Jedediah Smith

From My Class Wiki

Jedediah Smith was the first person to cross from the east coast of the United States to the west overland. He was a fur trapper when demands for beaver pelt was high. That meant pelt was very expensive. The population of the furry mammals were shrinking so they had to travel west. Smith led a team of 17 men on a trapping expedition near the Great Salt Lake. Not knowing he was becoming a trailblazer, a person who makes new trails, he led the group through the Mojave Desert. There, there were indian guides to lead the rest of the expedition. He asked Jose Maria Echeandia, the the governor of California , for permission to hunt in California. Thinking he was an American spy, he ordered Smith to leave California. SMith agreed but did not keep his wor.He hunted in northerrn California until he got caught and jailed. Captains of many ships vouched for him and he was freed. He died searching for water on indian territory and was assasinated by natives.

(Edward June,6,2009)