Kit Carson - Indian Activity

Indian Activity

Following the recapture of Los Angeles in 1846, Stockton appointed Frémont as Governor of California. Frémont sent Carson to carry messages back to Washington, D.C. He stopped in St. Louis and met with Senator Thomas Benton, a prominent supporter of settling of the West and a proponent of Manifest Destiny. He had been instrumental in getting Frémont's expedition reports published by Congress. Once in Washington, Carson delivered his messages to Secretary of State James Buchanan, and had meetings with Secretary of War William Marcy and President James Polk. The president also proposed Carson as a lieutenant in the mounted rifle regiment, but the United States Senate rejected the appointment.