Thomas Maitland Marshall

I thought this paper was pretty amusing from the point of view that the first thing the Marshall did was to 'attack' no less than Crittendon, Inman, and Gregg. I would say that it would take some gall to do so, but it is Marshall's claim that the scant amount of attention spent on the Santa Fe fur trade -- after Mexican Independence-- is their fault. He writes of Gregg:

"For over half a century Gregg's 'Commerce of the Prairies' has been
considered the classic for southwestern trade. It is a vivid account of
an eye-witness who made eight trips over the trails. But there are two
serious faults in Gregg's book. In the first place he did not engage in
the trade until 1831, and his knowledge of the preceding decades was
based upon hearsay or upon a few books of travel. As Gregg was a trader
in merchandise, a business which had practically superseded the fur trade
by 1831, it was but natural that he should convey the impression that the
early trade was of the same nature as the later."

And if that is true, then Marshall surely has made a valid point.

The second point of amusement I found to be the numerous complaints made by Mexican citizens against the illegal presence of Anglo-Americans on their land. Not only were the Americans in 'New Mexico' in disregard of the law, but they were taking Mexican 'jobs' or at least ravaging the Mexican landscape and destroying any future profits as they slaughtered every beaver in sight. Marshall quotes Governor Narbonna as telling his superiors "...that unless something was done at once the beaver would soon become extinct in that region". [This last part, of course, is not amusing at all.]

Summary [B+] ::: Marshall's purpose in writing this tract was to show that fur trade did indeed exist prior to mercantile trade on the Santa Fe Trail. He makes his point using the then newly uncovered documents from the Mexican Archives.

Besides some wonderful commentary on Crittendon and other historians, Marshall does some nice detective work. He shows, for example, that it was highly unlikely that Kit Carson, then 17 years of age, was on that expedition as the dates for Vrain's being in Santa Fe do not jibe with the "advertisement inserted by David Workman, to whom Carson was apprenticed, which stated that on or about September 1, Kit ran away."

Among the persons mentioned are Kit Carson, Ceran and Julian St. Vrain, E. Bure, Alexander Branch, Williams (possibly Ezekiel Williams), Louis Dolton, Stone, John Rueland or Roles, Miguel Robideau (or Robidoux?), Pratt (a well known as a caravan proprietor), and Joaquin Joon (possibly Ewing Young).

Pam T for PageinHistory.com… (plus d'informations)