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| Joshua Pilcher |
Joshua was a fur trader, Indian Agent for St. Louis and Council Bluffs. Charter member of Missouri #1 A.F. and A.M. Accumulated a large fortune and died without ever having married. 1819 Joshua Pilcher moves from Indian camp to Indian camp trading for fu rs during the unusually bitter winter, learning the rudiment of the fur-tr ading business. Lisa's health deteriorates during the winter at Council B luffs and Joshua assumes more authority at the post. Lisa leaves for S t. Louis in early April while Joshua remains at Council Bluffs observing t he details of the fur trade. He forms a close friendship with John Dought ery, Indian interpreter at Council Bluffs who accompanies him on at lea st one visit to the Indians in the fall of 1819 with the young and handso me William Henry Vanderburgh. In time, business and politics will destr oy his friendship with Doughtery but Vanderburgh and Joshua remain cordi al until the younger man's untimely death in 1832. 1825 On March 5th, President Adams nominates Joshua for the position, a nd the Senate consents to it two days later. The immediate confirmation a nd the timing of the appointment strongly suggests Joshua might have favor ed Adams in the extremely controversial election of 1824, although his fri end Benton had supported Clay. Benton, however, backs Joshua for the cons ular post, and hoping to encourage American trade in the Southwest, shephe rds a bill through the Senate and into law, early in 1825 appropriating $3 0,000 for an immediate survey of the Santa Fe Trail, but due to a long ill ness Joshua is unable to leave the country and fulfill this position. 1828 Joshua Pilcher moves west to Bear Lake for the summer rendezvous a nd sold their remaining goods to the trappers. They picked their way slow ly over the mountains, trapped a few beaver and reached Clark's Fork in we stern Montana. The snow drifted, so they made winter camp in the timber n ear Flathead Lake, and waited for spring. 1837 Two weeks before Joshua Pilcher gets up from his sick bed (he's be en bedridden from Christmas time until March 21, 1837) President Van Bur en nominates him Indian agent to the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Ponca Indian s. Benton informs Joshua of the good news, and at the end of the month Se cretary of War Joel R. Poinsett sends his new commission. His salary th is time is $2,000. 1838 Joshua Pilcher is Superintendent of Indian Affairs, succeeding Will iam Clark. 1838 In December Joshua travels east by stage from Liberty, Missour i, to Washington. In the capital he takes a room for two months beginni ng January 5, makes contact with Benton and settles his Sioux Agency accou nts with the Indian Office. 1839 On February 28th Joshua is nominated for superintendent and Preside nt Van Buren immediately sends his name to the Senate Committee on Indi an affairs. During this time, approximately thirty-five agents, sub-agent s, interpreters, blacksmiths, farmers, and others work in agencies or s ub agencies at Fort Leavenworth, Council Bluffs, the Uppers Missouri, a nd the Osage River, under his jurisdiction. Joshua finds this job complic ated, challenging and frustrating at a salary of $2,600. 1842 During the two-year term as superintendent of Indian affairs, the g overnment added to Joshua's duties, the disbursing responsibility for t he Iowa and Wisconsin superintendencies, and under such stress and alrea dy in poor health, Joshua dies on the 5th of June. - He is buried in lot t en of St. Luke's Square Episcopal Cemetery, St. Louis. Mentioned in the w ill, Pilcher has spoken of a tour of the South which he proposes taking f or his health and orders that Colonel Benton be notified if he dies on t he tour. ID: I41 Name: Joshua PILCHER Jr. Sex: M Birth: 1790 in Virginia (prob Culpeper Co) Death: 5 JUN 1843 Burial: 1843 Christ Church Cemetary, St Louis, Mo Residence: 1790 Culpeper Co, Va Residence: 1793 Fayette Co, Ky Residence: 1810 Nashville, Davidson Co, Tn Residence: 1814 St Louis, Mo RETI: 1841 St Louis, Mo Occupation: Merchant craftsman 7 JULY 1810 Occupation: Part owner of a dry goods store & banker 1815 Occupation: Field Operations Manager, Missouri Fur Company 1819 Occupation: Indian Agent, Federal Indian Services MAR 1834 Occupation: Superintendent, Indian Affairs, St Louis, Mo 10 MAR 1938 Note: Joshua was three when his family make the 500 mile trek from Culpeper to F ayette County, Ky. Though quite successful, he never married. He was an In dian Agent under President Van Buren. Over the years, he accumulated "a la rge fortune," dying in St. Louis, Missouri in 1841 or 42. Following his father's death, Joshua moved to Nashville, Tennessee. On 7 J uly 1810, he acquired ownership of the "Hat Store at Nashville" from Mr. J ohn Lowry. The store was destroyed by a fire on 2 March 1814 that had brok en out in a house on the square and quickly spread to several businesse s. He was able to reopened the business with limited stock from a small pl ace he was able to rent on Market Steeet; however, He apparently elect ed to give up the business because on 25 October he called upon his custom ers to settle their accounts. Shortly thereafter, sometime in late 181 4, he left Nashville for St Louis, Missouri (then the Missouri territory ). Before leaving Nashville, he had joined the Cumberland Lodge Numb er 8 of the Masonic Order, received the Past Master's degree and been admi tted for membership in the Grand Lodge of Tennessee. As trade improved in the then Missouri Territory, Joshua invested in a par tnership with N. S. Anderson, selling dry goods. he was also engaged in ba nking for a short time. His partner ship with N.S. Anderson lasted until A nderson's death in 1816. Following this, at 29, he joined the Missouri F ur Company in 1819 and a year later became their manager of field operatio ns. In 1823, he served as a Major in the defense forces raised in the Miss ouri territory during a campaign against the Aricara Indians. During the summer of 1833, he had taken the daughter of Michel Bara da as a wife. During this time of his life, most of his time was spe nt in Council Bluffs, Ia, where they met. Council Bluffs was some 400+ mil es northwest of St Louis. She died of cholera, apparently during or very s oon after the birth of their child John. For reasons unstated, Joshua turn ed his infant son John over to Big Elk, an Omaha chief. However, he was ra ised as John Pilcher within the Omaha tribe. Joshua spent most of the remainder of his life as an Indian Agent for t he Federal Indian Services until 1838 when he was appointed Superintende nt of Indian Affairs, St. Louis, Missouri. He contracted pulmonary consump tion between 1838 and 1841. He retired, in not good health, in 1841. Neith er medication nor climate change improved his condition which continu ed to deteriorate. In 1842, as he wrote his will on November 18, 184 2. He died almost nine months later on 5 June 1843. He was initially inter red in Christ Church Cemetery in South St. Louis. In 1884, when Christ Chu rch was closed, Virginia C. Brooks, widow of Edward Brooks, Joshua's close st friend, authorized his remains to be moved to the Brooks' plat at Belle fontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, Missouri. On 8 June 1843, the day after he was buried, the Missouri Reporter stat ed in part: "...few men in the West [are] intimately acquainted with our Indian relati ons...No man was more 'desirour' than Joshua Pilcher of promoting the happ iness and assuaging the miseries of the red man." In his will, Joshua left his estate to his sister Margaret, wife of Hir am Shaw. He made no mention of his son John in Nebraska, with whom he h ad had little or no known contact since leaving him with Big Elk as an inf ant. In addition to Margaret, and the details of the design of his pla ce of last rest, he did leave several bequests to some of his friends. Father: Joshua PILCHER b: 1749 in Culpeper Co, Va Mother: Nancy BALLARD b: bef 1749 in Culpeper Co, Va Suggested Next Step: Search OneWorldTree for: Pilcher, Joshua Jr. Marriage 1 Poporine BARADA b: CA 1810 Married: 6 DEC 1832 in Bellevue Sarpy, Ne Children John PILCHER b: 25 DEC 1833 in Omaha Reserve, Ne -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------ |
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