Peter A. Sarpy
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Peter Abadie Sarpy (1804 – January 4, 1865) was a French-American entrepreneur and
fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...
. He was the owner and operator of several fur trading posts essential to the development of the
Nebraska Territory The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Nebraska. The Nebrask ...
and a thriving ferry business. Also, he helped plan the towns of
Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. Bellevue or Belle Vue may refer to: Places Australia * Bellevue, Queensland * Bellevue, Western Australia * Bellevue Hill, New South Wales Canada * Bellevue, Alberta * Bellevue, Newfoundlan ...
and
Decatur, Nebraska Decatur is a village in Burt County, Nebraska, United States, adjacent to the upper Missouri River. The population was 481 at the 2010 census. This town is named after one of its incorporators, Stephen Decatur. It developed around a trading post ...
. Nebraska's legislature named Sarpy County after him in honor of his service to the state.


Biography

Peter A. Sarpy was born in
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
in 1804. His father Gregoire Berald Sarpy was born in
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
in 1764 and moved to St. Louis in 1786; Gregoire Sarpy was one of 10 children of Charles and Susanne Trenty Sarpy, immigrants from
Fumel Fumel (; ) is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France. Situated at the right bank of the river Lot, it is the centre of a small agglomeration (population 13,028 in 2017) which consists of 7 communes, including Monsem ...
,
Gascony Gascony (; ) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part of the combined Province of Guyenne and Gascon ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. He was christened Pierre Sylvester Grégoire Sarpy, but he later anglicized his name. He also took his mother's maiden name, L'Abadie, using "A" for his middle initial. Peter's father was Grégoire Sarpy, who died in 1824. Peter had two brothers. The family was French Creole from Louisiana. They joined other ethnic French in migrating to the growing town of St. Louis after the
Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...
in 1803 by the United States. The lucrative fur trade and much of the economy of St. Louis was originally dominated by ethnic French families. They established trading posts along the upper Missouri River and also to the Southwest in Spanish territory.


Nebraska Territory

In 1824 at the age of 19, Sarpy went to the upper
Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...
, in the
Nebraska Territory The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Nebraska. The Nebrask ...
, to work at the
American Fur Company The American Fur Company (AFC) was a prominent American company that sold furs, skins, and buffalo robes. It was founded in 1808 by John Jacob Astor, a German Americans, German immigrant to the United States. During its heyday in the early 19th c ...
's trading post at
Council Bluff Council Bluff may refer to: * Council Bluffs, Iowa ** Council Bluffs Municipal Airport * Council Bluff, Nebraska, the site of Fort Atkinson * Council Bluff Lake and Council Bluff Recreation Area in Missouri * Council Bluff, a location in DeKalb ...
, north of present-day
Bellevue, Nebraska Bellevue ( French for "beautiful view"; previously named Belleview) is a suburban city in Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Omaha–Council Bluffs metropolitan area, and had a population of 64,176 as of the 2020 census, ...
. He was based at Fort Bellevue until 1831. That company was owned by renowned American fur baron
John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-born American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor. Astor made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by exporting History of opiu ...
, who established a monopoly in the industry. Sarpy next worked for his brother's father-in-law, John Pierre Cabanné, who ran Cabanne's Trading Post. Cabanné's Post and Pilcher's Post, the latter established at Bellevue by the
Missouri Fur Company The Missouri Fur Company (also known as the St. Louis Missouri Fur Company or the Manuel Lisa Trading Company) was one of the earliest fur trading companies in St. Louis, Missouri. Dissolved and reorganized several times, it operated under variou ...
, competed for the fur trade of area Indian tribes: the
Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
,
Ponca The Ponca people are a nation primarily located in the Great Plains of North America that share a common Ponca culture, history, and language, identified with two Indigenous nations: the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma or the Ponca Tribe of ...
,
Otoe The Otoe ( Chiwere: Jiwére) are a Native American people of the Midwestern United States. The Otoe language, Chiwere, is part of the Siouan family and closely related to that of the related Iowa, Missouria, and Ho-Chunk tribes. Histori ...
, and
Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska * ...
. The Missouri Fur Company was founded by French Creole families of St. Louis. Some of their ancestors had migrated to the new settlement of St. Louis in the late eighteenth century from farms in western Illinois. They left when the latter area was transferred from French to British control following Great Britain's victory over France in the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
. More migrated after the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
, as they wanted to evade US Protestant rule in Illinois. The fur trade in the region yielded such profits that for decades it was the most important driver of the St. Louis economy. In 1821 it represented $600,000 of the town's annual commerce of $2 million. Sarpy later established a trading post and supply point for white settlers and pioneers on the
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
side of the upper
Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...
. It went by various names, including Sarpy's Point and the "Trader's Post". In 1832 Cabanné ordered Sarpy to head a group of American Fur Company employees to take over a
keelboat A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open w ...
and goods which belonged to a competing company. Because of its profits, the fur trade business had cutthroat competition. After they were caught, US authorities ordered Cabanné and Sarpy to leave the Indian Territory for a year. The company replaced Cabanné with Joshua Pilcher at Cabanné's Trading Post in North Omaha. Sarpy operated the Council Bluff trading post during 1835.


Colorado

Sarpy moved westward the next year, and in 1837 he established Fort Jackson on the upper
South Platte River The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River. Flowing through the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska, it is itself a major river of the American Midwestern United States, Midwest and the American Sou ...
in present-day
Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
. Financed by Pratt, Chouteau, and Company, Sarpy established the fort with the help of Henry Fraeb, an experienced trapper and former Rocky Mountain Fur Company man. At Fort Jackson, the two traded tin ware, traps, clothes, blankets, powder, lead, and whiskey for pelts. Sarpy did well at this trading post, maintaining an inventory of $12,000 and paying his employees $200 a year. Bent, St. Vrain & Company bought out Fort Jackson to avoid competing with the Sarpy operation. After the sale, Sarpy cut ties with Fraeb. Fraeb was killed in 1850 by Sioux Indians (
Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan languages, Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of ...
) along the
Snake River The Snake River is a major river in the interior Pacific Northwest region of the United States. About long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, which is the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. Begin ...
.


Missouri

At some point, Sarpy returned to St. Louis, where he owned at least one slave, known as Andrew. Andrew's mother, Celeste, helped her son to sue Sarpy for his freedom in 1839. In this process, she filed as his "next friend", as authorized under the state's slave law. Andrew alleged trespass and false imprisonment. Apparently members of Andrew's family had earlier been pronounced free by a verdict of the circuit court of St. Louis and St Charles county. Andrew said that Sarpy had beat and mistreated him and, most importantly, held him as a slave although he was a free person. The suit asked for damages of $200 and Andrew's freedom. Sarpy pleaded not guilty to these charges, but he was convicted in court on February 2, 1841.


Returning to Nebraska

In 1838, Sarpy returned to the Bellevue area and built another trading post. He lived primarily at Fort Bellevue for the next twenty-six years. After Sarpy returned, he became influential in community affairs. About 1846 he started a ferry business across the Missouri, between Bellevue and the Iowa side. Through the next year, he ferried migrating
Mormons Mormons are a Religious denomination, religious and ethnocultural group, cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's d ...
across the river and also sold them supplies for the rest of their westward trip. During the ensuing
gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, ...
years, Sarpy's ferry boats hauled many would-be gold miners across the Missouri River. Sarpy expanded his ferry business in two other locations: to cross the
Elkhorn River The Elkhorn River is a river in northeastern Nebraska, United States, that originates in the eastern Sandhills and is one of the largest tributaries of the Platte River, flowing and joining the Platte just southwest of Omaha, approximately ...
at Elkhorn City, later called Elk City, and also at a fork of the
Loup River The Loup River (pronounced /lup/) is a tributary of the Platte River, approximately long, in central Nebraska in the United States. The river drains a sparsely populated rural agricultural area on the eastern edge of the Great Plains southeast ...
near present-day Columbus. By the 1850s, his fleet included a steam-powered ferry. Through his efforts, in 1849 a United States post office, mark of a rising town, was established in Bellevue. Following the United States' negotiation in 1854 of a treaty by which the
Omaha people The Omaha are a federally recognized Midwestern Native American tribe who reside on the Omaha Reservation in northeastern Nebraska and western Iowa, United States. The Omaha Indian Reservation lies primarily in the southern part of Thurston Co ...
ceded their land in Nebraska, that year Sarpy was among the group that laid out the town of
Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. Bellevue or Belle Vue may refer to: Places Australia * Bellevue, Queensland * Bellevue, Western Australia * Bellevue Hill, New South Wales Canada * Bellevue, Alberta * Bellevue, Newfoundlan ...
. In 1857 Sarpy joined
Stephen Decatur Commodore (United States), Commodore Stephen Decatur Jr. (; January 5, 1779 – March 22, 1820) was a United States Navy officer. He was born on the eastern shore of Maryland in Worcester County, Maryland, Worcester County. His father, Ste ...
and others in founding Decatur along the Missouri in northeastern Burt County."Bellevue - Sarpy County"
University of Nebraska-Lincoln A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...
. Retrieved 8/8/08.
Sarpy and his family moved to
Plattsmouth Plattsmouth is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 6,620 at the 2020 census. History The Lewis and Clark Expedition passed the mouth of the Platte River, just north of what is now Main Str ...
in 1862. He died there on January 4, 1865. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery in
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
.


Marriage and family

Sarpy married ''Ni-co-mi'' (also spelled ''Ni-co-ma''), a woman of the
Iowa people The Iowa, also known as Ioway or Báxoje (, "grey snow people"), are a Native American tribe. Historically, they spoke a Chiwere language, Chiwere Siouan language. Today, they are enrolled in either of two federally recognized tribes: the Iowa T ...
. She brought her mixed-race daughter Mary Gale to the marriage. ''Ni-co-mi'' had been the consort of the American surgeon John Gale, who had been stationed at Fort Atkinson in Nebraska. When it was closed in 1827 and Gale was reassigned, he left ''Ni-co-mi'' and Mary behind.Erin Pedigo, ''The Gifted Pen: the Journalism Career of Susette "Bright Eyes" La Flesche Tibbles''
Master's Thesis, University of Nebraska Lincoln, April 2011, accessed 23 August 2011
Sarpy and ''Ni-co-mi'' are not known to have had any children together. As an adult, Mary Gale (also known as ''Hinnuaganun,'' or One Woman) married Joseph LaFlesche, a
Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...
fur trader of
Ponca The Ponca people are a nation primarily located in the Great Plains of North America that share a common Ponca culture, history, and language, identified with two Indigenous nations: the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma or the Ponca Tribe of ...
and French descent. Adopted as a son by the Omaha chief
Big Elk Big Elk, also known as ''Ontopanga'' (1765/75–1846/1848), was a principal chief of the Omaha (tribe), Omaha tribe for many years on the upper Missouri River. He is notable for his oration delivered at the funeral of Black Buffalo (chief), Black ...
and designated his successor, LaFlesche became the last recognized principal chief of the Omaha and the only one to have had any European ancestry. He led the people in their transition to living on a reservation."Joseph La Flesche: Sketch of the Life of the Head Chief of the Omaha"
first published in the (Bancroft, Nebraska) ''Journal''; reprinted in ''The Friend'', 1889, accessed 23 August 2011


Honors and legacy

* Sarpy County was named in his honor."Peter Abadie Sarpy"
Nebraska Social Studies Association. Retrieved 8/8/08.
* Sarpy's Post was added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
.


See also

*
History of Nebraska The history of the U.S. state of Nebraska dates back to its formation as a territory by the Kansas–Nebraska Act, passed by the United States Congress on May 30, 1854. The Nebraska Territory was settled extensively under the Homestead Act of ...
* French people in Nebraska


References


External links


Historical image
of Peter Sarpy. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sarpy, Peter 1804 births 1865 deaths American fur traders Businesspeople from St. Louis People from Washington County, Nebraska Nebraska people of French descent Sarpy County, Nebraska People from Plattsmouth, Nebraska People from Bellevue, Nebraska American Fur Company people 19th-century American businesspeople Date of birth missing