Historic Figures
WITH THE NAME CHRISTOPHER
Kit Carson is one of the best known characters in the pantheon of the American Old West. He was born in the Missouri Territory and apprenticed at a young age to a saddle-maker, but this was not the life for Kit. At the age of fourteen he ran off and started his extraordinary life with fur-trapping. As such, he mingled with Native American tribes and married first, an Arapaho woman and after her death, a Cheyenne. Although he could neither read nor write (except to sign his name) Kit was proficient in Spanish, French, and several Native American languages. His teaming up with John C. Fremont was serendipitous – he worked as a guide for Fremont and during their long association, Kit Carson was present on expeditions into the Sierra Nevada and the Oregon Trail, and took part in California’s Bear Flag rebellion. The tales of these exploits made Kit the subject of dime novels during his lifetime; his popularity only grew wider after his death. Kit Carson worked as a federal Indian Agent and while he advocated for the reservation system, it is generally believed that he did so in the spirit of trying to protect the native people from the growing hostility on the part of white settlers. Nonetheless, he was one of those responsible for the relocation of thousands of Navajo to a reservation in New Mexico, an episode that became known as the Long Walk, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds. After serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, Kit Carson retired to the life of a rancher in Colorado. In 1868 he traveled to Washington D. C. in order to plead for assistance on behalf of the Ute tribe. Certainly a man of his times, and manifesting the overriding sense of superiority of the white man, Carson still appears to have been closer than many to our somewhat more enlightened times.
Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Italy to the son of a weaver. He took to sea as a teenager on trading voyages in the Mediterranean. His first voyage on the Atlantic Ocean at age 25 almost resulted in his death after an attack. The ship was sunk and he was forced to swim to Portugal where he settled. Later, his ships and money were provided by Spain and in 1492 he sailed across the Atlantic into the "new world." While looking for sea passage to India, his goals were twofold: open trade routes and spread the word of Christianity. He sailed with the three famous ships: Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria and eventually made landfall somewhere near the Bahamas which was the closest he came to the mainland North America. He became revered as the "Admiral of the Ocean Seas" and a great explorer.
Saint Christopher is best known as the patron saint of travelers; you may notice that many people carry a relic of him in their cars or when they fly. Christopher lived in the 3rd century A.D. and lived during the Christian persecutions by the Roman Emperor of the time. Legend tells of Christopher carrying a small child across a dangerous river. The crossing becomes difficult due to the extreme weight of the child. This child turns out to be Christ who tells Christopher that he is serving the Lord through his work. Since Christopher safely brings Christ across the swollen river despite "the whole weight of the world and Him who made it" upon his shoulders - he is known to assure the safety of travelers.
Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Italy to the son of a weaver. He took to sea as a teenager on trading voyages in the Mediterranean. His first voyage on the Atlantic Ocean at age 25 almost resulted in his death after an attack. The ship was sunk and he was forced to swim to Portugal where he settled. Later, his ships and money were provided by Spain and in 1492 he sailed across the Atlantic into the "new world." While looking for sea passage to India, his goals were twofold: open trade routes and spread the word of Christianity. He sailed with the three famous ships: Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria and eventually made landfall somewhere near the Bahamas which was the closest he came to the mainland North America. He became revered as the "Admiral of the Ocean Seas" and a great explorer.
Saint Christopher is best known as the patron saint of travelers; you may notice that many people carry a relic of him in their cars or when they fly. Christopher lived in the 3rd century A.D. and lived during the Christian persecutions by the Roman Emperor of the time. Legend tells of Christopher carrying a small child across a dangerous river. The crossing becomes difficult due to the extreme weight of the child. This child turns out to be Christ who tells Christopher that he is serving the Lord through his work. Since Christopher safely brings Christ across the swollen river despite "the whole weight of the world and Him who made it" upon his shoulders - he is known to assure the safety of travelers.
Kit Carson is one of the best known characters in the pantheon of the American Old West. He was born in the Missouri Territory and apprenticed at a young age to a saddle-maker, but this was not the life for Kit. At the age of fourteen he ran off and started his extraordinary life with fur-trapping. As such, he mingled with Native American tribes and married first, an Arapaho woman and after her death, a Cheyenne. Although he could neither read nor write (except to sign his name) Kit was proficient in Spanish, French, and several Native American languages. His teaming up with John C. Fremont was serendipitous – he worked as a guide for Fremont and during their long association, Kit Carson was present on expeditions into the Sierra Nevada and the Oregon Trail, and took part in California’s Bear Flag rebellion. The tales of these exploits made Kit the subject of dime novels during his lifetime; his popularity only grew wider after his death. Kit Carson worked as a federal Indian Agent and while he advocated for the reservation system, it is generally believed that he did so in the spirit of trying to protect the native people from the growing hostility on the part of white settlers. Nonetheless, he was one of those responsible for the relocation of thousands of Navajo to a reservation in New Mexico, an episode that became known as the Long Walk, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds. After serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, Kit Carson retired to the life of a rancher in Colorado. In 1868 he traveled to Washington D. C. in order to plead for assistance on behalf of the Ute tribe. Certainly a man of his times, and manifesting the overriding sense of superiority of the white man, Carson still appears to have been closer than many to our somewhat more enlightened times.
Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Italy to the son of a weaver. He took to sea as a teenager on trading voyages in the Mediterranean. His first voyage on the Atlantic Ocean at age 25 almost resulted in his death after an attack. The ship was sunk and he was forced to swim to Portugal where he settled. Later, his ships and money were provided by Spain and in 1492 he sailed across the Atlantic into the "new world." While looking for sea passage to India, his goals were twofold: open trade routes and spread the word of Christianity. He sailed with the three famous ships: Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria and eventually made landfall somewhere near the Bahamas which was the closest he came to the mainland North America. He became revered as the "Admiral of the Ocean Seas" and a great explorer.
Saint Christopher is best known as the patron saint of travelers; you may notice that many people carry a relic of him in their cars or when they fly. Christopher lived in the 3rd century A.D. and lived during the Christian persecutions by the Roman Emperor of the time. Legend tells of Christopher carrying a small child across a dangerous river. The crossing becomes difficult due to the extreme weight of the child. This child turns out to be Christ who tells Christopher that he is serving the Lord through his work. Since Christopher safely brings Christ across the swollen river despite "the whole weight of the world and Him who made it" upon his shoulders - he is known to assure the safety of travelers.
