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A Newer World: Kit Carson, John C. Frémont, and The Claiming of The American West
In A Newer World , David Roberts serves as a guide through John C. Frémont's and Kit Carson's adventures through unknown American territory to achieve manifest destiny.
Between 1842 and 1854 John C. Frémont, renowned as the nineteenth century's greatest explorer, and Kit Carson, the legendary scout and Indian fighter, boldly ventured into untamed territory to fulfill America's "manifest destiny." Drawing on little-known primary sources, as well as his own travels through the lands Frémont and Carson explored, David Roberts recreates their expeditions, second in significance only to those of Lewis and Clark. A Newer World is a harrowing narrative of hardship and adventure and a poignant reminder of the cultural tragedy that westward expansion inflicted on the Native American.
Between 1842 and 1854 John C. Frémont, renowned as the nineteenth century's greatest explorer, and Kit Carson, the legendary scout and Indian fighter, boldly ventured into untamed territory to fulfill America's "manifest destiny." Drawing on little-known primary sources, as well as his own travels through the lands Frémont and Carson explored, David Roberts recreates their expeditions, second in significance only to those of Lewis and Clark. A Newer World is a harrowing narrative of hardship and adventure and a poignant reminder of the cultural tragedy that westward expansion inflicted on the Native American.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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About the author
David Roberts
61 books225 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
See this thread for more information.
David Roberts is the award-winning author of twenty-nine books about mountaineering, exploration, and anthropology. His most recent publication, Alone on the Wall, was written with world-class rock climber Alex Honnold, whose historic feats were featured in the film Free Solo.
See this thread for more information.
David Roberts is the award-winning author of twenty-nine books about mountaineering, exploration, and anthropology. His most recent publication, Alone on the Wall, was written with world-class rock climber Alex Honnold, whose historic feats were featured in the film Free Solo.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
August 17, 2011
The stories of John C. Fremont and Kit Carson are hardly clear or well documented. The bluster of Fremont (and his wife Jessie) and illiteracy of Carson leave many primary sources suspect and difficult to verify, and the legendary and ignominious reputations the two have held over the years make them as much mythological as historical.
David Roberts does an excellent job weighing the dichotomies that follow these controversial figures, and while his writing isn't as entertaining and gripping as Ian W. Toll, he covers the depth and breadth of the odd couple's journeys with educated interest and sound research.
While it would be nice to see more quotes and citing throughout the work, the nature of the mountain men and explorers of the day, as well as the stringent requests for complete information control by Fremont, mean that the source material Roberts had to draw from was far from ideal.
Overall, Roberts's book is a fair and scholarly study of the four excursions West by Fremont, with a very nice effort to paint Carson's complex nature in context.
David Roberts does an excellent job weighing the dichotomies that follow these controversial figures, and while his writing isn't as entertaining and gripping as Ian W. Toll, he covers the depth and breadth of the odd couple's journeys with educated interest and sound research.
While it would be nice to see more quotes and citing throughout the work, the nature of the mountain men and explorers of the day, as well as the stringent requests for complete information control by Fremont, mean that the source material Roberts had to draw from was far from ideal.
Overall, Roberts's book is a fair and scholarly study of the four excursions West by Fremont, with a very nice effort to paint Carson's complex nature in context.
November 26, 2014
A Newer World:Kit Carson, John C. Fremont, and the Claiming of the American West / David Roberts. Read with Lee. Interesting juxtaposition of two significant figures in the nineteenth century effort to tame and conquer the West. Filled with details that flesh out and illuminate individual characters and events that were important to the times and our historical national character. Carson and Fremont worked together and apart; Carson comes out ahead in the contest for respect, but his actions were not uniformly worthy. They reflect the era and universal human weaknesses and strengths.
November 16, 2022
This is a brief survey of the four expeditions of John C. Fremont and his relationship with Kit Carson in the 1840s and 1850s. Robert’s book also includes brief biographies of Fremont, Carson, and their fellow adventurers. The author also includes the Native American viewpoint regarding these expeditions. Roberts also reviews, evaluates, and updates the literature on Fremont and Carson. The author also traveled to the expedition sites and explains what they look like today. Fremont’s first expedition was his claim to fame mainly because it was written by his wife, Jessie and then published at government expense for distribution. This will later be the foundation for Fremont’s run for the presidency in 1856. Roberts also points out Fremont’s main personality flaws; his concern on how everything he does will look in the future, the fact that he is very stubborn, lacks empathy, and fails to take blame for failure of his fourth expedition which led to the deaths of ten of thirty three men. In fact, the author finds Fremont’s actions shameful and lacking of leadership. Yet, Fremont was the vanguard of Manifest Destiny and remained very popular. While his reports influenced Brigham Young to go west his actions in California nearly led to a preemptive war with Mexico and an Indian massacre. Kit Carson is not a very popular figure with historians as he was a fierce Indian fighter/killer through the years. The author says that he mellowed out later in life, attempted to resign several times from his military position yet ultimately followed orders to lead several campaigns against Indians in the 1860s resulting in the deaths of many. Later in life Fremont failed as a military leader in the Civil War and was dismissed by President Lincoln. This was partly due to Fremont’s abolitionist stand that preempted Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. Roberts says, “Both men had their faults, but pure heroes or villains do not exist outside the pages of bad literature.” So finally, both were and are still seen as the men that effectively closed the era of the discovery of the West. A good read.
March 28, 2023
This book provided both separate looks at the lives of John Charles Fremont and Kit Carson, as well as the years when their lives overlapped during Fremont’s exploratory trips to the West in the 1840’s - 1850’s.
Fremont was full of himself and depended heavily on others in his Western trips, only to take all the credit later. He often endangered the lives of his men for his own glory. He went from rags to riches back to rags by the end of his life.
Carson began life as an Indian fighter and mountain man only to become a world famous tracker, guide, and survivalist. He learned over time to appreciate the Indian tribes and worked for their benefit, except when as a now and then Union soldier, he was forced to find them and herd them into reservations.
Both men left a mixed legacy in the West.
Fremont was full of himself and depended heavily on others in his Western trips, only to take all the credit later. He often endangered the lives of his men for his own glory. He went from rags to riches back to rags by the end of his life.
Carson began life as an Indian fighter and mountain man only to become a world famous tracker, guide, and survivalist. He learned over time to appreciate the Indian tribes and worked for their benefit, except when as a now and then Union soldier, he was forced to find them and herd them into reservations.
Both men left a mixed legacy in the West.
October 23, 2024
This is the first book about Kit Carson I have read. His story was not what I expected. A true mountain man of the west, one of the best trackers ever.
The story of John Fremont was new to me also. The book mainly covers his four explorations of the West in the 1840s and his friendship with Kit Carson.
There is so much early history before California was even a state.
Fremont it seems had an ego that doomed his fourth exploration. The death and suffering of men and mules exceed even the Donner party story.
There is a fair amount of dismal history of various Indian tribes at the close of the book but best covered by others I imagine.
The story of John Fremont was new to me also. The book mainly covers his four explorations of the West in the 1840s and his friendship with Kit Carson.
There is so much early history before California was even a state.
Fremont it seems had an ego that doomed his fourth exploration. The death and suffering of men and mules exceed even the Donner party story.
There is a fair amount of dismal history of various Indian tribes at the close of the book but best covered by others I imagine.
November 30, 2023
I have read several David Roberts books and this one did not disappoint; he is a master of relaying the results of in-depth research to the unaware reader. The connections between Kit Carson and John C. Fremont were many, complicated, interesting and sometimes frustrating, i.e, what was it in Fremont's persona that drew the illiterate, but exceptional explorer Carson to him and his irrational goals. In this book Mr. Roberts follows their explorations to claim the West for the United States and it becomes easy to like one and totally dislike the other.
June 15, 2024
Story of Kit Carson transformation from an illiterate mountain man to the explorer, Indian fighter and Indian agent.
The book captures three expeditions of Kit Carson with John Frémont into the American West.
1. 1842 - Up to continental divide - Fremont Peak.
2. 1844 - winter crossing through Sierra Nevada to California
3. 1845 - Conquest of California
4. 1848-49 - exploration for the railroad to link New York with San Francisco.
Kit was not part of the last Fremont’s disastrous trip through La Garita Mountains.
The book captures three expeditions of Kit Carson with John Frémont into the American West.
1. 1842 - Up to continental divide - Fremont Peak.
2. 1844 - winter crossing through Sierra Nevada to California
3. 1845 - Conquest of California
4. 1848-49 - exploration for the railroad to link New York with San Francisco.
Kit was not part of the last Fremont’s disastrous trip through La Garita Mountains.
August 24, 2024
I never got really mentally into this book. The story did not hang together for me. Fremont's expedition in Colorado read like a disaster story. I think his ego got in the way of good sense. I was intrigued by the aspects of Kit Carson. I remember a TV series when I was a kid which generally treated him favorably. Now i think he is like most people- a mix of good and bad with some evolution toward the better toward his later days. If Undaunted Courage is the standard, this falls far short.
August 24, 2025
Interesting and informative. Anyone interested in a detailed account of how mountain men actually lived should read this book.
Some readers will view the book as an apology for the white man. Others will see it as an honest attempt at an objective recount. It does not shy away from presenting the cruelties of both white men and Native Americans.
I'm docking one star because the history itself is sometimes factually incorrect and the text feels like it was rewritten with thesaurus in hand.
Some readers will view the book as an apology for the white man. Others will see it as an honest attempt at an objective recount. It does not shy away from presenting the cruelties of both white men and Native Americans.
I'm docking one star because the history itself is sometimes factually incorrect and the text feels like it was rewritten with thesaurus in hand.
March 20, 2019
Thoughtful and interesting book
Whatba great presentation of the history, so readavle and well researched. It not only presents the 2 men, but also the times and the stories of the cultures involved. A great read.
Whatba great presentation of the history, so readavle and well researched. It not only presents the 2 men, but also the times and the stories of the cultures involved. A great read.
November 17, 2020
Learned a lot about Carson, but also a lot about John C. Frémont, who turned out to not be so "path-finder-y."
April 18, 2021
A good book on the explorations of Fremont and. Carson. Well written
August 2, 2023
Engrossing and tragic
May 31, 2021
This is a balanced fascinating biography of two men who, despite their vast differences, became close friends. This is not a full-life biography of either man. Instead, it’s a look at four expeditions to the West that impacted their lives. We first meet Carson and Frémont on an expedition through Wyoming where the two explored the Wind River range. You get a glimpse into their characters as they, in company with several other expeditioners, climb Frémont Peak, named by the grandiose Frémont. You see the dictatorial clamp Frémont puts on the expedition, insisting that none of them keep a journal other than him. One German-born expeditioner kept his journal secretly in German, defying Frémont’s order. Indeed, if there is a weakness associated with this book, it is the lack of primary sources. Frémont wrote things his way and forbade anyone else from keeping a history. Carson was illiterate and kept no written records. They were different in numerous ways, these two. Frémont was a southern boy—a South Carolina Dandy—or he would have been had the army not sent him west. Carson was a Kentucky runaway who left home at 13 and never looked back.
The book follows both men and their various expeditions. Frémont, who could barely write coherently, relied on his spirited apparently lovely wife, Jesse, to write what he dictated. His reports of the expeditions he undertook became instant bestsellers. Roberts suggests that Frémont’s description of the Valley of the Great Salt Lake may have had some influence on Brigham Young’s decision to lead thousands of his followers to that valley in 1847.
The book covers four expeditions: The first involved a trek up Frémont Peak in the Wind River range in Wyoming. Frémont’s second expedition was a trip to California, where he grandly claimed he won it for the United States. That’s not quite how the history went, but a little history never stopped Frémont from telling a good story.
The third expedition took place between 1848 and 1849, and it was a disastrous survey in which Frémont sought to craft a path for a trans-continental railroad that would start in New York, go through St. Louis—a tip of the hat to his U.S. senator father-in-law, then forge on to California. The problem is the route he chose would have been impossible to turn into a railroad path because of the steepness of the grades and the impassability of some of the canyons. Comprising chapters nine and 10, this reads like an edge-of-the-seat thriller novel. The expedition is famous for the cannibalism that marked it early in 1849.
The fourth expedition the author examines is an 1863—1864 roundup of Apachee and Navajo people, forcing them into a long walk and a kind of demoralizing slavery that nearly obliterated them. You will read here of Kit Carson’s conversion from being a thoughtless killer of native Americans to someone converted to their cause—pleading for their greater autonomy and welfare. Frémont never comes across with the positivity that Carson does in the end. He remains that braggard who always knew more than his superiors and always overstepped the boundaries of his missions and expeditions. That pattern goes throughout the Civil War as well, forcing Lincoln to fire Frémont not once, but twice. (That information gets a nod in this book, but there aren’t great details about those events, since they’re outside the scope of the book).
The book follows both men and their various expeditions. Frémont, who could barely write coherently, relied on his spirited apparently lovely wife, Jesse, to write what he dictated. His reports of the expeditions he undertook became instant bestsellers. Roberts suggests that Frémont’s description of the Valley of the Great Salt Lake may have had some influence on Brigham Young’s decision to lead thousands of his followers to that valley in 1847.
The book covers four expeditions: The first involved a trek up Frémont Peak in the Wind River range in Wyoming. Frémont’s second expedition was a trip to California, where he grandly claimed he won it for the United States. That’s not quite how the history went, but a little history never stopped Frémont from telling a good story.
The third expedition took place between 1848 and 1849, and it was a disastrous survey in which Frémont sought to craft a path for a trans-continental railroad that would start in New York, go through St. Louis—a tip of the hat to his U.S. senator father-in-law, then forge on to California. The problem is the route he chose would have been impossible to turn into a railroad path because of the steepness of the grades and the impassability of some of the canyons. Comprising chapters nine and 10, this reads like an edge-of-the-seat thriller novel. The expedition is famous for the cannibalism that marked it early in 1849.
The fourth expedition the author examines is an 1863—1864 roundup of Apachee and Navajo people, forcing them into a long walk and a kind of demoralizing slavery that nearly obliterated them. You will read here of Kit Carson’s conversion from being a thoughtless killer of native Americans to someone converted to their cause—pleading for their greater autonomy and welfare. Frémont never comes across with the positivity that Carson does in the end. He remains that braggard who always knew more than his superiors and always overstepped the boundaries of his missions and expeditions. That pattern goes throughout the Civil War as well, forcing Lincoln to fire Frémont not once, but twice. (That information gets a nod in this book, but there aren’t great details about those events, since they’re outside the scope of the book).
May 9, 2012
This is a short, fairly accessible introduction to two key figures in America's expansion to the west. While not a full life biography of either man, it promises exactly what the premise states; an comparison of these two men and their years spent together traveling across the west. This book paraphrases and draws heavily from previous biographies, and throughout often feels like a biographical comparison than any original research. However, Roberts is very fair in his treatment of both men and tries to point out the errors that popular history has affixed to both men. Overall, this is a short, easily accessible foray into the lives of two well known, though little understood men.
June 14, 2012
Enjoyed this fairly straightforward account of some significant mid-nineteenth century expeditions through parts of the American West. Positive and negative aspects of the personalities of Carson and Fremont, and those around them, are covered in the narrative which also includes modern day visits to the locations where the history was made. A good overview of the relationship between the two primary subjects, Carson and Fremont. An easy read for anyone interested in learning more about the period and area covered.
May 6, 2024
Wow. I wasn’t sure if I could push through. Author’s source notes at the end of the book are pretty sparse. Author makes it very (maybe even too) clear how he personally feels about other scholarship on this subject. He promises at the beginning to give more time to native peoples and for most of the book, I think he fails at that. His section on Kit Carson rounding up the Apache and Diné was much better on this. I really do hate the author’s writing style and if I ever pick up another of his books, please punch me as hard as you can square in the face.
August 20, 2014
I usually don't read non- fiction but was intrigued by this book after a visit to the San Luis valley. It is a great read! I really enjoyed the pacing, insights, and reports on actual locations where historical events took place. As a hiker, I loved the descriptions of mountaineering and primitive camping.
July 16, 2016
Another good book by David Roberts. This review of two men whose lives were intimately linked and by happenstance. Fremont who ended life as a penniless vagabond after being nominated for president in 1856 and tried to explore much of the West. Carson was not as vile as some have characterized him. A good book.
April 16, 2023
wonderfully researched / pragmatically written
Just a wonderful read, exactly what I have always wanted. Exploring this relationship between Carson and Fremont is so important to understanding the time in US history. Intersecting timelines give clear perspective on all parties involved in the evolution of the west. 100% recommend
Just a wonderful read, exactly what I have always wanted. Exploring this relationship between Carson and Fremont is so important to understanding the time in US history. Intersecting timelines give clear perspective on all parties involved in the evolution of the west. 100% recommend
February 19, 2008
Great book. Opening the America west was largely accomplished by this man with Kit Carson at his side. I am currently reading Blood and Thunder which considers these two explorers as well as the political and Native American sides. So far an excellent read.
July 9, 2011
Rather unremarkable. Breaks little new ground and, for the historians out there, is rather poorly and weakly researched.
December 6, 2011
Excellent. History as it should be written.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews