December 3, 2024 • 10 mins
On this episode of Our American Stories, here to tell the story of explorer, accused spy, and American military hero, Zebulon Pike is Craig du Mez of the Grateful Nation Project.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
And we return to our American stories. Up next to
a story about a man behind the namesake of a mountain,
the highest summit of the Southern front range of the
Rocky Mountains, to be exact.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Here to tell the story of.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
The famed explorer and namesake of Pike's Peak, Zebulin Pike
is Craig Dumay. Craig is the president of the Grateful
Nation Project, an organization that seeks to gather, preserve, and
share the true story of America's military heroes past and present.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Let's get into the story. Take it away, Craig.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
If you visit the states of Colorado or Minnesota, you'll
encounter more than a few parks, bays, creeks, streets, and
schools named after Zebulin Montgomery Pike. Ten states have counties
named in his honor, dozens of towns, and perhaps most
familiar to many Americans are the famed Pike's Peak and
(01:09):
the Pike National Forest near Colorado Springs. But who is
this famous mister Pike? For two centuries, historians have argued
whether he was an explorer or perhaps a spy. You
might be interested to know that he failed at two
of the most important missions of his life, one that
would nonetheless bring him lasting fame. As the son of
(01:33):
a Continental Army officer, Zebulin Montgomery Pike spent parts of
his childhood in and around frontier military posts. Destined for
a military career, He was born in Lamberton, New Jersey,
in January seventeen seventy nine, right in the middle of
the Revolutionary War. His father, also named Zebuln Pike, fought
(01:54):
beside George Washington. To follow in his father's footsteps, the
younger Zebuln Pike joined the army at age fifteen, serving
under Revolutionary War hero General mad Anthony Wayne. One of
Pike's duties was to ferry supplies to forts located on
the Miami, Ohio, and Mississippi rivers. At that time, what
(02:18):
is now Ohio and Illinois were considered to be the
northwestern frontier. These assignments gave him valuable experience in navigating rivers,
negotiating with natives and frontier trading posts, and supplying armies.
When the United States nearly doubled its size with the
Louisiana Purchase, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Meriwether Lewis and William
(02:42):
Clark in eighteen o four to survey the northwestern portion
of what he called the vast wilderness. The land west
of the Mississippi River was largely unexplored by European settlers
or by the new nation born out of revolution. A
year after Lewis and Clark's commission, General James Wilkinson also
(03:06):
wanted to sponsor and expedition because of his experience with
the river navigation and supplying remote frontier outposts. Lieutenant Zebulin
Montgomery Pike, along with twenty other men and four months
of provisions, was sent on a mission to find the
source of the Mississippi River, thought to be somewhere in
the newly acquired territory. Pike's nine month expedition came up short.
(03:33):
In February eighteen oh six, Pike's expedition came upon Leech
Lake in northern Minnesota, which Pike incorrectly reported as the
source of the Mississippi River. The actual source is Lake Atasca,
slightly to the west. A few months after his Mississippi
River adventure, General Wilkinson assigned Pike to his second expedition
(03:56):
into the southwestern portion of the new Louisiana territory. The
stated mission was for Pike to locate the sources of
the Arkansas and Red Rivers. At the time, Spain was
in control of major areas that would later become California,
New Mexico, Texas, and Florida. Pike was instructed not to
(04:17):
alarm the Spanish, as the relationship between the United States
and Spain was uneasy after the Louisiana purchase, many Americans
thought that war with Spain was inevitable. If you'll indulge
me for a side note, General James Wilkinson, who commissioned
Pike's expedition into the southwestern part of Louisiana Territory, was
(04:40):
a very sketchy character. To put in mildly. He was
responsible for opening trade on the Mississippi River, but in
wielding that considerable power, he also became a paid agent
of the rival Spanish Empire. In eighteen oh five, he
was involved in Vice President Aaron Burr's conspiracy to his
s establish a separate country in the Texas Territory. When
(05:04):
the conspiracy was discovered, Wilkinson turned on Burr by showing
President Jefferson a secret letter between Wilkinson and Burr. Burr
was ultimately acquitted of treason after it was discovered that
Wilkinson had altered the letter to clear his own name
because of his connection to the shady General Wilkinson. Historians
(05:27):
still argue over the true purpose of Zebuln Pike's Southwest expedition.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Was he an.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Explorer surveying the new land on behalf of President Jefferson,
or was Pike a spy sent to keep an eye
on the Spanish Empire? Or did he perhaps have a
role in a larger conspiracy with Wilkinson to establish a
new nation in Louisiana territory. Most historians today seem to
agree that whatever Wilkinson's motives may have been, Pike was
(05:54):
likely oblivious to anything nefarious. Pike's Southwest Expedition spent nearly
a year traveling through what would eventually become Missouri, Kansas, Colorado,
New Mexico, and Texas, following a route from the Missouri
and Osage Rivers to the Arkansas River. Pike's expedition made
(06:18):
diplomatic visits to Osage and Pawnee villages along the way,
arriving at the front range of the Rocky Mountains in
November of eighteen six. In a letter to President Jefferson,
who was an insatiable naturalist. Pike wrote, there was shipped
(06:39):
from New Orleans for your excellency in the brig Neptune
bound to Baltimore, a pair of grizzly bears, male and female,
which I brought from the dividing ridges of the Pacific
and Atlantic Oceans. They are certainly of a different species
from any bears we had in the ancient limits of
the United States, and are considered by the natives of
(07:01):
that country as the most ferocious animal of the continent.
I am, sir, with high respect, your obedient servant. Near
present day Pueblo, Colorado, the expedition came upon the tallest
peak in the Mountain range. They unsuccessfully attempted to scale
the fourteen thousand foot mountain, encountering bad November weather. A
(07:25):
second expedition fourteen years later by Major Stephen Long, would
reach the top of that mountain, later named Pike's Peak.
Heading south into the Spanish controlled territory then called New
Spain now the state of New Mexico, Pike's expedition aroused
(07:45):
suspicion and was captured by the Spanish, taken to Santa
Fe and later Chihuahua, Mexico for questioning. Pike's papers were
confiscated by the Spanish commander in the region. Pike later
had to reconstruct his exit pedition's records from memory and
from a few notes that he managed to smuggle out
hidden in the barrels of guns. His papers were eventually
(08:09):
returned to the U. S Government, but not until one
hundred years later. After his release by the Spanish government,
Pike rose through the military ranks. He was given command
of U. S troops in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. By the
time the US had declared war against Great Britain in
June of eighteen twelve, Pike had achieved the rank of
(08:30):
colonel and was given command of the army's fifteenth Regiment.
Less than a year later, Pike was promoted to the
rank of brigadier general. He led seventeen hundred troops in
a successful attack on Fort York, which is present day Toronto,
a major shipbuilding center for the British. With his defenses collapsing,
(08:55):
the British commander, General Roger Hale Sheef, was preparing to
abandon in the fort and retreat to Kingston. He issued
in order to destroy his fort's military equipment to keep
it out of the hands of the Americans. With victory
at hand, Pike halted his advance. A few hundred feet
away from the fort. As General Pike sat on a
(09:16):
tree stump interrogating British prisoners, the fort's large ammunition storehouse exploded,
hurling debris that killed or wounded hundreds of American, British,
and Canadian soldiers. Pike was struck by a huge rock
that crushed his ribs and broke his back. Evacuated to
(09:37):
the Navy schooner Madison, Pike lived long enough to hear
the victory cheers as his men entered Fort York. One
of his last requests was that the captured British flag
befolded and placed beneath his head. Despite not finding the
true source of the Mississippi River on his first expedition
and ending his second expedition by being captured at losing
(10:00):
his notes Zebulin Montgomery, Pike's military achievements made him a
celebrated hero in his time. Today, many towns, schools, and
streets still bear Pike's name, including the famous Pike's Peak
and Pike National Forest in central Colorado.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
And a terrific job on the production and editing by
our own Monte Montgomery, and a special thanks to Craig
Dumay who's the president of the Grateful Nation Project. And
by the way, to find out more about the Grateful
Nation Project, go to herocards dot us.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
That's herocards dot us.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
For more stories like this the story of the namesake
of Pike's Peak, Zebulen Pike.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Here on our American Stories
And we return to our American stories. Up next to
a story about a man behind the namesake of a mountain,
the highest summit of the Southern front range of the
Rocky Mountains, to be exact.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Here to tell the story of.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
The famed explorer and namesake of Pike's Peak, Zebulin Pike
is Craig Dumay. Craig is the president of the Grateful
Nation Project, an organization that seeks to gather, preserve, and
share the true story of America's military heroes past and present.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Let's get into the story. Take it away, Craig.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
If you visit the states of Colorado or Minnesota, you'll
encounter more than a few parks, bays, creeks, streets, and
schools named after Zebulin Montgomery Pike. Ten states have counties
named in his honor, dozens of towns, and perhaps most
familiar to many Americans are the famed Pike's Peak and
(01:09):
the Pike National Forest near Colorado Springs. But who is
this famous mister Pike? For two centuries, historians have argued
whether he was an explorer or perhaps a spy. You
might be interested to know that he failed at two
of the most important missions of his life, one that
would nonetheless bring him lasting fame. As the son of
(01:33):
a Continental Army officer, Zebulin Montgomery Pike spent parts of
his childhood in and around frontier military posts. Destined for
a military career, He was born in Lamberton, New Jersey,
in January seventeen seventy nine, right in the middle of
the Revolutionary War. His father, also named Zebuln Pike, fought
(01:54):
beside George Washington. To follow in his father's footsteps, the
younger Zebuln Pike joined the army at age fifteen, serving
under Revolutionary War hero General mad Anthony Wayne. One of
Pike's duties was to ferry supplies to forts located on
the Miami, Ohio, and Mississippi rivers. At that time, what
(02:18):
is now Ohio and Illinois were considered to be the
northwestern frontier. These assignments gave him valuable experience in navigating rivers,
negotiating with natives and frontier trading posts, and supplying armies.
When the United States nearly doubled its size with the
Louisiana Purchase, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Meriwether Lewis and William
(02:42):
Clark in eighteen o four to survey the northwestern portion
of what he called the vast wilderness. The land west
of the Mississippi River was largely unexplored by European settlers
or by the new nation born out of revolution. A
year after Lewis and Clark's commission, General James Wilkinson also
(03:06):
wanted to sponsor and expedition because of his experience with
the river navigation and supplying remote frontier outposts. Lieutenant Zebulin
Montgomery Pike, along with twenty other men and four months
of provisions, was sent on a mission to find the
source of the Mississippi River, thought to be somewhere in
the newly acquired territory. Pike's nine month expedition came up short.
(03:33):
In February eighteen oh six, Pike's expedition came upon Leech
Lake in northern Minnesota, which Pike incorrectly reported as the
source of the Mississippi River. The actual source is Lake Atasca,
slightly to the west. A few months after his Mississippi
River adventure, General Wilkinson assigned Pike to his second expedition
(03:56):
into the southwestern portion of the new Louisiana territory. The
stated mission was for Pike to locate the sources of
the Arkansas and Red Rivers. At the time, Spain was
in control of major areas that would later become California,
New Mexico, Texas, and Florida. Pike was instructed not to
(04:17):
alarm the Spanish, as the relationship between the United States
and Spain was uneasy after the Louisiana purchase, many Americans
thought that war with Spain was inevitable. If you'll indulge
me for a side note, General James Wilkinson, who commissioned
Pike's expedition into the southwestern part of Louisiana Territory, was
(04:40):
a very sketchy character. To put in mildly. He was
responsible for opening trade on the Mississippi River, but in
wielding that considerable power, he also became a paid agent
of the rival Spanish Empire. In eighteen oh five, he
was involved in Vice President Aaron Burr's conspiracy to his
s establish a separate country in the Texas Territory. When
(05:04):
the conspiracy was discovered, Wilkinson turned on Burr by showing
President Jefferson a secret letter between Wilkinson and Burr. Burr
was ultimately acquitted of treason after it was discovered that
Wilkinson had altered the letter to clear his own name
because of his connection to the shady General Wilkinson. Historians
(05:27):
still argue over the true purpose of Zebuln Pike's Southwest expedition.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
Was he an.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
Explorer surveying the new land on behalf of President Jefferson,
or was Pike a spy sent to keep an eye
on the Spanish Empire? Or did he perhaps have a
role in a larger conspiracy with Wilkinson to establish a
new nation in Louisiana territory. Most historians today seem to
agree that whatever Wilkinson's motives may have been, Pike was
(05:54):
likely oblivious to anything nefarious. Pike's Southwest Expedition spent nearly
a year traveling through what would eventually become Missouri, Kansas, Colorado,
New Mexico, and Texas, following a route from the Missouri
and Osage Rivers to the Arkansas River. Pike's expedition made
(06:18):
diplomatic visits to Osage and Pawnee villages along the way,
arriving at the front range of the Rocky Mountains in
November of eighteen six. In a letter to President Jefferson,
who was an insatiable naturalist. Pike wrote, there was shipped
(06:39):
from New Orleans for your excellency in the brig Neptune
bound to Baltimore, a pair of grizzly bears, male and female,
which I brought from the dividing ridges of the Pacific
and Atlantic Oceans. They are certainly of a different species
from any bears we had in the ancient limits of
the United States, and are considered by the natives of
(07:01):
that country as the most ferocious animal of the continent.
I am, sir, with high respect, your obedient servant. Near
present day Pueblo, Colorado, the expedition came upon the tallest
peak in the Mountain range. They unsuccessfully attempted to scale
the fourteen thousand foot mountain, encountering bad November weather. A
(07:25):
second expedition fourteen years later by Major Stephen Long, would
reach the top of that mountain, later named Pike's Peak.
Heading south into the Spanish controlled territory then called New
Spain now the state of New Mexico, Pike's expedition aroused
(07:45):
suspicion and was captured by the Spanish, taken to Santa
Fe and later Chihuahua, Mexico for questioning. Pike's papers were
confiscated by the Spanish commander in the region. Pike later
had to reconstruct his exit pedition's records from memory and
from a few notes that he managed to smuggle out
hidden in the barrels of guns. His papers were eventually
(08:09):
returned to the U. S Government, but not until one
hundred years later. After his release by the Spanish government,
Pike rose through the military ranks. He was given command
of U. S troops in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. By the
time the US had declared war against Great Britain in
June of eighteen twelve, Pike had achieved the rank of
(08:30):
colonel and was given command of the army's fifteenth Regiment.
Less than a year later, Pike was promoted to the
rank of brigadier general. He led seventeen hundred troops in
a successful attack on Fort York, which is present day Toronto,
a major shipbuilding center for the British. With his defenses collapsing,
(08:55):
the British commander, General Roger Hale Sheef, was preparing to
abandon in the fort and retreat to Kingston. He issued
in order to destroy his fort's military equipment to keep
it out of the hands of the Americans. With victory
at hand, Pike halted his advance. A few hundred feet
away from the fort. As General Pike sat on a
(09:16):
tree stump interrogating British prisoners, the fort's large ammunition storehouse exploded,
hurling debris that killed or wounded hundreds of American, British,
and Canadian soldiers. Pike was struck by a huge rock
that crushed his ribs and broke his back. Evacuated to
(09:37):
the Navy schooner Madison, Pike lived long enough to hear
the victory cheers as his men entered Fort York. One
of his last requests was that the captured British flag
befolded and placed beneath his head. Despite not finding the
true source of the Mississippi River on his first expedition
and ending his second expedition by being captured at losing
(10:00):
his notes Zebulin Montgomery, Pike's military achievements made him a
celebrated hero in his time. Today, many towns, schools, and
streets still bear Pike's name, including the famous Pike's Peak
and Pike National Forest in central Colorado.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
And a terrific job on the production and editing by
our own Monte Montgomery, and a special thanks to Craig
Dumay who's the president of the Grateful Nation Project. And
by the way, to find out more about the Grateful
Nation Project, go to herocards dot us.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
That's herocards dot us.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
For more stories like this the story of the namesake
of Pike's Peak, Zebulen Pike.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Here on our American Stories
Host
Lee Habeeb
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