Fremont was again appointed to survey the West for the railroad by his father-in-law, Senator Benton. Fremont had never been in Colorado or Utah territory before, but the 38th parallel was the practical route for rail travel, so he offered to lead an expedition through the territory in the DEAD OF WINTER!
On November 1848 Fremont tried to recruit men at Fort Bent to join him - all of them turned him down. They knew that Sangre de Cristo in the winter was suicide. Fremont ignored them, of course, and reached Pueblo on the 21st of November. There he found Crazy Bill Williams who was 61 years old by now and an alcoholic. He, of course, volunteered to "guide" Fremont through the mountains. Even though Fremont knew better, he still accepted William's offer...I think they made a perfect pair if you have been following the blog for any length of time...By the way, Crazy Bill was suffering from a gunshot wound he received when he lead the military against his wife's own Indian people....
We continue this story next time with "With Friends Like These"...
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This Day in History: On November 27, 1878, Without bothering to identify the village or do any reconnaissance, Lieutenant Colonel George Custer leads an early morning attack on a band of peaceful Cheyenne living with Chief Black Kettle. Convicted of desertion and mistreatment of soldiers earlier that year in a military court, the government had suspended Custer from rank and command for one year.