What was kit carson famous for

White [the slain white woman] read the same…would pray for my appearance that she might be saved. For the first time in his married life, Carson was at home more than he was on the road. Despite his illiteracy, Carson was a very successful agent for the Utes. Unlike most Indian agents, he sincerely tried to work for the best interests of the tribe.

He was constantly at odds with various governmental officials over the way the Indians were treated. He wanted to live on the reservation with his charges but was not allowed to do so.

Almost on a daily basis, he and Josefa fed anywhere from 10 to 20 hungry tribesmen visiting Taos. The Indians of the region respected Carson. Why his integrity is simply perfect. They know it, and they would believe him and trust him any day before me. By all accounts it was a big, happy family. Kit Carson adored children and was an indulgent and doting parent.

His children would then jump on top of him and take the candy from his pockets. Family members say Kit Carson was shy. He was embarrassed and a bit humiliated by his fame, which was growing exponentially.

Writers from the East incorporated his name and embellished his exploits, making him the hero of dozens of dime novels. Carson never received a cent from these books for the use of his name. VIPs traveling in the Santa Fe region would look for him. Strangers would come up to him on the street and want to shake his hand. Writers came to interview him. Jesse B. Turley was in charge of the autobiography Carson dictated in Carson apparently provided few details and failed to make his adventures sound dramatic.

The manuscript was turned over to Dr. De Witt C. Carson signed a certificate stating that Peters was his only authorized biographer. Carson continued as the Ute agent until , when things changed dramatically for him and most other Americans.

The United States was at war with itself. He moved his family to Albuquerque, where he was charged with training the New Mexico recruits. In October, he was promoted to colonel. Carson took part in the February 21, , Battle of Valverde, the first major Civil War engagement on New Mexico soil, but he spent most of the war dealing with Indians.

Major General James H. Carleton, who had been given command of the Department of New Mexico in September , was intent on pacifying the Navajos and Mescalero Apaches.

Carson was ordered to subdue both tribes as soon as possible and then take them to their new reservation at the Bosque Redondo in eastern New Mexico Territory. In recent years he has been accused of actions that were not his own. Although he did his best to keep order within his ranks, the fact was that his best soldiers were back East fighting the war.

Many of his volunteers drank heavily and were disreputable. It can be argued that he failed to maintain military discipline. Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer would face similar bad odds at the Battle of the Little Bighorn a decade later. Unlike Custer, however, Carson, with the help of 10 mountain howitzers, successfully fought off the enemy.

Carson eventually headed back to New Mexico with most of his force intact. Whoever heerd of sich doins among christians! Well, here come along that durned Chivington and his cusses. So they just pitched into these friendlies, and massa-creed them…in cold blood….

During the Civil War, he helped organize New Mexican infantry volunteers, which saw action at Valverde in Most of his military actions, however, were directed against the Navajo Indians, many of whom had refused to be confined upon a distant reservation set up by the government.

Beginning in , under orders from his commanders in the U. Army, Carson waged a brutal economic war against the Navajo in an attempt to relocate them, marching through the heart of their territory to destroy their crops, and rounding up their livestock, some of which was later given to those that surrendered.

The US military was unprepared for the large number of Navajo, and in only a couple of years, with the ground depleted, the ill-planned site became disease-ridden. In , the Navajo were allowed to return to land along the Arizona-New Mexico border.

During this time, in Carson was given a commission as Brigadier General and cited for gallantry and distinguished service.

In the summer of , he moved to Colorado to expand his ranching business and took command of Fort Garland. Ill health forced him to resign the following year, and in late, the family moved to Boggsville , near present-day Las Animas, Colorado.

Although his health suffered again after his travels, he awaited an appointment as an Indian Agent for the Cheyenne and Arapaho in Colorado. Soon after his return, his wife Josefa died on April 23, , from complications after giving birth to their eighth child. Her death was a crushing blow to Carson and he was soon taken to Fort Lyon , Colorado, where he would also die, just one month later on May 23, In the presence of Dr.

Carson died from an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Carson was transported to Boggsville, and buried beside his third wife, Josefa. A year later, both bodies would be taken to Taos, New Mexico, for their final burial. The local cemetery soon became the Kit Carson Cemetery in honor of the famous frontiersman. Carson is still remembered for his many roles — trapper, explorer, Indian agent, and soldier. With his tremendous life experiences, he has come to symbolize the American West.

After his death, the Kit Carson House changed ownership several times before Bent Lodge 42, a Masonic Order, purchased the home in Carson himself was the founder of the parent order in Taos, New Mexico during his lifetime. Carson also later became a popular hero in many Western novels. Carson also guided the expedition to California and Oregon. During this time, he found himself caught in the Mexican-American War.

Sent to Washington, D. Kearny and his troops to California. Kearny's men clashed with Mexican forces near San Pasqual, California, but they were outmatched in the fight. Carson slipped past the enemy to secure aid from American troops in San Diego. After the war, Carson returned to New Mexico, where he lived as a rancher. In , Carson took on a new role, agreeing to serve as a federal Indian agent for northern New Mexico, primarily working with the Utes and the Jicarilla Apaches.

He saw the impact of western migration of the white settlers on the Native Americans, and he believed that attacks on white people by Native Americans were committed in desperation. To prevent these people from becoming extinct, Carson advocated for the creation of Indian reservations. Serving as a lieutenant colonel, he was involved in the bloody clash with Confederate soldiers at the Battle of Valverde in Carson also led campaigns against Native American tribes in the region, most infamously the effort to force the Navajo to relocate to the Bosque Redondo reservation at Fort Sumner.

Carson and his men destroyed crops and killed livestock, their onslaught paving the way for traditional enemy tribes of the Navajo to follow with their own attacks. Starving and exhausted, the Navajo finally surrendered in , and were forced to march about miles to the reservation. Inside, several of the rooms, including the living room, kitchen and bedroom, are carefully restored and authentically refurnished with period furniture.

Other rooms contain exhibits. The museum also includes a replica of a small chapel space and religious articles, as Josefa Jaramillo was a practicing Roman Catholic. The museum also has a bookstore and gift shop. Just around the corner in Kit Carson Memorial State Park is the local cemetery with the graves of Carson and his wife.

It is located at Kit Carson Rd. The Kit Carson Home and Museum is open to the public daily from am to pm. For more information, visit the Kit Carson Home and Museum website or call American frontiersman, trapper, soldier and guide Kit Carson is one of the great heroes of the Old West.