urn:taro:utexas.cah.00469 Smith (Alexander W.) Letter, 1857 Original EAD encoding by Stacey Helmerich according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. January 2011 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Smith, Alexander W. Alexander W. Smith Letter 1857 Materials are written in English. 2005-027 1 item Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin Alexander W. Smith served under Edward Fitzgerald Beale as the wagon master during an expedition to survey for a wagon road from Fort Defiance, New Mexico, through Arizona and Texas to the Colorado River. Historical Note

Alexander W. Smith served under Edward Fitzgerald Beale as the wagon master during an expedition to survey a wagon road from Fort Defiance, New Mexico, through Arizona and Texas to the Colorado River. The former wagon master Gwinn Harris Heap resigned after an argument with Beale, and Smith was promoted to the position. The expedition included twenty-five camels with Arab and Turkish handlers to test their usefulness during cattle drives. The trail, now known as the Beale Wagon-Road, became a main route for settlers moving west and later part of Route 66.

Sources:

Camels.Handbook of Texas OnlineAccessed January 28, 2011. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/quc01.html

Olsen, Russell A.The Complete Route 66: Lost and Found.Voyageur Press, 2008. Accessed January 28, 2011.http://books.google.com/books?id=fOOEXzXkZNMC&lpg=PA2&pg=PA2#v=onepage&q&f=false

Scope and Contents

The Alexander W. Smith Letter, 1857, from Smith to James Andrews, dated Ft. Tejon, December 1, 1857, summarizes the expedition until its end at Fort Tejon on November 22. Smith writes about the health of the company (“all well without any one having required even a dose of medicine”), the dangers of traveling through “hostile Indian country,” and the agricultural landscape and economy of Texas. The letter also contains a description of New Mexico’s population, agriculture, and climate. Smith closes the letter with an anecdote about Beale’s encounter with 500 Native American warriors in Colorado.

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 Index Terms Subjects (Persons) Andrews, James Beale, Edward Fitzgerald, 1822-1893 Smith, Alexander W. Subjects Beale Road -- History Cattle -- Texas -- History -- 19th century Indians of North America -- West (U.S.) Places Albuquerque (N.M.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources Colorado -- History -- 19th century -- Sources El Paso (Tex.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources Fort Defiance (Ariz.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources Fort Tejon (Cali) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources Texas -- History -- 19th century -- Sources Southwest, New -- Description and travel United States -- Discovery and exploration West (U.S.) -- Description and travel Preferred Citation

Alexander W. Smith Letter, 1857, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 Detailed Description of the Papers Inventory 2J24 Smith, Alexander W. Letter, 1857