The Soldier in the Far West, 1848-1860

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AMONG THE HEROIC FIGURES who helped to build our Nation, few exerted a greater influence than the American soldier. From the days of the American Revolution to the late nineteenth century, he played a major role in extending our western frontier. Shortly after the Louisiana Purchase the army penetrated the Indian country, explored the new region, and attempted to pacify the tribes by peace treaties or by-punitive expeditions. Towards the middle of the century, when the domain reached the Pacific, the army became scattered over a vast area, and its activities multiplied. Meanwhile, the California gold discovery, with its mighty emigrant waves to the El Dorado of the Far West, made additional demands on the frontier army. In answering calls for defense, the troops stationed in the West performed a unique service for the nation. Between the Mexican and the Civil wars they protected the emigrant, the frontier settler, and the overland mail. They opened new trails, built roads, surveyed the principal western rivers as well as routes for transcontinental railroads, mapped international and territorial boundaries, and overawed the Mormons. An examination of the size and character of the army 'in the fifties, as well as of the conditions under which the soldier on the frontier lived and worked, throws considerable light on the problem of defense in the Far West. Prior to the Mexican War the United States army did not exceed 6,500 men.' This small force, distributed along the Atlantic seaboard, the Great Lakes, and the western frontier, occupied more than one hundred scattered posts and stations.3 The army was temporarily increased during the Mexican War, reaching a peak strength of more than