Thomas Jefferson Farnham (1804–1848) was an explorer and author of the American West in the first half of the 19th century. His travels included interaction with missionary

Jason Lee Jason Michael Lee (born April 25, 1970) is an American actor, filmmaker, photographer and former professional skateboarder. He is known for playing Earl Hickey in the television comedy series ''My Name Is Earl'', for which he was nominated for ...

, and he later led a wagon train on the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in North America that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon Territory. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail crossed what ...

. While in

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long Oregon boundary dispute, dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been demarcat ...

he wrote a petition to federal authorities that requested federal protection of the region from the United States government, which was signed by many of the local settlers who had come from the United States.

Early/Middle life

In 1804 Thomas Farnham was born in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, in either

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

or what later became the state of

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

.Corning, Howard M. (1989). ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 83. He then received an education at Phillips Academy, Andover and moved to

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Ill ...

, where he became a lawyer. Farnham was married in 1836 to Eliza Woodson Burhams, and they had three children. In 1839 he heard a lecture by Jason Lee on

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

where Lee had set up a

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

to preach to the Native Americans in the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

. At the time Lee was recruiting more people for the mission. After this lecture Farnham joined the

Peoria Party The Peoria Party ( ) was a group of men from Peoria in the U.S. state of Illinois, who set out about May 1, 1839, with the intention to colonize the Oregon Country on behalf of the United States and to drive out the English fur-trading companies ...

that was headed for Oregon and became the captain of the group of 19. The Peoria men called themselves the Oregon Dragoons and carried with them a flag, a gift from Mrs. Farnham, emblazoned with their motto "OREGON or the GRAVE".

Travels

Captain Farnham and the Oregon Dragoons traveled the Oregon Trail and arrived at

Fort Vancouver Fort Vancouver was a 19th-century fur trading post built in the winter of 1824–1825. It was the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company's Columbia Department, located in the Pacific Northwest. Named for Captain George Vancouver, the fort was ...

along the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

with only five people of the 19 that began the journey. The other members of the party deserted the group along the way. Farnham wrote a petition for the American settlers while in the region. This document was signed by many of the U.S. pioneers, and called on the federal government to extend its jurisdiction over the area in order to protect Americans and their interests. At the time, the region was uncontrolled by any country, though both the British and Americans had economic interests and citizens in the region. Thomas Farnham then left the settlements of the

and sailed for the Sandwich Islands. Returning to the mainland, he landed at

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

, capital of

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

. While there, Farnham helped to secure the release (in 1841) of a group of Americans, British and

Californios Californios (singular Californio) are Californians of Spaniards, Spanish descent, especially those descended from settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries before California was annexed by the United States. California's Spanish language in C ...

, arrested in Alta California in 1840 and sent by ship to San Blas, then overland to a prison in

Tepic Tepic () is the capital and largest city of the western Mexico, Mexican Political divisions of Mexico, state of Nayarit, as well as the seat of the Tepic Municipality. Located in the central part of the state, it stands at an altitude of above ...

. Governor Juan Alvarado, assisted by military commander

Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo Don Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo (July 4, 1807 – January 18, 1890) was a Californio general, statesman, and public figure. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of the Republic of Mexico, and shaped the tran ...

,Thwaites, Reuben Gold. 1906. ''Early western travels, 1748-1846''. Cleveland, Ohio: A.H. Clark Co. Vol. XXVIII, p 13-14. accused the men, involved in what became known as the Graham Affair, of plotting a revolt against the Mexican government.Charles B. Churchill, Thomas Jefferson Farnham: An Exponent of American Empire in Mexican California. ''The Pacific Historical Review'', Vol. 60, No. 4 (Nov., 1991), pp. 517-537. During the Graham Affair, Farnham traveled to San Blas, arriving on May 16, 1840, then went on to Tepic to meet with the prisoners. Following the prisoners' release, Farnham continued across Mexico to

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 1841, he moved on to New York City, then to

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

for a brief time. Farnham later moved to

Alton, Illinois Alton ( ) is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 25,676 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a part of the River Bend (Illinois), Riv ...

, before moving back to California in 1846. He died in San Francisco, California on September 13, 1848. Farnham's widow Eliza moved to

Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz (Spanish language, Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population ...

and went on to become a leading abolitionist, novelist and early feminist.

Works

* ''Travels in Oregon Territory'' (1842)
''Travels in the Great Western Prairies''
(1843) * ''Travels in the Californias and Scenes in the Pacific'' (1844) * ''A Memoir of the Northwest Boundary-Line'' (1845) * ''Mexico, its Geography, People, and Institutions'' (1846)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farnham, Thomas J. 19th-century American explorers People who traveled the Oregon Trail American non-fiction outdoors writers American male non-fiction writers 1804 births 1848 deaths American emigrants to Mexico Foreign residents of Mexican California People from Oregon Country Writers from Santa Cruz, California

Early/Middle life

Travels

Works

Further reading

References

External links