Savage Trading Post is

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...

No. 527 in

El Portal, California El Portal (Spanish for "The Gateway") is a census-designated place in Mariposa County, California, United States. It is located west-southwest of Yosemite Village, at an elevation of . The population was 372 at the 2020 census, down from 474 at ...

California State Route 140 State Route 140 (SR 140) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, 102 miles (164 km) in length. It begins in the San Joaquin Valley at Interstate 5 near Gustine, and runs east into Sierra Nevada, terminating in Yosemite National ...

in Mariposa County.

James D. Savage James D. Savage (born November 14, 1951) is a political science professor at the University of Virginia who teaches public policy in the Department of Politics and the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. He is an expert in governmen ...

was 49er

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, ...

and trader, in 1849 he built a

Log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a less finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first generation home building by settlers. Eur ...

. In the Log cabin, he started a general store and

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

along the

Merced River The Merced River (), in the central part of the U.S. state of California, is a -long tributary of the San Joaquin River flowing from the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada into the San Joaquin Valley. It is most well known for its swift and st ...

. After just one year the Mariposa War started. In the spring of 1850 James (Jim) Savage started trading at

Mariposa Creek Mariposa Creek, originally called the Mariposa River, is a creek that has its source in Mariposa County, California. It flows through the town of Mariposa then southwest through the Sierra foothills, into and across the San Joaquin Valley in Mer ...

in the

San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; es, Valle de San Joaquín) is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies south of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the San Joaquin River. It comprises seven c ...

and he had employees run his Trading Post. In December 1850 the war came to Savage Trading Post and it was set on fire. James Savage was the leader of the

California Militia The California National Guard is part of the National Guard of the United States, a dual federal-state military reserve force. The CA National Guard has three components: the CA Army National Guard, CA Air National Guard, and CA State Guard. ...

's Mariposa Battalion that traveled to the

Yosemite Valley Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a U-shaped valley, glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California. The valley is about long and deep, surroun ...

in 1851 to hunt down the Ahwaneechees and their leader

Chief Tenaya Tenaya (died 1853) was a leader of the Ahwahnechee people in Yosemite Valley, California. Background Tenaya's father was a leader of the Ahwahnechee people (or Awahnichi). The Ahwahneechee had become a tribe distinct from the other tribes in th ...

. The Mariposa Battalion won the battle and thus ended the war. The Mariposa Battalion also became the first non- Native American to see the beauty of Yosemite Valley.

Lafayette Bunnell Lafayette Houghton Bunnell (March 13, 1824 – July 21, 1903) was an American physician, author, and explorer. He is most well known for his involvement with the Mariposa Battalion, the first non-Indians to enter Yosemite Valley, and his book Dis ...

wrote about his visit to the Yosemite Valley. A copy of Savage Trading Post was built at the site of the original and is

No. 527.

James D. Savage

Jim Savage (1823–1852) was also an American soldier in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. Savage and his family move to California in 1846. Savage wife died shortly after childbirth on the wagan train trip west near

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...

. In California Savage, sign up and joined

California Battalion The California Battalion (also called the first California Volunteer Militia and U.S. Mounted Rifles) was formed during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) in present-day California, United States. It was led by U.S. Army Brevet Lieutenant Co ...

led by John Fremont. Savage took part in the later part of the

California Campaign California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

till April 1847. In the California Battalion, he learned some local languages from the Native Army Scouts. With these new language skills, he set up a trading post in the San Joaquin Valley as he lived with local Indian tribes. local Indian tribes called him "El Rey Huero"("The Blond King"). As more California pioneers moved into California, relationships changed. In December 1850 the Trading Post was burnt and his clerks at the post were killed. The

governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

, John McDougall put Savage in charge of the Mariposa Battalion. After the war, Savage returned to trading. Savage was killed in August 1852, by Walter Harvey, who had massacred Indians.Bingaman, 8.Lafayette Bunnell, ''Discovery of the Yosemite'' (New York: F. H. Revell Company, 1892), 65.

External links

''Discovery of the Yosemite'' (1892) by Lafayette H. Bunnell.
Yosemite Research Library link which contains auxiliary information on Bunnell and his account.

References

{{reflist 1849 in California 1849 establishments in California California Historical Landmarks History of Mariposa County, California

James D. Savage

See also

External links

References