James Pierson Beckwourth

Beckwourth, James Pierson (1798–1867?), African-American pioneer, rancher, fur-trader, and Army scout, discoverer of Beckworth Pass through the Sierra Nevada Mountains around 1850. The pass opened a direct route to California's Sacramento Valley. Believed to have been born a slave in Fredericksburg, Virginia, Beckworth grew up in St. Louis and participated in trading expeditions to the Rocky Mountains, where he encountered and lived with the Crow tribe from 1826 to 1837.