American Heroes Bite the Dust on History Channel Abraham Lincoln said that America can never be destroyed from without, only from within. One such inner destruction is the trashing of American, heroes, never more obvious than in the trashing of those brave pioneers who brought California into the Union. According to, "The Conquerors: Frémont, Conqueror of California," a film aired April 24 on the History Channel, the Bear Flaggers, a group of American settlers who, in 1846, joined the California Battalion to end the Mexican War on the northern front, were a rag-tag bunch" of horse thieves! "Lies, all lies!" says Author/Historian Barbara Warner, after viewing the film. "Old, old lies." Nor can anyone speak more authoritatively than Warner who wrote, The Men of the Bear Flag Revolt and Their Heritage (Arthur H. Clark Publishing Co., 1996). She admits to being "hot under the collar"--and with good reason. For over a quarter of a century, Warner, a genealogist as well as a historian, researched the lives of the Bear Flaggers and their family heritage-much of her research was conducted at the Huntington Library "They were good honest men with outstanding American families, some of them going back to the American Revolution," she says. "They built communities, churches, schools and contributed greatly to the development of California. Among the many in the volume are such pioneers as William B. Ide, Dr. Robert Semple, John Grigsby, a founder of Napa, Henry L. Ford, and Sam, Andrew, and Ben Kelsey. Myths Destroyed Warner also destroys many of the myths devised long ago by political propagandists, including the old saw that "the United States stole California." She also discredits the negative view of the Bancroft History Company, organized in San Francisco by Hubert Howe Bancroft, who arrived in California in 1852 to launch an extensive historical collection, Still used today by many researchers. Bancroft, basically a book seller and collector, later developed into a publisher of history and amassed an invaluable "Pacific Library" collection, but his parochial prejudice against the Western frontier pioneers, as well as some national figures, destroyed his credibility. His history of the American pioneers was legally investigated, judged and declared "a disgrace to the nation" in 1893. Even so, he remained the mentor of his former employee, Josiah Royce, whose work is acclaimed internationally. "Many myths about the Bears have been swallowed hook, line and sinker by those who copied Bancroft and Josiah Royce," writes Warner. "They have perpetuated and magnified character flaws of a few, demeaned and maligned others, and totally overlooked the many women and children whose welfare was one of prime motivation. It is impossible to understand the cruel lack of empathy for those families who nearly starved while under the protection of the United States'. Not Horse Thieves! Far from being derelicts or "horse thieves," attests Warner, many of the Bears were from prominent families with "connections in the White House, the Supreme Court, and Congress." Some were also related to such American heroes as Daniel Boone and Paul Revere. Warner's book on the Bear Flaggers is neither a narrative nor academic dissertation, but rather a series of related chapters and biographical sketches. The appendices burst with documents, including everything from independence proclamations to peace treaties, and even some genealogical charts. She pulls no punches in breaking down vicious gossip against the Bears, and she backs up her work with what has to be a record bibliography of 45 pages with over 1000 citations. Nor do these include her exhaustive personal correspondence and interviews with descendants, continuing. Tile script of "The Conquerors" also describes John Charles Frémont, the "Pathfinder," who organized the California Battalion, as an "arrogant," power-hungry Army officer who set out on his third expedition to conquer California with a lust for glory. Still, wasn't Frémont under secret orders from President James K. Polk? The film leaves the viewers with that thought, but it is a well documented fact that Frémont was, indeed under his Commander-in-chief's orders to proceed on his Western expedition with "peace and conciliation" unless war was declared. It was public knowledge that Polk had been offering the Mexican government millions of dollars to purchase California; President Thomas Jefferson had set precedent with the purchase of Louisiana. However, the Texas border was under siege, and hostilities increased until Polk was forced to declare war May 13, 1846. Frémont and his topographic party were headed for home and encamped at Upper Klamath Lake when he received orders to move south. A letter to his wife, Jessie, the love of his life, mourned his delay in returning home to her, but, as the only Army officer on the coast, he headed for California to organize a battalion in defense of American settlers. To make a long, dramatic story short, Frémont closed the northern front of the war with the Treaty of Cahuenga, a treaty that has gone down in history as one of the most generous on record. It was negotiated with "peace and conciliation" and saved many lives, both Mexican and American. It also brought the territory of California into the Union, and the Mexicans, themselves, were so happy to have American freedom that they danced and sang in the streets! Writer's Block? Ridiculous! One of the most ridiculous descriptions of the "Pathfinder" is that he had to rely upon Jessie, his wife, to write for him because of writers block--ergo, it was Jessie who glorified him. Jessie had many talents, which included advising President Lincoln, but writing, she protested, was not one of them. Frémont, a brilliant scholar, was a prolific writer, as well as a poet. Daily he logged official reports of his five geographic, scientific, horticultural and often treacherous expeditions. His well drawn maps provided a route for the first transcontinental railroad. He also earned the world's highest award in science. Life Story Documented Frémont's full life story as a scholar, scientist, geographer, horticulturist, and later as a leading US Senator, Presidential candidate, and Civil War General, is well documented in Frémont: Eagle of the West by Midge Sherwood, a researcher at Huntington Library and author of eight books. The planned destruction of Such heroic pioneers, including the defamation of the very founders of our Republic, is due, in part, to what is known as revisionism--the revising of history for political purposes. It is also part of the well known "dumbing down" process and a consequent lack of public interest. However, with a new generation of historians, one academic administration is now considering a history course designed specifically to research and correct the "old lies of character defamation, from President George Washington onward. Certainly President Thomas Jefferson, also a victim of defamation, would approve. Early on, he warned that, unless our authentic American history is the PRIME subject in our Universities, we will lose our freedoms. We are proving him correct. We have only to read press headlines to see that the destruction of our heroic Americans results in serious damage to younger generations who may have none to emulate, none to inspire them to greater heights, and, thus, none to preserve freedom in the future. Freedom is a responsibility, not an absolute.   Editor's notes Barbara Warner's 600-page book The Men of the Bear Flag Revolt and Their Heritage obtained while copies last at the Arthur H. Clark Publishing Company. P. 0. Box 14707, Spokane, WA, 99214. Phone': (509) 928-9540. Toll-free: (800) 842-9286. Midge Sherwood's biography, Frémont: Eagle of the West, is available at the Huntington Bookstore, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108. Phone: (626) 405-2142. Or write Jackson Peak Publishers, P. 0. Box 7304-670, North Hollywood, CA 91603. The History Channel can be found at http://www.historychannel.com/