"To this Gate I gave the name of Chrysopylae, or Golden Gate; for the same reasons that the harbor of Byzantium was called Chrysoceras, or Golden Horn." 1848 Thirty-one year old Second Lieutenant John Charles Frémont's second Topographical Expedition left Missouri in June of 1843, and, mapping the Oregon Trail, had traveled to Fort Vancouver. Intending to return to Missouri through the Southwest, he then turned south through Oregon and Western Nevada. By January 1844, the expedition was comprised of twenty-seven men, including Christopher "Kit" Carson and Thomas "Broken Hand" Fitzpatrick, sixty-seven horses and mules, and a bronze mountain howitzer. HOWITZER PARTS FOUND Being low on provisions, Frémont made the decision to cross the 10,000' Sierra Nevada to Sutter's Fort in California. It was midwinter, and the mountains were covered in deep snow. The Washoe Indians he met told him that it would be impossible to cross: Rock upon rock; snow, upon snow. Welcome to longcamp.com On this site you will find over 170 pages of new and original information that cannot be found elsewhere. Start here to see Frémont's newly discovered historic 1844 Long Camp in the snow-covered Sierra. Or go to the buttons at the top. This is a book-length ongoing (16 years!) project that is frequently being added to and updated--most recently September 2, 2008--so check the recents and search buttons above. Or, POTLUCK:--3 featured items "Facts more terrible than thunder! Lightning, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions!" Capt. Charles M. Weber (San Jose) to John Marsh (near Mt. Diablo) During seven scientific expeditions, covering over 20,000 miles of western exploration and mapping surveys, Frémont became internationally known as The Pathfinder. On the pages (more than 160) that follow, he will point the direction to related links. This site is a companion to The Crossing by Bob Graham. A note about the contents of this website. Kids: Looking for information for school reports? eMail comments, suggestions, questions. Please report any technical problems. Bibliography for this site. Some books now available online! Our web awards. The ultimate curse of being a national hero is that once the fires of acclaim go out, only the ashes of criticism remain. This was the fate of John Charles Frémont, for he climbed the peaks of glory to endure the deserts of despair. Ferol Egan, Frémont: Explorer for a Restless Nation Who's the kid? In contrast to the more often seen images of presidential candidate Frémont, or Civil War Major General Frémont, most of the images on these pages are taken from portraits made at the time of his most important survey work--age 29 to 33. Here, a Frémont image that isn't An S. N. Carvalho portrait of Frémont surfaces...briefly. ©1999, 2008 Bob Graham Francis Drake The Nova Albion Landing Site Articles The nervous, rocky West is intruding a new and continental element into the National Mind, and we shall yet have an American. Ralph Waldo Emerson, The Young American, 1844