In 1857, an expedition led by

Edward Fitzgerald Beale Edward Fitzgerald Beale (February 4, 1822 – April 22, 1893) was an American naval officer, frontiersman, rancher and diplomat. He fought in the Mexican–American War, emerging as a hero of the Battle of San Pasqual in 1846. He achieved n ...

was tasked with establishing a trade route along the 35th parallel from Fort Smith,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

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California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The wagon trail began at Fort Smith and continued through the

New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becomi ...

to Fort Defiance. He then continued west over what is now northern Arizona to Beale Spring near modern Kingman and Sitgreaves Pass before crossing the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

. The location where Beale crossed the river from Arizona to California, up river from present-day Needles, California, became known as Beale's Crossing. Beale's route continued west through

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

from where Beale's road crossed the Colorado River, through the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert (; ; ) is a desert in the rain shadow of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains and Transverse Ranges in the Southwestern United States. Named for the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous Mohave people, it is located pr ...

along the routes of the Mojave Trail, and Old Spanish Trail to the

Mojave River The Mojave River is an intermittent river in the eastern San Bernardino Mountains and the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Most of its flow is underground, while its surface channels remain dry most of the ti ...

where it crossed the Mormon Road that led to Los Angeles, then crossed the western Mojave Desert to Fort Tejon and the Stockton–Los Angeles Road, and the less-traveled El Camino Viejo, both of which led to the northern parts of California through the

San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...

Background

Beale described the route, "It is the shortest from our western frontier by , being nearly directly west. It is the most level: our wagons only double-teaming once in the entire distance, and that at a short hill, and over a surface heretofore unbroken by wheels or trail on any kind. It is well-watered: our greatest distance without water at any time being . It is well-timbered, and in many places the growth is far beyond that of any part of the world I have ever seen. It is temperate in climate, passing for the most part over an elevated region. It is salubrious: not one of our party requiring the slightest medical attendance from the time of our leaving to our arrival ... It crosses the great desert (which must be crossed by any road to California) at its narrowest point." Beale's Wagon Road would eventually be supplanted by the railroad in the early 1880s, then

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) is one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The high ...

in 1926, and

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...

in 1978.

Beale's recommendations

After his initial survey of the road, E.F. Beale went in

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to make recommendations to members of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

and the War Department: : Beale suggested that, in addition to a military fort, the route was also in immediate need of bridges and dams to ensure safe travel and provide a reliable water supply; he requested $100,000 to fund the improvements.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{Authority control Historic trails and roads in the United States Historic trails and roads in Arizona Historic trails and roads in New Mexico Arizona Territory New Mexico Territory 1857 in the United States 1860s in the United States 1870s in the United States American frontier