts. There were several effervescent springs. Steamboat Spring spurted two or

three feet into the air. Potter, op. cit., 144-146; Ware, op. cit., 28-29; Coy, op. cit.,

154; Delano, op. cit., 137.

46 Tinker's party followed the customary trail to Fort Hall. About two weeks later,

Hudspeth's Cut-off was opened up south of Fort Hall and later emigrants followed

it as a rule. It saved a few miles but very little time.

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80        Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

Great Interior Bacin and in crossing Port Nieuf river and the flatts we

had some bad slues to cross the worst we had seen on the road Fort Hall

is situated in the forks of Lewis & Port Nieuf rivers it is built of unburnt

Brick & covers about one quarter of an acres of ground.⁴⁷ here I see the

first Gold dust from California--the owners of this fort keep a large

heard of cattle & horses--from Fort Hall to raft river a distance of 60 m

the road leads down Lewis river over a sandy barren track of land covered

with not much but wild sage up raft river 30 m the road & feed is good

all the way Sunday July 15th we arrived on a branch of Marys river we

had a light showr of rain this day. Monday the 16th we reached the

main river from  raft river to marys river the distance is 145 m   the road

feed & water is good, but not much wood but wild sage we had but one

high ridge to cross in this distance & it was not bad, but tiresome to our

cattle in assending48-Mary's river here is a handsome stream with a

pleasant valy with a plenty of good grass & willow brush for wood here

we found Timothy grass and red clover in its native state.⁴⁹

Sunday July 22nd when about half way down Mary's river the Indians

stole four cattle from our train about 2 O.C. in the morning after missing

we scient out seven men to look after them.⁵⁰ they struck their trail and

followed them about ten miles up the mountains when they found one of

the cattle killed & skined & found the tracks of the other three where they

drove them of they the same night stole five horses from some Pack men

that was encamped close by & drove them of the same time. they not

seeing any Indians nor anything of the rest of the cattle they give up

the hunt and got into camp about 2 P.M. from this place we moved along

down the river without anything worthy of note untill we arrived at

47 Fort Hall, established as a trading post by Nathaniel J. Wyeth in 1834, was later

taken over by the Hudson's Bay Company and was still in its possession in 1849. For

an excellent contemporary description of the fort and its residents by J. Goldsborough

Bruff, see Read and Gaines, op. cit., 102-106. The site of the post is on the Snake

River just above the American Falls Reservoir, a few miles from Pocatello, Idaho.

The name is applied also to the Indian reservation and to the superintendent's head-

quarters today. Tinker uses the older name, "Lewis River" (after Meriwether Lewis

of the Lewis and Clark expedition), for the Snake River.

48 Apparently a reference to Granite Mountain, regarded usually as a formidable

obstacle. See Mattes and Kirk, loc. cit., 411 (entry of July 31), and Paden, op. cit.,

376-377.

49 Tinker uses the older name, Mary's River, for the Humboldt, the water life-line

of the Forty-niners, running west and southwest across northern Nevada. See Dale L.

Morgan, The Humboldt, Highroad of the West (New York, 1943), for its history.

50 Loss of animals from depredations of Ute Indians was common along the

Humboldt. Paden, op. cit., 379-381. Packer's letter says that the four cattle were found

dead and skinned, and that they had been shot with arrows. Ashtabula Sentinel,

March 23, 1850.

• 17
 

Charles Tinker's Journal                        81

the slew of marys river except that feed grew scarcer & water poorer &

the weather hotter we reached the slue July 31st here we found a cold

spring of sulphur water this we thought was good in comparison to the

river water which had got so muddy and hot that it was bad to use. this

spring is a little brackish.51 the river partly looses itself here in this

marshy slue. we had to drive our cattle 8 miles to feed this was good but

before our cattle got back to camp they was as hungry as ever August 1st

3 O.C. in the morning we left the slue for the sink where we arrived

at one in the morning of the 2d a distance of 20 m here we found a fiew

bull rushes and cane brake for our cattle but no water that we dare give

them to drink. this is the end of Marys river it sinks here in the sand.

the water here is so saturated with alkaly & salt that it is dangerous to us.

we left this place for sulphur wells in the morning a disdance of eight

miles here the water is barely fit for use. it is strongly inpregnated with

sulphur & salt we found no feed here. some of our cattle refused to drink

the water we lay here till 3 P.M. when we started our wried [wearied?]

teams for the boiling springs where we arrived at sunrise August 3rd

a distance of 25 miles we found no feed here & the water boiling hot we

cooled some for our cattle but they hated to drink it.52 the water is full of

mineral & a little brackish this place is a perfect hell upon earth. here

we were on the deserts of the great interior Bacin exposed to the hot rays

of a parching sun without any water fit for man to use still thirst compelled

us to use it every man that used it freely was taken sick & the only way

to save life was for us to leave this place as soon as we could which we

did at 5 P.M. for Truckies river a distance of 20 m before we reached

the boiling spring we had to leave 3 of our cattle by the side of the road.

the fatiegue was more than they could bear. it was hard for us to part

with animals to die with hunger & thirst which had served us so long and

faithful Painesville Co lost two & Bancroft team one. from the sulphur

wells to the spring the road sides was strewed with dead cattle horses

& mules when we come up to the hot springs one of the Painesville

Co. dogs came running up to the springs & steped his feet in to the water

it scaled him so he gave a leap into the bacin and was scaled to death

in an instant. The Thermomitor stood at 110 Deg[rees] above zero the

51 Referred to in Paden, op. cit., 414.

52 For more detailed descriptions of the desert route, see Potter, op. cit., 188-194;

Paden, op. cit., 415 et seq.; Page, op. cit., 186-187. Tinker's company followed the

Truckee road reaching the Truckee River near present Wadsworth, Nevada. Many

companies chose the Carson route to the southward to reach the Carson River and

usually fared worse. The latter was the better road once the summit of the Sierras

was passed.

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82       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

 

heat was almost unindurable but we left this hell of boiling liquid for

Truckies river as I said before at 5 P.M. we got a little hard bread down

our cattle before we left the only thing that it was in our powr to give

them to eat. we arrived at the river at sunrise on the morning of the 4th

with three of our wagons and all of our cattle except one which we had

to leave he got within 3 miles of the river & that was the last that we saw

of him⁵³ five of the wagons belonging to our train we had to leave 8 m

from the river and hitch all the teams on the 3 wagons that we got through

with here we found a stream of pure soft water from the Siera Nevada

mountains and a plenty of feed & the first trees we had seen for 460 miles

you cant imagin our joy on our arrival here. we was parched to death by

thirst almost. when within 8 or 10 miles of the river I lay down several

times to rest, it did not seam as though I could go any farther but it was

death to stay their so I had to budge along as best I could through the

burning sand till I reached the water. water was all my wants I would

have given all I possesed for a drink of cold water my tongue and lips

was parched and fured over so it took one hour to soak it of. Sunday Aug 5th

we got our cattle recruted so that they went after the remaining wagons at

night and arrived in camp at 2 O.C. Monday morning Aug 6th all safe

and sound Sunday their was a searmon pareached at a camp below us &

we got the Elder to preach to us at our camp in the eavning of the same

day it seamed the most like home to me that it had in any place since

I left the States here was the first feed to speak of that we had had for

the last 150 m here we were contented it seamed as though we had passed

over the scorching valy of death to life tongue cannot express the joy

that we felt when we see that we was safe over these deserts of America

Monday Aug. 6th we held a company meating we found the constitution of

the company missing. this prevented the Election of our officers whose

terms had expired & the company by mutual consent conclude to divide

the money that was in the treasury $268.50. it was divided into eleven

shares John Capron did not receive any by the companys releasing him

from the company as a member.⁵⁴ the provisions we agreed to consume

together & divide the rest when we got through

August 14 at 2 O.C. P.M. we found ourselves on the sumit of the Siera

 

53 This would make four oxen lost in the desert crossing. Packer's letter reported

five lost, but possibly he included the one lost by the Springfield men, traveling with

the Kingsville company. Tinker mentions that the Painesville company also lost two.

54 Capron was listed earlier as a member of the Springfield company.

• 19
 

Charles Tinker's Journal                         83

 

Nevada by doubling our teams we rose to the sumit without dificulty.⁵⁵

Horace & Myself climb to the sumit of the nearist Peak which was upward

of five hundred feet above the sumit of the pass from here we could se for

miles in each direction we could see peak hundreds of feet higher than

we wer covered with snow. snow lay on the sides of this peak and in the

pass. from here we descended into the valy of the Yuba and incamped on

good feed. these mountains are covered with Pine Fur cedar of stately

dimencions some measuring 26 feet in circumferance & upwards of 200

feet high

August 17th we desended into the valy of a small stream leading into

bear river & the next day we concluded to lay over a few day and cend our

cattle ahead to recruit they was to much reduced to draw our wagons any

further⁵⁶ from Yuba vally to this place the road is the worst that we had

seen⁵⁷ we had to assend rock rigdes and down the same where it was

almost imposible to get along we had to decind two hills where we had

to chain both hind wheels and rough lock them, then hitch all our team

behind but the wheel yoak by so doing we got down without much

dificulty--here we found ourselves in the Gold mines and people a digging

for the precious mettle⁵⁸ Horace Chauncey Lyman Albert & Myself went

out the 18th to try our luck with tin pans a washing Gold we got over one

oz. Sunday Aug 19th we washed out one oz and a half in the fournoon

we just went out to see what could be done Monday Chauncey & I made

a Gold washer in the form of a cradle & in the two following days we

made about 450.00 Dollars of Gold dust Horace Lyman & Albert worked

 

55 Tinker omits entries for several days, but apparently his party followed the old

Truckee route along the Truckee River up to Donner Lake and Pass and down into

a valley of one of the branches of the Yuba River. That they crossed the divide "without

difficulty" is surprising. See Paden, op. cit., 466-467. U. S. 40 today follows sub-

stantially the old trail along the Truckee through Reno, Nevada, across the Sierras to

Sacramento, leaving the trail, however, as it nears the last named city. The Forty-

niners followed the Bear River westward to the Feather River valley and down it to

the Sacramento River.

56 See the extract from Packer's letter which follows.

57 This agrees with Ware, op. cit., 41. See also Paden, op. cit., 467-468; Potter,

op. cit., 204 et seq.; Page, op. cit., 191-192.

58 The location of these diggings is uncertain, other than that they were on a

branch of the Bear River. It may have been Steep Hollow Creek. See Paden, op. cit.,

468-469. The Geiger-Bryarly journal of the Charlestown company has a description of

the same diggings but no location is given. Potter, op. cit., 210. It states that most of

the miners were emigrants who had sent their animals forty miles to the Sacramento

Valley to recruit and bring back provisions. Joseph Hackney saw his first diggings in

Steep Hollow. Page, op. cit., 192.

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84       Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly

with us. one day we made $30.00 apeace water & wood is good here

but no grass a baren mountainious place

[End of the journal]

 

III. EPILOGUE

[The following is part of a letter from John Packer to G. G. Gillett,

written from Upper California, January 22, 1850, printed in the Ashtabula

Sentinel, March 23, 1850. This letter has been referred to earlier.]

Our cattle were now nearly dead, being all shrivelled up--supposed to

have been something they had eaten^59--and [we] sent them on to Johnson's,

40 miles distant to recruit. While they were gone we commenced digging

for gold. We found from $25 to $100 worth each. Our cattle returning,

we proceeded on our way to the city. We were now nearly out of provisions,

which we found to be very high here. We proceeded on to Vernon, a city

only three weeks old, where we met Haines, who had went ahead previous

to our crossing the desert.⁶⁰ This city is situated at the junction of the

Sacramento and Feather rivers. A considerable business is done here. We

proceeded from thence to Sacramento where we disposed of our cattle and

wagons--selling our oxen at $65 per yoke, and 3 cows at $150.61 [The

letter then discusses conditions in California and adds a personal note.]

I have not seen any of the boys since I left them in Sept. I saw Stone

in Oct. who was yet sick. He told me he saw the boys the week before--

that they were all sick-and that I was doing better than any of them. I

have now provisions enough to last until the first of May, $300 in gold,

and a good set of mining tools.

 

*     *    *

[From the Ashtabula Sentinel, January 12, 1850.]

Mr. James F. Kendall of Ashtabula County, Ohio, was unfortunately

killed, in the night, by A. N. Kent. Kendall went out in the night, and

Kent, hearing the noise, supposed it an Indian, and going to the tent door,

told the Indian to be off. Kendall moved towards him, and Kent fired

 

59 Wild parsnip along the Truckee and wild laurel in the mountains were blamed

by other emigrants. Paden, op cit., 459; Potter, op. cit., 209.

60 Haines was a member of the Springfield company but had been captain of the

combined companies earlier. Did he go ahead on horseback?

61 The company lost money on the oxen purchased at $54 a yoke, considering the

inflated California prices, but the cows (apparently all three survived) were an ex-

cellent investment. They had cost ten dollars apiece.

• 21
 

Charles Tinker's Journal                     85

his pistol three times, and killed him instantly. The Jury declared it to be

"an unfortunate mistake." [News story from  California, no source in-

dicated.]

*    *     *

[Marriage announcement from the Ashtabula Sentinel, October 25, 1851.]

In Kingsville, at the residence of H. G. Thurber, Esq., Mr. Alonzo N.

Kent, recently from California, and Miss Martha A. Clark, of Kingsville.

 

*    *     *

[Marriage announcement from the Ashtabula Sentinel, December 27, 1851.]

In Kingsville, on the 18th inst., by Rev. J. W. Lowe, of Fredonia,

N. Y., Mr. J. W. Haines, lately of Sacramento City, California, to Miss

Cornelia F. Luce, of the former place. [Haines had been captain of the

Kingsville-Springfield companies and Lyman Luce a member.]

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