Pomona -
A Fictionalized Account of the Role of a Native American Trapper/Trader Wife

The fur trade business drew natives and Americans together. The business brought white (European-American) men into the North American Continent as supplies in the east diminished. This caused a blending of culture, custom and life styles. Relationships developed between the people of the two cultures. Since there were few white women in the continental interior traders sought out companionship with native women. Native women provided sexual favors and companionship for the traders initially, from this the contributions of native women expanded. Some of the relationships between the native women and the trappers evolved into marriages, legally binding and performed in churches. Some relationships were more informal (deep and long lasting); others were short term. However defined, these relationships were key to interracial trade.

My people are people of nature and we understand the importance of the equal roles of a man and a woman in surviving life. Though taught to protect, we seek peace and unity. Our desire is for health, the means of which are provided by Mother Earth. To us to be rich is to have many friends, to be poor means to have but a few.

As a young girl I was taught the customs of my people. Learning the traditional skills that all girls were taught; I learned to prepare skins and to sew them for clothing and footwear, to weave baskets, and to build a kna-ne-ga (a staying place). As a woman it was part of my role to carry the kan-ne-ga and to set it up when we moved. I also learned to forage, fish, hunt and preserve food.

These tasks kept me busy, however, as much time as I could I would spend alone. It was always a curious thought for me to consider that I was the daughter of the chief. I felt this was an honor. I was a daughter with an ambiguous heartfelt sense that I was to play a peculiar role among my family and tribal community.

My father adored me though maintained something of aloofness towards me as he did not want to seem weak where I was concerned. Though we never discussed it I could sense that father felt in his heart that I was bound for a particular path. It was because of this belief when I was a woman of marrying age that I sought the assistance of the tribe’s shaman to inquire of my future. During the time of these inquiries with our beloved spiritual leader both my father and I began having visions. The images of my father’s mirrored the impressions I was experiencing. We spoke alone one evening around the fire, we shared our hearts and were in agreement that the role I was to play in our future was that I was to be the wife of a white man. Father assured me that not just anyone would do, but that he knew his princess daughter well and had beem shown the right kind of man to present me to. As the wife of a white man I may be able to assure peace for our people.

Several white men visited our village in the two years that followed. I would sit quietly off to the side to listen while father would patiently learn of these men and their plans. At first I would cringe at the thought of sharing my bed with a white faced man, with his pungent odor, wiry hair and insensitivities. Then one day a different man came, he spent much time with father. On his visits he would bring good gifts (not whisky or guns), and tell stories. He had spent time learning our language and seemed to enjoy the company of father and the men in our tribe. Father told me that the man did not grow up in the kna-ne-ga of his parents, but served as a sort of slave (a most unpleasant thought to me). The man was of simple intent, desiring little more than peace, freedom, companionship and possessing what nature would grant into his hands.

It was not long and I began to anticipate the man’s visits and found our glances being exchanged. Father was not naive about this and it was not long before we were allowed to carry out simple tasks together. I could sense my desire growing toward this man. The sweet feelings of adoration and affection that I felt for my father were being challenged by the surging feelings and overwhelming sense of longing for a man. One who was different from all others. It was not easy for father to give me to this man though he knew that we were living in new times. I could see the ache in his eyes as we joined our lives. Though he knew things were changing, father did not know exactly how, or in what ways, or what impact his faithfulness to his dreams for his daughter would have upon our nation.

We were set up in a kna-ne-ga away from the rest of our tribe; this was done symbolically in recognition that I would be leaving my family and community. Our first night together was bitter/sweet. A night mixed with agony (due to my thoughts of leaving my home) and ecstasy (due to the realities of the moment of being a wife). These feelings were also symbolic of the emotional extremes I was to experience throughout my life with Miles, the joy of being with my husband and the grief I would experience when he was away. As a trader he was away far too much to suit me.

Miles took me from my home north, though not too far. He’d found a spot that he seemed to love. He must have had love for me, for our life and future together because he named his home Buenaventura (Good Road). He enclosed our home within walls as a fort, taught me skills of tending to the ground to produce from it. He sought to provide enough for our needs and more. Through his trading and trapping we soon had acquired much livestock, skins and fur. When he was gone I would tend to the people who would pass through our home site. I learned to trade, to speak the white language and learned of the white man’s beliefs. My role was simple and not so different than if I’d remained with my tribe although I was accustomed to being around more people and I enjoyed moving with the seasons. I was fortunate to have learned from the women in my tribe the skills that fit so well into my new life and fortunate to have learned the skills that I did from my husband that upon which one day I would need to rely.

Our life together was short lived. Miles had sold our home to Pioneers who he knew would soon arrive in our valley in parties by the dozens. Fur and skin trade was growing more difficult and Miles moved us to California. After struggling as a horse trader he turned to gold mining in order to secure our livelihood. He discovered that mining was a much bigger risk than providing miners with supplies so he provided for us in this manner. That was until he became sick and died. He left our two children and me to go on without him. My experiences with my husband and my people served me well in my future. I was in a new territory and there were other people around who also were of colored skin. There were also many women alone as their husbands died in their efforts to provide for their families. I knew how to live and care for my children, I was not afraid of white people and I was grateful for what I’d learned from my generous husband and my loving family.

Along with other native women I played a significant role in the history of the people in this land, adjusting to a life of constant change and giving to the change all I had known and learned, contributing in the spirit of my people, giving of all that I had and taking in what was at hand.

Miles Goodyear –
The first white man to establish a permanent settlement in Utah

Miles Goodyear was born in 1817 during the trapping era. His childhood provided him with little opportunity for anything beyond developing dreams of joining up with the mountain men of the west. As a young man Miles set out to fulfill those dreams. With a dedication to what was in his heart Miles was not driven off course by the effects of the rapidly expansive movement west, but wisely adapted to change as it presented itself. Miles was a classic character in our local and national history. A history that provides us with clues into our past, leaving holes in the absence of a living soul, to define meaning, intent and feelings connected with those experiences.

Miles Goodyear was orphaned before the age of four along with his five siblings. The Goodyear children lost both of their parents within a year and a half. Keeping children fed and clothed was costly in those times. It was the practice that; when old enough, such children would be separated and placed into indentured servant-hood. The arrangement provided for the most basic of human needs; housing, food and clothing though little else. The lifestyle was not so different from that of slaves. Opportunities for education and socializing were minimal. Such children were disregarded, even beaten. With such a background it’s no wonder Miles developed such a strong desire to experience freedom and found a kindred spirit in the heart of the trappers.

When Miles was a boy the Fur Trading Business was at its peak. The business was an American Icon in its time. Adventurous young men must have spent many hours fantasizing about this exciting, profitable, challenging, rustic lifestyle. The media was no less effective in the 1800s in influencing the young than it is today. Stories made their way east of the tales of the Mountain Men and their heroic victories over the treacherous obstacles of the western territories.

At the age of 16, when his indentured obligations expired, Miles, set off to work so that he could earn the funds needed to purchase the essential equipment required by a trapper. In the spring of his 17th year he left New England and headed west. It was two years before he arrived at Fort Leavenworth where he hoped to meet up with mountain men going west. Instead, Miles found a party of missionaries en route to Oregon. Miles was taken in by the group and served as a hand, a scout, and as a wagon overseer to insure the safe passage of the missionary’s supplies through the mountainous journey.

Along the way the missionaries joined up with a band of well stocked trappers headed for the Rocky Mountains on their way to a rendezvous. The missionary group was fortunate to have had the assistance of the experienced trappers to cross the dangerous territory with. Miles was living out his dream, gaining experience and knowledge from the very trappers he had learned about as a boy. Throughout his travels Miles was to encounter many individuals and groups who played key roles in our regional history.

Miles remained with the missionaries until they reached Fort Hall, Idaho. While at Fort Hall, Miles gained more experience trapping spent three years going out on expeditions with various groups of trappers. At this time Miles was building a reputation for himself as a trapper and began developing a rapport with the local natives and learning their languages.

By the 1830s the beaver, the trapper’s fur resource, supply had begun to be depleted. Many trappers had gone back to the East. It was time to begin diversifying if one was to maintain the rustic trapping lifestyle. Trading must have seemed a logical transition. Miles began conducting expeditions of his own. During his expeditions in 1844 Miles traveled to Utah and spent a lot of time with the natives. There he met and married Pomona, daughter of the Ute Chief, Pe-teet-neet. It would have been Pomona’s role to have cooked and set up camp sites. She would have probably remained alone maintaining home and family during the winters while her husband was out acquiring his stock and supplies for trade. Their interracial marriage would have certainly helped assure Miles’ profitability as a trader.

Miles sought a place to settle with his family. He found his home in Weber County. Along with its beauty it had many advantages; fertile land, adequate water supply and timber. There was plenty of wild game and there were still beaver left on both the Weber and Ogden Rivers, and it was centrally located suiting his needs as a trader. Miles built his home calling it “Fort Buenaventura”. Buenaventura means ‘good venture’ or ‘achievement of goal’ or ‘good road’. The enclosure housed several small buildings. Miles and Pomona had a garden, and corral for their livestock.

Continuing on in his trading efforts Miles traveled to Yellowstone to secure buckskins which he sold in California. On his way back to Utah, Miles purchased horses with the intent to sell those horses to immigrants coming over the mountains. With his brother Andrew (who had sought to be reunited to Miles while he resided at Fort Buenaventura) the men went on to what is now Evanston, Wyoming. It was at this location that Miles first encountered the Mormons. It was a scouting party he met up with led by Porter Rockwell. The party was very curious about Miles’ valley. Miles anticipated that the Mormons would desire to settle in the valley. Not wanting to share his valley and thinking that he could possibly make some money, Miles began to ‘sell’ the scouts on the idea of his property being the location that they were seeking for settlement. If they bought his property he could move on and settle elsewhere. Because of the harsh conditions of the previous winter the trail down into the Weber Valley was impassible for wagons; instead the Mormons followed Emigration Canyon into the Salt Lake Valley and established their settlement there.

In the summer of 1847 Brigham Young sent a scouting party into northern Utah. They stopped at Fort Buenaventura and liked what they found. Captain James Brown of the Mormon Battalion also passed through the Weber area on his way to California (he was on his way to get the pay due his men). He too was pleased with what he found and approached Miles regarding the possible sale of his land (thinking of using his own money and possibly some of the monies he was to acquire in California for the purchase). Miles was not eager to sell unless he would receive what he wanted for his property. He seemed to be exercising his trading skills during the sale negotiations. Brigham and other leaders decided that purchasing Goodyear’s land was strategically a good move as they wanted to insure the isolation of their people from the threat of harassment (having previously been harassed and chased out of Missouri). Had they not purchased it the fort would stand to threaten their security as it was only 40 miles from their Salt Lake home and would attract non-Mormon immigrants.

On November 24, 1847, Captain James Brown purchased Miles’ land, its buildings, and livestock. Miles received $1,950. Miles maintained that he obtained the land through a Mexican land-grant, this gave him rights to sell the property, however, there was no documentation to substantiate Miles’ claim. The deed he gave Captain Brown was worthless though the stock and buildings on the land were worth the price of the exchange.

The transaction freed Miles and he moved to California. There he purchased more horses in hopes of driving them east to Kansas or Missouri where he anticipated a good market. The story of this horse drive is as much a success story as it was a failure. Never had anyone traveled so far with so many horses. When Miles arrived at his destination he found that there was no market for the horses. The resources the men had available were insufficient to provide any alternatives but to drive the horses back through the deserts, mountains and Indian Territory they had faced on the way there. The success that was achieved was that Miles had the skills necessary to perform such a feat with so little loss; the failure he experienced was simply due to a changing market. No horse trader before him or after him had ever driven horses such a distance (4,000 miles) under such conditions.

Times were changing and with the gold rush on, Miles made his next venture gold mining. Through his experiences Miles found that he could make more money bringing goods and supplies to the miners then what he could make by mining. On one of his supply trips Miles became ill and died. He passed away on November 12, 1849, he was 32 years old. His brother was with him throughout the last two years of his life, and was with him when he died. Of his brother Andrew sited Miles as being of generous heart to those without.

My home’s amid the mountains wild,
The land I fancied from a child,
To climb the cliff or tread the vale,
Where care nor trouble ne’er prevail,
To hunt the roe, the stag, the deer,
Or breathe the mountain air so clear,
Or chase the buffalo o’er the plain,
For here I am and here remain.
- Miles Goodyear

Fort Buenaventura Today

The issue of the fate of Fort Buenaventura State Park has prompted our editor to run this feature article on Miles Goodyear, the founder of Fort Buenaventura and first permanent settler of Utah in this, the summer issue of the Street Magazine. There are probably people out there who are not familiar with the fort’s history, its founder, or the fact that its state supportive funding has been withdrawn. There are probably many other people like myself who have never been to visit the fort. In May I made my first visit to Fort Buenaventura. I was so surprised at what I found on my initial visit…

I drove up through the park entrance past the group campsite, to find a piece of heaven and all it cost to visit was $1 (per person). The Fort is only part of the charm of the park. The park hosts a fishing pond that is free to children (stocked recently with 1,000 Rainbow Trout). The park makes canoes available to tool around the pond on and there are hiking trails around the park. The park is home to a variety of wildlife. It covers 32 acres and is enclosed on 2 sides by the river and on 2 sides by rail road. Just in-front of the pond is a well maintained visitor center and lots of parking. The bathrooms and the fort itself are also well maintained (due to the efforts of Bob Hanover and his park staff). There is also a covered picnic area as well as manicured landscape suitable for all kinds of activities.

Between 3,000 & 5,000 school children visit the fort each year. The fort hosts the Mountain Man Rendezvous held at Easter and again in June. The park is used to hold company picnics, scouting events, weddings, reunions, and to host church functions. The park, it seems, is a popular site for romantic rendezvous as well. The park has also been the site for filming crews. Most of the 43,000 seasonal visitors are Utah residents.

Being a heritage park the fort does not draw a lot of interest or public support the way other parks do. The number of visitors to the park has been dwindling. The limited budget that the park has to work with has not been sufficient to better market and research the park. Bob Hanover, the park manager, spent a considerable amount of time discussing the park from many angles with my editor and myself the afternoon we visited. It was disappointing to think that Mr. Hanover would be moving on to another park appointment (at Antelope Island) and leaving the fort. It was obvious that Bob’s heart has truly been in his work at the fort. I wish to convey to the public how fortunate we have been to have had someone with his management skills and his historic interest at the park these past couple of years. He has left his imprint on the park.

From Bob’s experience as the park’s manager he has seen the need to make the public more aware of the parks benefits, and feels the park will benefit from management with the ability to focus more on marketing. Bob expressed concern too that the park’s rules are often ignored by visitors. Such violations rob the park of funds and the time of the staff to deal with the violations. Only 21% of the park’s revenue is generated through park fees, and often people abuse the privilege of the minimal donation fee.

The park’s motto the past year was “It’s About Respect”. Fort Buenaventura is deserving of the respect not only by those who visit the park for its beauty, but by everyone because of its value as a historic and environmental resource.

Conclusion -

The first couple to reside in Utah settled in Weber County. They were culturally diverse and transient, each bringing to their marriage and the area unique life experiences, talents, and skills, not unlike the people who inhabit her borders today. It was Miles’ commitment to his sense of self that led him to the valley that is now our home. He was a man of unwavering determination, ingenuity, and entrepreneurship. The history of Fort Buenaventura is priceless. The legacy of the fur trappers is as American as apple pie and baseball. The role of the natives and their sacrifices and assimilation to our culture cannot be forgotten, nor should their contributions to our heritage. Mr. and Mrs. Goodyear played a vital role in the history and development of the face of our community, state and nation.

Earlier this year the state legislature decided to trim the state park budget. The site of Miles and Pomona Goodyear’s home (and several other state parks) was brought up for consideration. The park, not being self supporting, has been consuming funds better served elsewhere. The decision was made to cease funding the park with state monies.

Thankfully, Weber County is aware of the unique treasure we have at Fort Buenaventura and they have stepped in to keep the park operating. On July 1st a ceremony was held to commemorate the transition from the fort’s status as a state park to a county park.

During an interview with the Director of Operations for Weber County, Gary Laird, I learned a little bit about what the county is intending with the fort. The county is not making any immediate changes that will affect the public. The park will continue to be open as it has and all reservations will be honored. As far as management goes, there are many qualified county employees to oversee the maintenance of the park until a decision on park management is made. There are many decisions to be made and all contingent on the development of a master plan for the fort and the adjoining former landfill site. That plan is being put together by a committee including representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, Weber State University, the Northern Utah Shoshone Tribe, and the Mountain Man organization. This committee meets about every other week. The committee is in the process of formulating a mission statement that includes teaching as well as entertaining the visiting public. Whatever the final plans are for the park, developing those will largely depend on available funding and support. Both the city and the state have committed to assist the county financially over the next 3 years. There are some grants that may be available to help the county fund their master plan. The hopes are to have the master plan defined by the end of year. Mr. Laird hopes to see “the fire of interest and concern for the fort continue,” and he hopes “to keep the enthusiasm going that has been sparked,” He fears that if the fire dies we may not get the master plan going for the next few years.

The issue was not that the park was ever in any real danger of being closed or done away with; it is that the history of the park is in threat of being forgotten, of being taken for granted and even loosing its value to the public. Let us not forget who we have been that we might not lose a sense of what we are, being held together through these memories as individuals and communities.

A note for your consideration:

As I researched I came in contact with several resources that seemed to disagree as to what Miles’ intent was in calling this site a “Fort”. By definition a fort is merely an enclosed, strengthened place, armed for defense. That was certainly true of Buenaventura. As far as it serving other purposes, for example as a trading fort or to be the site intended for an expanding settlement or as being a site where rendezvous were held, I did not find anything in my research to support those claims. Perhaps trading did go on there as it would have in the presence of a trader wherever he happened to be. Being that the site was in an auspicious location most certainly it is likely that people did stop and trade at the fort while on their way to other places. Naming something does not necessarily define a thing in terms of its function, purpose or value. Perhaps Fort Buenaventura was a name that Miles associated with what was most important to him, a safe place for his family, along what was now a good road in his life.

Another controversial issue that came up while writing this article was the issue of the selection of the name of our city, Ogden. These are issues that I would encourage the interested reader in further researching, along with studying about the conservation efforts of the late 1800s early 1900s, the role of women during the same time period, the effects of western expansion on the native population, forts, beaver, trapping, trading, rendezvous, Mormons (pioneers, the Mormon Battalion), mining, exploration, expansion, government, politics, and the rail road…It is a fascinating era. It was difficult to maintain the focus on my subject in light of so much available, interesting information

 

 

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