How the West Turned Samuel Clemens Headed Into Mark Twain

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Learn more@ringcentral.com ring central simpler communications. This is our American stories in the next story is about a writer whose name you know story you may not.

This is the story of the time before the world knew Samuel Clemens by his pen name.

Mark Twain time he spent in the American West help Clemens develop a distinctive Western voice provided him with material would make him America's first delivery, author tell the story of Samuel Clemens life in the old West is Roger McGrath McGrath is the author of gunfighters parliament and vigilantes violence on the frontier US Marine and former history professor at UCLA. Dr. McGrath has appeared on numerous history Channel documentaries is a regular contributor for us here in our American stories. Here's McGrath Sam Clements is Mark Twain, the author of Times Square and Huckleberry Finn. They have no idea.

As a young man. He spent the 1860s and the mining camps of Nevada, California. It was in those camps you professionally for the first time was also in those camps that we learned from older writers style of writing common to the frontier West and adopted that style for his own came out of his experiences on the frontier, which is little-known but maybe his best work roughing it soon.

Clemens was born in Florida, Missouri in November 1835 is the sixth of seven children, three of whom died in childhood experience are Scotch Irish Cornish in the English dissent family moved to Hannibal, Missouri a port on the Mississippi. When Sam is for his regular river traffic in and out of the port and there are pioneers passing through the town on Their Way, West from each Clemens understands there is a larger world outside of Hannibal when Clemens was 11, his father, an attorney and judge dies lesson here. Later Clements drops out of school and is apprenticed to a printer soon becomes an accomplished typesetter working long hours during the day and reading in the library at night when he is 13. He watches one of his friends depart for California in the Gold Rush of 1849 Clemens leader describes this scene.

I still remember the parts of the cavalcade that spurred Westport. We were all there to see and I can still see the proud little chap ceiling by an agreed course we were all in hand the keys and MV when he returned two years later in unimaginable glory for travel site ever been 40 miles from home, but he had crossed the continent. The gold mines that fairyland of our imagination. We would've sold our souls to Satan for the privilege of trading places with him. Clements continues working as a typesetter until 1957 when he meets Horace Bixby a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River for price.

Bixby agrees to take on Clements as his pilot what's called a club pilot after training under Bixby for two years. Clements receives his pilot's license and begin serving on the steamer EB Chambers. It's a prestigious job and the pay is good, but in 1861 the civil war erupts closing.

Most steamboat traffic on the Mississippi.

At the same time Sam Clements gets his chance to go West dream since childhood is older brother Orion is a practicing attorney in a vigorous supporter of Abraham Lincoln's campaign for president Orion closes his law office and stops throughout Missouri in behalf of Lincoln when Lincoln becomes president. Orion is appointed secretary of the newly created territory of Nevada.

Morehead has a problem well is months of campaigning for Lincoln have exhausted his personal savings. Orion asked CM to finance his trip to Nevada. Sam agrees if Orion takes him along and gives him a job. Orion reckons he will need a private secretary and Sam can be the secretary Sam pays $400 for the stagecoach fair for the two of them from St. Joseph Missouri to Carson City, Nevada. Cost is more than 15,000 in today's dollars. The company that operates the light is the central Overland California and Pike's Peak express company.

The company is owned by William Russell Alexander Majors and William Waddell to become famous not only for their stagecoach service to California, but also for their creation of the pony express on July 26, the Clements brothers climb aboard a central Overland stagecoach and begin a 1700 mile journey over the Great Plains through the Rocky Mountains and across the great basin to Carson City. Sam is dressed in woolen shirt and pants and hightop boots.

It carries a Smith & Wesson revolver which he hasn't practiced much with, but he feels bullied and is ready for his grand adventure. Sam and Ryan are among the first to take a stagecoach over the central route service begins only weeks before their departure. The coaches used by the company or the famous Concord which we nearly a ton pulled by six horse teams Concord gives its passengers a relatively smooth ride suspension is provided by two thick leather straps: thorough braces that run between the coaches axles and suspend the coaches body passengers experience a rolling motion and not the jolting right-of-way a suitable run for team horses is 10 to 13 miles.

Teams are then changed what are called swing stations every fourth station is a home station where not only are teams changed but also drivers for passengers such as Sam Clemens and his brother Orion. There is no turning in the Overland stage runs on an around-the-clock schedule to make the trip from Saint Joseph to Sacramento and 20 days, an average speed of 10 mph passengers get out to stretch their legs.

Each station in the heat at home stations, but other than that they live on the stagecoach approaching home station in Wyoming. Sam begins to hear stories about the vision superintendent named Jack Slade Sams told that Slade has killed more than 20 men, not counting Indians slay that one old enemy Jules Benny tied to a post in the station crown. Slade almost died from bullets suffered when ambushed by Benny so he was now going to kill Benny slowly first sleep off Benny's years for some of the nearest Slade allow bidding to separate your list at the post for hours and then Slade began taking target practice on his old enemy. Please bullets took off Benny's fingers another round tour flesh off Benny's leg and 1/3 bullet ripped flesh off Benny's arm Slade kept firing until bidding big to be put out of his misery, Slade sent a bullet through Benny's head now who do you suppose happens to be at the home station. Sam Clemens is approaching US other than Jack's leg on the stagecoach reaches the station. CM's brother Orion in the other passengers sit down to eat breakfast with SCM says half savage, half civilized company of armed bearded mountaineers ranch men and station employees. Sam winds up seated right next to Jack Slade himself. All Sam doesn't know what it first then someone closely by name and Sam almost collapses, says never has youth steered in shiver as I did when I heard them call him Slade and even listening to Roger McGrath tell the story of Samuel Clemens in the West. When we come back more. This remarkable storytelling here on our Americans. Sometimes we all feel a little foggy in the morning. We forget our phone at home or leave a cup of coffee on the roof of our car in driveway. That's what junk sleep will do to you. It's that tossing and turning all night. That comes from sleeping on the wrong mattress. That's no way to live, you need a restful night sleep to be at your best every day so had to mattress firm and get started on the quality sleep. You deserve mattress firms highly trained sleep experts will help you find the perfect mattress.

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Now let's return to Roger McGrath and continue with the story of Samuel Clemens in the old West much Sam surprised to find Slade gentlemanly implicit nonetheless maintains a healthy fear when the coffee is nearly gone and Slade is about to glass cup sleep notices seems cup is empty. Slade politely offers to fill Sam's cup. Sam wants another cup quickly and politely decline the offer, says Sam.

I was afraid he had not killed anybody that morning, we might be needing diversion.

Slade insists on filling Sam's cup.

I thanked him and drank says Sam with no comfort, for I could not feel sure it would not be sorry. Presently, that he had given it away and proceed to kill me to distract his thoughts from a loss because Orion Clemens is the new Sec. of Nevada territory as to meet with territorial officials of Utah territory. Sam gets to spend a couple of days in Salt Lake City is greatly impressed with the Mormon splendid city built from scratch, but not so much with the book of Mormon west of the great Salt Lake stagecoach rules across global plane before entering Nevada and coming to the Humboldt River near the travelers come upon the tribe of Shoshone Indians go shoot Sam's not greatly impressed with go shoot saying considerably inferior to even despise digger Indians of California and inferior to all races of savages on our continent and those are the nicest things he says about the go shoot on the 19th day out from St. Joseph, Missouri, including the two day layover in Salt Lake City. Sam Clemens finds himself in the waterless 40 mile desert which lies between the Humboldt sink and the Carson River in Nevada. As Sam Clemens describes the coach wheels sunk from 6 inches to a foot worked our passage.

Most of the way across.

That is to say we got out and walked.

It was a dreary pole and a long and thirsty one, for we had no water from one extremity of this desert to the other room was white with the bones of oxen and horses would hardly be an exaggeration to say that we couldn't walk 40 miles and set our feet on the bone at every step desert was one prodigious graveyard in the log chains wagon tires and rotting wrecks of vehicles were almost as thick as the bones on the afternoon of the 20th day of the overland journey stagecoach rules in the Carson City capital of Nevada territory earlier known as Washoe. The area is in the midst of because two great strikes Virginia city and the other territories. First governors James Nye for his appointment.

He was an attorney in New York and a major general in the state militia was also very active in Republican politics in New York during the 1850s. During several of his old political allies with him to Nevada to fill various jobs.

He also brings Bridget Murphy a motherly talented, energetic, and fearless proprietor of a boardinghouse in New York City. She sets up a boardinghouse in Carson City. Most of Nye's brigade moves into it, including Sam and Orion Clemens.

They call the boardinghouse.

The ranch what my strength place all those of the boardinghouse. Official jobs keeps them busy with various makework jobs including surveying a possible railroad route on the survey job. The remnants tarantulas again and again and begin to take the big hairy spiders back to the boardinghouse giving them underclass tumblers in a large dormitory like bedroom. Sam Clemens heats the site late one night a tremendous win since a portion of the roof slamming into the side of the boardinghouse's shelf with a dozen tumbler covered tarantulas crashes to the floor turn outdoors deals one of the borders the tarantulas are loose. Sam Clemens describes the scene in the darkroom morning ever sounded so dreadful. Nobody tried to leave, the less they might step on the tarantulas everyman group for trunk or bed and jumped on then followed the strangest silence. Silence of grizzly suspense. It was to waiting expectancy fear. It was dark as pitch and one had to imagine the spectacle of those scant clad men roosting gingerly on trunks and beds.

St. Clements doesn't say how long all the men remained frozen in place. But he does say different men at different times were certain tarantulas crawling over them, and no one was willing to cross the floor to light a lantern suddenly the door to the room swings open and there's Mrs. Murphy with a lantern in her hand. She shakes her head in disgust and 14 grown men sheepishly climbed down from their perches on boxes, trunks and bits during the next several months. Sam prospects for gold and various mining districts to stake a claim on timberlands on the shores of Lake Tahoe. Early in 1862, Sam and several of his friends that offer the newest strike and with a slouch hat on his head and hightop boots on his feet were in a woman shirt and trousers and armed with a Colt revolver.

Sam looks the part of a prospect doesn't think you will have occasion to use the gun but says he carries it indifference to popular sentiment in an order that I might not by its absence offensively conspicuous in a subject of remark in Aurora.

Sam begins writing professionally under the noncompete. Josh directs several pieces for the Esmeralda star of the town's two daily newspapers. He also start sending articles describing events in Aurora to the territorial enterprise in Virginia City again as Josh Sam does some mining but most of the time is found in one or another of Aurora's many saloons sipping whiskey and telling stories is a gifted storyteller and always has an audience, while completely Sam's trusty partner who has been prospecting from sunup to sundown strikes a vein for that night.

The two men talk of the riches that awaits them, says Sam and I went to bed at midnight but was only till I brought awake and think, dream scheme, the floor, less tumbledown cabin was a palace. The ragged gray blankets, silk the furniture rosewood and mahogany each new splendor burst out of my visions of the future world me Bodley over and bit me to a sitting posture, just as if an electric battery had been applied to me by complicated series of events, Clemens and Higbee loose the claim in their dreams of becoming millionaires are dashed, and you're listening to Roger McGriff told the story of Samuel Clemens. My goodness of 13 years old. He watches and all is another young man departs for gold rush territory and why was he in all will Clements of the best, for he had trouble when we come back more of this remarkable story Roger McGrath on Samuel Clemens in the West here on our American story. Sometimes we all feel a little foggy in the morning. We forget our phone at home or leave a cup of coffee on the roof of our car in driveway. That's what junk sleep will do to you.

It's that tossing and turning all night. That comes from sleeping on the wrong mattress. That's no way to live, you need a restful night sleep to be at your best every day so had to mattress firm and get started on the quality sleep. You deserve mattress firms highly trained sleep experts will help you find the perfect mattress. They'll use mattress matcher technology to connect you with the ideal sleep products just by getting the answers to six simple questions and then finally you can start getting the rest you need. No more sending emails to the wrong people are putting your car keys in the dishwasher talk to a sleep expert at mattress firm and on junk your sleep today. Visit mattress firm store near you go to mattress firm.com with the Starbucks app you can make a moment with the top so next time you order your morning coffee. Treat someone else and make their day to tell them you're grateful for them or they've got their back or simply to say thanks for the moment Starbucks that doing household chores can be very time-consuming and tedious and is nothing more daunting than facing piles of laundry that need to be done.

I mean, I can be overwhelming and that was my last night and it's pretty much my every other night. If you can't, those larger laundry load to Don and get back your life. Try all three clear mega packs all three clear mega packs are bigger packs with two times the cleaning ingredients compared to a regular pack seeking tackle any laundry load with confidence. Now all I need is a bigger industrial size washer and dryer. All three clear mega bags are also 100% free of perfumes and dyes and gentle on skin, which is great for any family sensitive skin needs. So the next time that the whole family gets home from a long vacation. Or they kids get back from summer camp or in every situation that has you staring at a giant pile of dirty clothes just now that all three clear mega packs have your back. They have mine.

Between spit up Dawson learning how to eat and Jared working at a restaurant I see those loads today you to purchase all three clear mega packs, a local start today and conquer any laundry load and we continue here with our American stories and Roger McGrath telling the story of Samuel Clemens in his time spent in the American West.

By the way, if you read Huck Finn.

I love to read roughing it because it is as good as Ulysses S Grant's memoir.

It's that good. If you haven't read Grant's memoir pick it up you will put down the fact let's continue with McGrath after six months in Aurora. Sam gives up on my and Lee's for Virginia City in September 1862 Sam Clemens walks into the territorial price office uses himself to Irishman Dennis McCarthy, the co-owner and editor of the newspaper and says my name is Clements and I've come to write for the paper tutorial enterprises. Nevada's first and most important newspaper. By the early 1860s, it has supplanted the Sacramento Union is the minor's Bible present. We also numerous influence not only in Virginia City but throughout the West. It's red on every mining frontier papers full of hard factual news reporters are allowed to indulge themselves on page 3 become essayists, poets, philosophers, humorists and stories about imaginary mining strikes or mining disasters or about anything that strikes their fancy. The co-owners and editors of the territorial enterprise Dennis McCarthy and Joe Goodman told the writers they are free to write anything they want. On page 3, but they must take personal responsibility for any explosive reaction by the public as a result of this policy newspaper becomes a training school for original and versatile writers want to achieve the greatest prominence and success is Sam Clemens, hobo. It's by his new nom de plume Mark Twain that he gains fame Sam takes the name from his River pilot days when Dick hands call about depth readings.

Each Mark is 6 feet 1020 next 2 fathoms or 12 feet.

The depth needed for safe passage of the typical steamboat Sam first attaches the name one of his territorial enterprise articles. In February 1863 since first of many tongue-in-cheek pieces with the territorial enterprise appears in October 1862 title petrified man. Sam describes the discovery of the man's body perfectly petrified that is put on display by local politician in front of a crowd of onlookers provide man's arms and hands are in a position suggesting he's thumbing his nose at the world and when I appears to be winking newspapers throughout the country.

Get the story by way of the telegraph and reprinted as straight news. In reality, none of it's true, but it's Sam's way of poking fun at the politician and his billable constituents for such tall tales come from Sam's pen. Most of his work consists of solid factual reporting, especially on the territorial legislature in Carson City has a nose for sniffing out corruption and incompetence and lights and exposing it in vitriolic proves to make friends and he makes enemies. After several challenges to duels decided to take a permanent vacation arrives in San Francisco in May 1864 and spends money freely certain that is mining stock will allow them many months of frivolity.

However, his stock plunges is forced to take a job with the San Francisco daily newspaper, the morning call works are mostly routine, and is not allowed his flights of fancy. After too many months of what Sam considers drudgery with the call details his literary talents beyond a simple reporting job and fires. Sam now convinces the territorial enterprise that he should be the San Francisco correspondent for the newspaper.

Sam's paid handsomely and again is allowed great latitude.

This also allows him to remain in San Francisco and continue to be part of the literary circle of talent and aspiring young writers include Joaquin Miller and Bret Hart. Sam also makes trips to California's mother load country stain and gold mining camps with such colorful names as jackass Hill Angels Camp rough and ready red dog Goulding will and fiddle down the beach. Many veterans soured it was from the Gold Rush of 1849 and is read the stories from the first days of the great strike Hills is about a jumping frog. Sam sees the makings of a great story and takes notes. A few weeks later, Sam has a story written and sends it to a publisher in New York what would become commonly known as the celebrated jumping frog of Calaveras County appears in November 1865 in the Saturday press.

It's an instant sensation and is reprinted in various publications across the United States.

Suddenly, Mark Twain is a household name with elevated status. Sam convinces the Sacramento Union newspaper to send him to Hawaii as a correspondent arrives in March 1866 and for the next four months. Since stories about the islands to California stories captures the attention of the entire nation.

Sam happens to be on the spot when survivors of a 43 day ordeal at sea in a lifeboat are brought ashore their sailors from the ship hornet, which caught fire in the Pacific and sank when Sam returns home, he finds himself in great demand managed by Dennis McCarthy's editor from the territorial enterprise days. Sam begins a lecture tour takes him to not only sold out venues in San Francisco and Sacramento, but to packed venues in one mining camp after another in the mother load country and over the seers to Carson City Gold Hill in Virginia City travels hundreds of miles and stagecoaches and is greeted as a celebrity at every stop in the final days of his lecture tour. Sam has a practical joke played on that he would've enjoyed immensely. Were he not the victim of. After lecturing to a standing room only crowd in Gold Hill and Dennis McCarthy begin the 2 mile walk back to their lodgings in Virginia City about midnight. They reached the desolate hilltop divide between the two towns Joaquin and wait for them are group of old friends mast and disguised the order stand and deliver rings out in a half-dozen men with guns drawn to send on Clemens McCarthy would be robbers waive the revolvers and Sam's face since Sam floors those pistols so promiscuously they might go off by accident. Sam begins to reach in his pockets for his money, but is told to reach for the sky. As soon as he puts his hands up is told to pull out his money. This goes on for another round. Sam doesn't realize it's a joke and exasperated asked how we supposed to get his money is reaching for the sky. By now the robbers are all about to burst out laughing. So they dig through Sam's pockets while he holds his hands high, pick up a satchel silver coins. The proceeds from the Knights lecture McCarthy and then Karen and initially depart telling Clemens McCarthy to remain in position for 15 minutes with her hands high. None the wiser. Sam gets a story in the next these territorial enterprise about the dastardly robbery by six high women on the divide later.

Yes, all the money returned on and learns it was all a practical joke. Sam is steamed remains in height and division until he leaves for San Francisco a couple of days later.

Late 1967. Sam Clements decides it's time to return to the east is soon marries and settles in Connecticut is days in the old West roofer, this time on the frontier, created his writing style and gave him enough material for a lifetime of stories. Most Americans today know Mark Twain was once a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi, but most Americans know nothing of his many years of rough unit on the wild and woolly frontier and great job as always to Greg for producing a piece into Roger McGrath again. Rogers, the author of gunfighters parliament and vigilantes violence on the frontier, former US Marine and of course a history professor at UCLA. One of the best there story of Samuel Clemens in the old West here on our American stores its dramas. You may know me from the recap on LA TV now got all podcast life as a gringo, to every Tuesday and Thursday will be talking real and unapologetic about all things light Latin culture and everything in between. From someone who's never quite been listens alive as a gringo on the iHeartRadio app or web, you get podcast brought to you by State Farm like a good neighbor, State Farm is there