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To reach Sapling Grove in Kansas Territory we had to travel down the Missouri River some fifty miles [from Weston in Platte County] and then cross at the place known as Independence Landing. Then to go west about ten miles … Continue reading →

What kind of provisions did Bidwell pack for his expedition? It was understood that every one should have not less than a barrel of flour with sugar and so forth to suit. I laid in one hundred pounds of flour … Continue reading →

At almost the last moment, everyone abandoned the idea of crossing the plains. I cast about, however, and found in Platte County a man by the name of [George] Henshaw who was willing to go. He was old, quite an … Continue reading →

As the time approached, I became very anxious about the expedition but supposed a few would go with me. Finally I could not find a single member of the company who were sure to go. I went forward with my … Continue reading →

When May came, I was the only man that was ready to go of all who signed the pledge. In Weston, however, there was a man who had never signed the pledge but who had said from the beginning that … Continue reading →

Who doesn’t love a picture of a miner, a gold prospector, a forty-niner? Here he is, on the cover of the Wasp for October 17, 1891, in his red flannel shirt, blue Levis, tall brown boots, and broad-brimmed hat. Those … Continue reading →