Eureka weekly sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1887-1902, 1896-10-17
E..LY HISTORY OF NEVADA
vvom am A ddress Delivered by Pro-
fessor Levers Rs the University

fegsOr Robert Levers lecture peioic
the General Assembly September 30 ::
Probably the Jesuit Garces was the
first European to set foot in Nevada,
for he was in Northern Arizona on the
Colorado river in January, l776. AT
any rate he interviewed the Yavapai
Indians, who lived north OF the Colo
RADIO, and obtained many interesting
items about the three large rivers that
flowed from the Rocky Mountains
directly west into the Pacific ocean.
This false information was source
of trouble to Fremont and other later
explorers.
In 1926 Jedediah s. Smith, New
Yorker, and member Of the Rocky
Mountain Fur Company, entered
Nevada from the direction Of the Yel-
lowstone country, discovered the
Humboldt river, and named it Mary's
river. He came down the Humboldt,
crossed the Carson river and followed
the West Walker TO its source, crossed
the Sierras and stopped in Tulare.
On his return he is said to have dis
covered gold near Mono Lake in 1926.
Peter s. Ogden came down from
Idaho and trapped for beaver on
Mary's river in 1881. Many OF the
trappers knew the river as Ogden
river. In 1888 B. l.. +. Bonneville,
United States army officer, in charge
Of a private exploring party, sent
Joseph Walker, famous Rocky
Mountain trapper, with forty men b
explore the Ogden river. Walker de-
scended the Ogden river, passed south
toward the sink of the Carson, and
ascended the West Walker, following
Smiths route over the Sierras. Kit
Carson was on the Ogden river in
1888 with Hudson Bay Company
trappers.
In lS4l the first immigrant party
crossed Nevada. This party is general
ly known as the Bartleson party,
although John Bidwell OF Chico, the
famous California pioneer, VAS the
best known member OF it. They were
the first people to bring wagons into
Nevada, but were compelled to aban-
don them on the Great American
Desert. Bidwel's party followed the
Humboldt-Walker route, and as John
Bidwell afterwards regretfully said,
They missed the beautiful Truckee
Meadows, which lay short distance
north of our road"
In January. 1874, Fremont, "The
Pathfinder" came down from the
Columbia river, entering Nevada
somewhere north OF Honey Lake.
Fremont discovered Pyramid Lake
and gave it that name because Of the
remarkable esemblance Of one OF its
islands to the Pyramid OF Cheops.
He named the river the Salmon Trout
river. Fremont left the river at the
present site Of Wadsworth, and cross.
Ing the Carson followed the East
Walker until he was compelled to
turn and try the West branch. After
hard-fought battle with the January
SHOWS in the Sierras, he reached Cali
fornia. but was compelled to abandon
his mountain howitzer in q canyon
that was afterwards known as Lost
dun Canyon. This gun was found by
William Wright dan de Quille). and
is now at Glenbrook, Nevada.
In lS45 Fremont crossed Nevada
south OF the usual route along the
Ogden river, and under the guidance
OF Kit Carson explored the Carson
river and valley. He named the
Humboldt river after Alexander Won
Humboldt, the great German geolo-
gist; the Walker after Joseph Walker,
the famous trapper and guide; the
Carson river and valley after Christie
pher Carson, the noted Indian fighter
and guide. and gave Ovens Valley its
name in honor OF another OF his men.
Fremont discovered Lake Tahoe and
named it Lake Bonpland in honor OF
Amade Bonpland. the famous botanist
that accompanied Humboldt in his
travels. The Truckee river was named
after Truckee, the Indian guide who
conducted the Murphy party OF immi-
grants up the Truckee and over the
mountains in 1874. The members ol
the Murphy party were the first white
people to visit the Truckee Meadows.
The Cooper party followed the
Truckee route TO California in 1876
and late in the same year the unfor-
tunate Donner party tarried four days