Existing comment:
450-150 years ago (1541-1851 AD):
1541-1776: Spanish Explorers and Padres:
Adventurers and priests attempted to explore this part of New Spain for the Spanish Crown. The desert proved too difficult for the men and horses who tried to cross it, but trade goods passed easily along Indian trade mules.
1824-1849: American, Canadian and Mexican Trappers and Traders:
American and Canadian traders and trappers began to move into the region seeking fresh sources of furs. New Mexican traders opened a route to California that passed through southern Nevada. The impact of their horses, traps, trade goods, guns, and slave raids changed the way the native Southern Paiutes lived here.
1844-1854: US Military Explorers, Gold Seekers, and Mormon Settlers:
Capt. John C. Fremont (1844) made the first official US trip through the region, and first put many of its features on a map. Later, California-bound gold seekers hurried through. In 1851, the US postal service contracted with a Utah settler to carry the mail between Salt Lake City and San Francisco by way of the trail through southern Nevada. People began to learn that some desert places could be made into farms. |