FREMONT
FREMONT
England. He made a fifth expedition across the
t^oiitiueut to Califoruiai starting in September,
18o3, tiudiug passes through tlie luouutaius in
the 38th and iS9th degrees of latitude, about the
l)resent line of the .Santa Fe railroad. In this
journey his party suffered great hardship, sub-
sisting for forty days on horse-flesh and barely
escaping starvation. He went to New York in
1855 to prepare a narrative of his last expedition
and was received with much favor by the new
Republican party on account of his sacrifice in
behalf of his anti-slavery principles. He was
given the sobriquet of " Pathfinder " and was
made the champion of a new political party
whose rallying cry was: "Free soil, free speech,
freedom and Fremont." When the Republican
national convention met in Philadelphia in June,
1856, he was unanimously nominated for Presi-
dent of the United States on the first formal
ballot, and William L. Dayton was nominated
for vice-president. He also received the nomi-
nation from the National American party the
same year and in the election received 114 elec-
toral and 1,341.000 popular votes, against 174
electoral and 1,838,000 popular votes for James
Buchanan and 8 electoral and 874.000 popular
votes for Millard Fillmore. He returned to Cali-
fornia in 18.58. where he engaged in mining on his
Mariposa estate, and in 1860 again visited
Europe with his family to obtain further means
to work his gold mines. President Lincoln, at
the outbreak of the civil war, commissioned him
a major-general and assigned him to the com-
mand of the western department in the regular
army, with headquarters at St. Louis. At the
order of the war department he purchased a
quantit}' of arms for the new army before leaving
France and on arriving at St. Louis, July 26, 1861,
he fortified the city, prepared to defend Cairo,
III., placed Missouri under martial law, organized
the first cavalry division of the war, suppressed
secession newspapers, arrested outspoken enemies
of the Union, began the building of river gun-
boats for interior operation, and on Aug. 30,
1861, issued a proclamation, assuming the govern-
ment of the state and declaring the slaves of
owners in arms against the United States to be
free, — the very methods of suppressing the rebel-
lion afterward adopted by the war dejiartment.
President Lincoln approved of his action, except
as to emancipation, which he asked Fremont to
revoke, Fremont declining to do so on the ground
that the deed was done after careful thought for
the effect it would have on his dejwrtment. The
President annulled tlie proclamation in a public
order but not until two slaves had received
their freedom. Fremont had planned his cam-
paign, liad sent 2000 of his army of 8000 men to
the defence of Washington, had cleared Missouri
of guerilla bands and had driven Price and
McCulloch into southwest Missouri. When he
reached Springfield, Mo., Nov. 2, 1861, and had
the Confederates practically in a net, he was
relieved of his command and the armj' lost all
the advantage it had gained as his whole policy
was discarded by his successor. Frfimont then
returned to St. Louis, where he was received
with great enthusiasm and his friends at once
claimed his removal due to political intrigue.
In March, 1863, President Lincoln gave him
command of the mountain district of Virginia,
Kentucky and Tennessee created for him, and in
June he met and for eight days pursued Gen.
T. W. (■' Stonewall ") Jackson's army. On June
6, 1862. at Bull Pasture Mountain, General
Ashby, Jackson's chief of cavalry, was killed ; on
June 8 the battle of Cross Keys was fought, and
Jackson, who, through his strategj', had pre-
vented Fremont from reinforcing the army of
the Potomac under McClellan, was obliged to fall
back. On June 26 President Lincoln reorganized
the troops of the various commanders, as the
Army of Virginia, and placed it in command of
Maj.-Gen. John Pope, although FrCmont out-
ranked that officer, as he did all others in the
army excepting George B. McClellan. There-
upon Fremont asked to be relieved from serving
vmder Pope who he said had disobeyed orders
in Missouri, and he was ordered to New York on
waiting orders. He was promised another com-
mand, but did not receive one up to the close of
the war. A convention made up of radical
Republicans met at Cleveland, Jlay 30, 1864, and
nominated I'r6mont for President of the United
States with Gen. John Cochrane as Vice-Presi-
dent. Frfimont accepted the nomination and
resigned his commission in the army. He after-
ward withdrew from the canvass at the earnest
request of the friends of Mr. Lincoln: " not,'" lie
said, "to aid in the triumj)!! of Mr. Lincoln, but
to do my jsart toward preventing the election of
the Democratic candidate." This was held as
"a vital service." In 1878 he was appointed by
President Haj'es governor of Arizona Territory
and held the office three 5'ears. He was made a
major-general in the regular army in April, 1890,
by an act of congress which authorized the ap-
pointment bj' the President, and he was at once
jilaced on the retired list. This afforded him an
annual income of §5625, of which he was in much
neeil, as his mining and railroad investments
had proved disastrous, but which he did not live
to enjoy. He published : Report of the Exploring
Expeditions to the Eocky Mountains in 1S42 and to
Oregon and North California in 1843-44 (1845);
an account of his five expeditions in 18.59; and
3Iemoirs of My Life (1886). He died in New York
city, July 13, 1890.
