He and his party suffered incredible hardships in crossing from the
Great Basin to Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento; started from there March
24, proceeded southward, skirted the western base of the Sierra Nevada,
crossed that range through a gap, entered the Great Basin; again visited
the Great Salt Lake, from which they returned through the South Pass to
Kansas, in July, 1844, after an absence of fourteen months. In the
spring of 1845 Fremont set out on a third expedition to explore the
Great Basin and the maritime region of Oregon and California; spent the
summer examining the headwaters of the rivers whose springs are in the
grand divide of the continent; in October camped on the shores of the
Great Salt Lake: proceeded to explore the Sierra Nevada, which he again
crossed in the dead of winter; made his way into the Valley of the San
Joaquin; obtained permission, at Monterey, from the Mexican authorities
there, to proceed with his expedition, which permission was almost
immediately revoked, and Fremont peremptorily ordered to leave the
country without delay, but he refused, and a collision was imminent, but
was averted, and Fremont proceeded toward San Joaquin. Near Tlamath
Lake, Fremont met, May 9, 1846, a party in search of him, with
dispatches from Washington, ordering him to watch over the interests of
the United States in California, as there was reason to believe that
province would be transferred to Great Britain. He at once returned to
California; General Castro was already marching against our settlements;
the settlers rose in arms, flocked to Fremont's camp, and, with him as
leader, in less than a month, all Northern California was freed from
Mexican authority; and on July 4 Fremont was elected Governor of
California by the American settlers.
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