William Becknell

William Becknell

William Becknell (1787 or 1788–1856, Amherst County, Virginia) was a freighter and the first white man to open what became known as the Santa Fe Trail to trade. Becknell left Franklin, Missouri in September 1821 on his first trip the western US with a load of freight to deliver to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The next year Becknell left Franklin with party of traders on a trip that was to open up the Santa Fe Trail to regular traffic and military movement. It became the first and only international trade route between The United States and Mexico until a railway to Santa Fe was built in 1880. He became known as the "Father of the Santa Fe Trail".

Becknell became a politician later in life. His first political appointment was as Justice of the Peace in Saline County, Missouri and he was later elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 1828. Becknell, who had been in the War of 1812, later moved to Texas and joined a group of volunteers called the "Red River Blues" in 1836. He ran unsuccessfully for the Texas House of Representatives in 1826. He supervised the Texas congressional elections in 1845 and US congressional elections in 1846. Becknell died 25 April 1856.

During World War II, a liberty ship was launched as SS "William Becknell", but was quickly rechristened USS|Sabik|AK-121.

External links

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* [http://www.bicknell.net/sftrail.htm William Becknell and the Santa Fe Trail]
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  • William Becknell — (1787 o 1788 1856) Amherst County, Virginia Estados Unidos de América fue un comerciante y el primer hombre blanco en abrir al comercio lo que después se llegó a conocer como el Camino de Santa Fe. Becknell dejó Arrow Rock, Missouri el 1 de… …   Wikipedia Español

  • William Becknell — (* 1790; † 1832) war ein US amerikanischer Waldläufer. Santa Fe Trail um 1845 Becknell fand einen Übergang von den Ebenen in Kansas nach Santa Fe in New Mexico, den Raton Pass. Er benutzte ihn erstmals im September 1821 mit einigen Lasttieren, um …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Becknell — William Becknell (* 1790; † 1832) war ein US amerikanischer Waldläufer. Santa Fe Trail um 1845 Becknell fand einen Übergang von den Ebenen in Kansas nach Santa Fe in New Mexico, den Raton Pass. Er benutzte ihn erstmals im September 1821 mit… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • William — /wil yeuhm/, n. 1. a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter W. 2. a male given name: from Germanic words meaning will and helmet. * * * (as used in expressions) Huddie William Ledbetter Aberhart William George William… …   Universalium

  • William — (as used in expressions) William Alexander Abbott Aberhart, William George William Russell Amis, Sir Kingsley (William) Ashley, William Henry Ashton, Sir Frederick (William Mallandaine) Barkley, Alben W(illiam) Bartram, William William Allen… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Becknell, William — born 1796?, Amherst county, Va., U.S. died April 30, 1865, Texas U.S. trader. After settling in Missouri, he became involved in trade with the Southwest. When the Spanish prohibition on trade with New Mexico was lifted in 1821, he followed the… …   Universalium

  • Becknell — /bek nl/, n. William, c1790 1865, U.S. frontier trader: opened Santa Fe Trail 1822. * * * …   Universalium

  • Becknell — /bek nl/, n. William, c1790 1865, U.S. frontier trader: opened Santa Fe Trail 1822 …   Useful english dictionary

  • Becknell, William — (¿1796?, cond. de Amherst, Va., EE.UU.–30 abr. 1865, Texas). Comerciante estadounidense. Luego de establecerse en Missouri, se dedicó al comercio con el sudoeste. En 1821, cuando se levantó la prohibición española de comerciar con Nuevo México,… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Santa Fe National Historic Trail — Karte des Santa Fe Trails um 1845 Lage: Missouri, Kansas, Colorado …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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