John Bidwell (August 5, 1819 – April 4, 1900), known in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as Don Juan Bidwell, was an American pioneer, politician, and soldier. Bidwell is known as the founder of the city of

Chico, California Chico ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "little") is the most populous city in Butte County, California, United States. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 101,475 in the 2020 United Sta ...

. Born in New York, he emigrated at the age of 22 to

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 ...

(then a part of Mexico) as part of the Bartleson–Bidwell Party, one of the first expeditions of American emigrants along the

California Trail The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California. After it was established, the first half of the California Trail f ...

. In California, he became a Mexican citizen and a prominent landowner, receiving multiple rancho grants from the governors of Alta California. Following the U.S.

Conquest of California The Conquest of California, also known as the Conquest of Alta California or the California Campaign, was a military campaign during the Mexican–American War carried out by the United States in Alta California (modern-day California), then part ...

, Bidwell went on to serve in the

California Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. N ...

and then in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

Early life

Bidwell was born in 1819 in

Chautauqua County, New York Chautauqua County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 127,657. Its county seat is Mayville, and its largest city is Jamestown. Its name is believed to be the lone surviving rem ...

. His Bidwell ancestors immigrated to North America in the colonial era. His family moved to

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

, in 1829, and then to

Ashtabula County, Ohio Ashtabula County ( ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson, while its largest city is Ashtabula. The county was created in 1808 and later organ ...

, in 1831. At age 17, he attended and shortly thereafter became principal of

Kingsville Academy Kingsville Academy was a school which was chartered in Kingsville, Ohio Kingsville is a census-designated place in central Kingsville Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The population was 824 at the 2020 census. It lies at the in ...

Life in California

In 1841, at the age of 22, Bidwell became one of the first emigrants on the California Trail.

John Sutter John Augustus Sutter (February 23, 1803 – June 18, 1880), born Johann August Sutter and known in Spanish as Don Juan Sutter, was a Switzerland, Swiss immigrant who became a Mexican and later an American citizen, known for establishing Sutter ...

employed Bidwell as his business manager shortly after the younger man reached California. In October 1844, Bidwell went with Sutter to Monterey, where the two learned of an insurrection by leader

José Castro José Antonio Castro (1808 – February 1860) was a Californio politician, statesman, and general who served as interim Governor of Alta California and later Governor of Baja California. During the Bear Flag Revolt and the American Conque ...

and ex-governor

Juan Bautista Alvarado Juan Bautista Valentín Alvarado y Vallejo (February 14, 1809 – July 13, 1882) usually known as Juan Bautista Alvarado, was a Californio politician that served as governor of Alta California from 1837 to 1842. Prior to his term as governor, Al ...

. In 1845, Bidwell and Sutter joined Governor

Manuel Micheltorena Joseph Manuel María Joaquin Micheltorena y Llano (8 June 1804 – 7 September 1853) was a brigadier general and adjutant-general of the Mexican Army, List_of_governors_of_California_before_1850#Mexican_governors_of_California_(1837–47), gover ...

and a group of Americans and Indians to fight the insurrectionists, pursuing them to Cahuenga. Micheltorena, Sutter, and Bidwell were imprisoned, and the latter two were shortly thereafter released. Upon release, Bidwell headed north through

Placerita Canyon Placerita Canyon State Park is a California State Park located on the north slope of the western San Gabriel Mountains, in an unincorporated rural area of Los Angeles County, near the city of Santa Clarita. The park hosts a variety of historic ...

, saw the mining operations, and was determined to search for gold on his way to

Sutter's Fort Sutter's Fort was a 19th-century agricultural and trade colony in the Mexican ''Alta California'' province. Established in 1839, the site of the fort was originally part of a utopian colonial project called New Helvetia (''New Switzerland'') ...

, where he met James W. Marshall. Shortly after Marshall's discovery of gold at

Sutter's Mill Sutter's Mill was a water-powered sawmill on the bank of the South Fork American River in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in California. It was named after its owner John Sutter. A worker constructing the mill, James W. Marshall, found go ...

, Bidwell also discovered gold on the

Feather River The Feather River is the principal tributary of the Sacramento River, in the Sacramento Valley of Northern California. The river's main stem is about long. Its length to its most distant headwater tributary is just over . The main stem Feather ...

, establishing a productive claim at Bidwell Bar in advance of the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) 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 from the rest of the U ...

. Bidwell obtained the four square-league Rancho Los Ulpinos land grant after being naturalized as a Mexican citizen in 1844, and the two square-league

Rancho Colus Rancho Colus was a Mexican land grant in present-day Colusa County, California given in 1845 by Governor Pío Pico to John Bidwell. The name is derived from the name of a Native American tribe living on the west side of the Sacramento River. ...

grant on the

Sacramento River The Sacramento River () is the principal river of Northern California in the United States and is the largest river in California. Rising in the Klamath Mountains, the river flows south for before reaching the Sacramento–San Joaquin River D ...

in 1845. He later sold the latter grant and bought

Rancho Arroyo Chico Rancho del Arroyo Chico was a Mexican land grant in present-day Butte County, California, which ultimately laid the foundation for the city of Chico. The name means 'little stream' and refers to Big Chico Creek. The grant was located along th ...

on Chico Creek to establish a ranch and farm. Fort Bidwell 1877

Soon after the outbreak of the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, Bidwell met with the leaders of the

Bear Flag Revolt The California Republic, or Bear Flag Republic, was an List of historical unrecognized states#Americas, unrecognized breakaway state from Second Federal Republic of Mexico, Mexico, that existed from June 14, 1846 to July 9, 1846. It milita ...

and drafted their constitution. He later attained the rank of major while fighting at Fort Stockton. In August 1846, he was appointed

Alcalde ''Alcalde'' (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and Administration (government), administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor (position), corregidor, the presiding officer o ...

of Mission San Luis Rey by

John C. Frémont Major general (United States), Major-General John Charles Frémont (January 21, 1813July 13, 1890) was a United States Army officer, explorer, and politician. He was a United States senator from California and was the first History of the Repub ...

, where he served until the end of the war. He was appointed brigadier general of the

California Militia The California National Guard (Cal Guard) is part of the National Guard of the United States, a dual federal–state military reserve force in the state of California. It has three components: the California Army National Guard, California Air N ...

in 1863. From 1863 to 1864, Bidwell and other local financiers built the

Humboldt Wagon Road The Humboldt Wagon Road, or the Humboldt Road, was a freight wagon road in northern California. Constructed in the 1860s, it connected Chico, California, Chico, near the Sacramento River, with Susanville, California, Susanville, near Honey Lake ...

connecting Chico to the mining districts of Nevada. Around this time, in 1865, General Bidwell backed a petition from settlers at

Red Bluff, California Red Bluff is a city in and the county seat of Tehama County, California, United States. Its population was 14,710 at the 2020 census, up from 14,076 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is located north of Sacramento, California ...

to protect Red Bluff's trail to the Owyhee Mines of

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

. The

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

commissioned seven forts for this purpose. One site was near Fandango Pass at the base of the

Warner Mountains The Warner Mountains are an -long mountain range running north–south through northeastern California and extending into southern Oregon in the United States. The range lies within the northwestern corner of the Basin and Range Province, ext ...

, in the north end of Surprise Valley. On June 10, 1865, what was named Fort Bidwell was ordered to be built there. The fort was built amid escalating fighting with the

Snake Indians Snake Indians is a collective name given to the Northern Paiute, Bannock, and Shoshone Native American tribes. The term was used as early as 1739 by French trader and explorer Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, Sieur de la Verendrye when he descr ...

of eastern Oregon and southern Idaho. It was a base for US Army operations in the

Snake War The Snake War (1864–1868) was an Irregular warfare, irregular war fought by the United States of America against the "Snake Indians," the Exonym, settlers' term for Northern Paiute, Bannock (tribe), Bannock and Western Shoshone bands who liv ...

, that lasted until 1868, and the later

Modoc War The Modoc War, or the Modoc Campaign (also known as the Lava Beds War), was an armed conflict between the Native Americans in the United States, Native American Modoc people and the United States Army in northeastern California and southeastern ...

. Although traffic dwindled on the Red Bluff route once the

Central Pacific Railroad The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete most of the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in North Americ ...

extended into Nevada in 1868, the Army staffed Fort Bidwell until 1890 to quell various uprisings and disturbances. A

Paiute Paiute (; also Piute) refers to three non-contiguous groups of Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. Although their languages are related within the Numic group of Uto-Aztecan languages, these three languages do not form a single subgroup and th ...

reservation and small community maintain the name Fort Bidwell. On February 5, 1856, Bidwell was one of several passengers traveling down the

on the steamboat ''Belle'' when the ship's boiler exploded, killing several people instantly. Bidwell was sitting by the stove reading a newspaper when the explosion sent a piece of shrapnel the size of a quarter directly into his skull. Bidwell survived, but spent the rest of his life with a visible hole in his head.

Political career

Bidwell was selected as a delegate to the

1849 California Constitutional Convention The California Constitutional Conventions were two separate constitutional conventions that took place in California during the nineteenth century which led to the creation of the modern Constitution of California. The first, known as the 1849 ...

, but did not attend because of mining business. Later that year, he was elected to the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

, serving a single one-year term. He ran for State Senate again in 1855, but lost to incumbent

Know Nothing The American Party, known as the Native American Party before 1855 and colloquially referred to as the Know Nothings, or the Know Nothing Party, was an Old Stock Americans, Old Stock Nativism in United States politics, nativist political movem ...

John B. McGee by just 187 votes. He supervised conducting the federal census of California in

1850 Events January–March * January 29 – Henry Clay introduces the Compromise of 1850 to the United States Congress. * January 31 – The University of Rochester is founded in Rochester, New York. * January – Sacramento, Ca ...

and

1860 Events January * January 2 – The astronomer Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan (hypothetical planet), Vulcan at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 &ndas ...

, under national direction by Joseph C. G. Kennedy. Bidwell was a delegate to the

1860 Democratic National Convention The 1860 Democratic National Conventions were a series of presidential nominating conventions held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1860 election. The first convention, held from April 23 ...

in Charleston. He was the only West Coast delegate opposed to secession. He left the party soon after the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, and in 1864 was a delegate to the National Union National Convention. That year, he was also elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

as a Republican, serving from 1865 to 1867. Rather than seek re-election, he chose to run for

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

1867 There were only 354 days this year in the newly purchased territory of Alaska. When the territory transferred from the Russian Empire to the United States, the calendric transition from the Julian to the Gregorian Calendar was made with only 1 ...

, but due to his anti-

monopoly A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek and ) is a market in which one person or company is the only supplier of a particular good or service. A monopoly is characterized by a lack of economic Competition (economics), competition to produce ...

stance lost the Union Party nomination to railroad lobbyist George Congdon Gorham by a vote of 167 to 132. The New Elaine

1875 Events January * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the year (Third C ...

, Bidwell ran for

on the

Anti-Monopoly Party The Anti-Monopoly Party was a short-lived American political party. The party nominated Benjamin Butler for President of the United States in 1884, as did the Greenback Party, which ultimately supplanted the organization. Organizational hist ...

ticket. As a strong advocate of the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting Temperance (virtue), temperance or total abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and ...

, he presided over the state convention of the

Prohibition Party The Prohibition Party (PRO) is a Political parties in the United States, political party in the United States known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages and as an integral part of the temperance movemen ...

in 1888 and was their nominee for governor in

1890 Events January * January 1 – The Kingdom of Italy establishes Eritrea as its colony in the Horn of Africa. * January 2 – Alice Sanger becomes the first female staffer in the White House. * January 11 – 1890 British Ultimatum: The Uni ...

. In the

1892 presidential election Year 189 ( CLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Silanus and Silanus (or, less frequently, year 942 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 189 for th ...

, Bidwell was the nominee of the Prohibition Party. The ticket of Bidwell and James B. Cranfill of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

finished fourth nationwide, receiving 271,058 votes, or 2.3%. It was the largest total vote and highest percentage of the vote received by any Prohibition Party national ticket. Their strongest result was in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, where they received over five percent of the vote. John Bidwell's autobiography, ''Echoes of the Past'', was published in 1900. That same year, on April 4, Bidwell died of natural causes at the age of 80.

Personal life

In 1868 Bidwell was about 49 when he married Annie Kennedy, whom he had courted for years. She was 20 years younger and a daughter of Joseph C. G. Kennedy. Her father was socially prominent, a high-ranking

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

official who supervised the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

. Bidwell had met him while working on the California census. The senior Kennedy was active in the U.S. Whig party. Annie Kennedy was deeply religious, joining the Presbyterian Church, and committed to a number of moral and social causes. She was very active in the

suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

and

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

movements. The couple married April 16, 1868, in Washington, D.C., with

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. The 16th vice president, he assumed the presidency following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a South ...

and future president

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

among the guests. After he returned with her to Chico, the Bidwells used their mansion extensively for entertainment of friends and official guests. Among them were President

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881. Hayes served as Cincinnati's city solicitor from 1858 to 1861. He was a staunch Abolitionism in the Un ...

, General

William T. Sherman William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

, Susan B. Anthony,

Frances Willard Frances Elizabeth Caroline Willard (September 28, 1839 – February 17, 1898) was an American educator, temperance reformer, and women's suffragist. Willard became the national president of Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) in 187 ...

, Governor

Leland Stanford Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824June 21, 1893) was an American attorney, industrialist, philanthropist, and Republican Party (United States), Republican Party politician from Watervliet, New York. He served as the eighth governor of Calif ...

John Muir John Muir ( ; April 21, 1838December 24, 1914), also known as "John of the Mountains" and "Father of the national park, National Parks", was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, botanist, zoologist, glaciologi ...

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For 20 years he served as director of the Ro ...

, and

Asa Gray Asa Gray (November 18, 1810 – January 30, 1888) is considered the most important American botany, botanist of the 19th century. His ''Darwiniana'' (1876) was considered an important explanation of how religion and science were not necessaril ...

Legacy

The Bidwell Family Papers are held at the

Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library is the primary special-collections library of the University of California, Berkeley. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retain the name Bancroft Library in perpetuity. ...

. The actor Howard Negley (1898–1983) played Bidwell in the 1953 episode, "The Lady with the Blue Silk Umbrella" on the syndicated television anthology series, ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American Western (genre), Western anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program was ...

,'' hosted by

Stanley Andrews Stanley Martin Andrews (born Andrzejewski; August 28, 1891 – June 23, 1969) was an American actor perhaps best known as the voice of Daddy Warbucks on the radio program ''Little Orphan Annie'' and later as "The Old Ranger", the first host of ...

. In the story line, Helen Crosby ( Kathleen Case) carries official California statehood papers in her umbrella to shield them from ruffians who want to destroy the documents.

Rick Vallin Rick Vallin (born Eric Efron; September 24, 1919 – August 31, 1977) was an actor who appeared in more than 150 films between 1938 and 1966. Early years Born in Feodosia, in the Crimea, Russia, Vallin came to the United States at age three w ...

played Lieutenant Bob Hastings.

Fraternal allegiance

Bidwell was a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

for a time but left the group. He said that allegiance to the fraternity "was pointless" in an October 17, 1867, letter to Annie Kennedy, whom he had been courting. His signature appears in the Book of By-Laws of the Chico-Leland Stanford Lodge No. 111 in Chico, California.Michael J. Gillis and Michael F. Magliari, ''John Bidwell and California: The Life and Writings of a Pioneer, 1841–1900'', , p. 223–224

Gallery

File:John Bidwell 1866.jpg, Bidwell in 1866 File:John Bidwell circa 1875.jpg, Bidwell 1875 File:John Bidwell circa 1880.jpg, Bidwell 1880 File:John Bidwell circa 1890.jpg, Bidwell 1890 File:Seal of Chico, California.png, Seal of Chico, California

Citations

External links

* Bigler Family collection, 1852–1918. Collection guide, California State Library, California History Room.
"The First Emigrant Train to California"
by John Bidwell

by Roy D. Tea
''Autobiography and Reminiscence of John Bidwell, San Francisco, 1904''
ranscription The Society of California Pioneers, via Calisphere.
Guide to the Bidwell Family Papers
at

The Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library is the primary special-collections library of the University of California, Berkeley. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retain the name Bancroft Library in perpetuity. ...

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bidwell, John 1819 births 1900 deaths 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century American inventors 19th-century American male writers 19th-century American non-fiction writers American city founders American conservationists 19th-century American explorers American geologists American gold prospectors American hunters American male non-fiction writers American military personnel of the Mexican–American War American mountain climbers American naturalists American people of the Bear Flag Revolt Temperance activists from California Anti-Monopoly Party politicians Brigadier generals American emigrants to Mexico People of the Californias California Prohibitionists Democratic Party California state senators Candidates in the 1892 United States presidential election Explorers of California History of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Landowners from California Naturalized citizens of Mexican California Politicians from Chico, California People from Chautauqua County, New York People of the Conquest of California Prohibition Party (United States) presidential nominees Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California Writers from California Bartleson–Bidwell Party 19th-century members of the California State Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives