A larger-than-life hero in every sense of the phrase, Kit Carson was born in Kentucky, the breeding ground for so many legendary Americans, in 1809. Throughout his life he followed the westward-moving frontier, fighting duels, involving himself in wars, battles, feuds, and adventures with virtually every tribe of Indians in the West.
Carson took giant steps toward immortality when he traveled with John Fremont on the Great California expedition of 1845-46. After the United States declared war on Mexico, President Polk personally gave him a commission as a lieutenant of scouts and Carson performed many valorous deeds. When it was over he became Indian agent for the entire territory. Carson, the only man who could keep the fierce Apaches under even partial control, often had to ride out alone to keep the peace—but he kept it.
When the Civil War broke out he was commissioned a colonel in the Army of the North, and it was largely due to his foresight, courage, and steadfast firmness that the Southwest remained safe in Union hands. As a reward for his efforts in the Northern cause he received a brevet commission as a brigadier general in 1865.
After the war ended he resumed his work as an Indian agent, with all of New Mexico, Arizona, and the Rocky Mountain region as his domain. By this time, and until his death in 1868, he reigned as First Citizen of the West—and one of the most renowned men in all of the United States.
Kit Carson had a monumental sense of humor and a keen appreciation of the fact that a man's reputation alone could win battles for him before they began. The propaganda he created about his adventures was built into a legend by the mountain men who could tell tall tales with straight faces. Noel B. Gerson has combined these stories with the nearly incredible truth about Kit Carson to make an entertaining and exciting biography.
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