Part 3: Trader- Chapter 14 and 15 Summary and Analysis

Chapter 14, "Ft. Bridger" Jim Bridger shows up in Fort Laramie in the summer of 1842. Jim is 38 years old and has a nine-year-old daughter to support. Jim notes that many greenhorns are coming into the Plains and Rocky Mountains and need guides. The newcomers are curious but also afraid of the Indians and French trappers. The friendly Dakota Indians demand that the emigrants feed the Dakotas with coffee and biscuits, sometimes threatening the travelers. The newcomers end up selling their extra goods at normal United States prices. Jim's friend makes money as a guide for John C. Fremont. Jim gets the idea to build Ft. Bridger along the Oregon Trail. He can serve travelers by blacksmithing and as a riverboat operator. Jim chooses a place near his friends the Snake Indians. Within a few weeks, Jim...