Original subtitles

Previously, on "The Men Who Built America: Frontiersmen.."

Forty years after Daniel Boone crossed the Appalachians

the American frontier now reaches as far west

as the Great Plains.

Famed Shawnee war chief, Tecumseh falls in battle

and with him dies the dream of a Pan-Indian homeland.

Fire!

Andrew Jackson defeats Great Britain

in the War of 1812

a victory that propels him

to the presidency.

His bitter rival, Davy Crockett

seeks a fresh start

in the Mexican territory of Texas.

We need somebody like you, Crockett.

What he finds instead..

Hell or Texas.

Hell or Texas!

...is a fight for freedom..

...that will make him a legend.

Whoa-oa-oa whoa-oa-oa

At a garrison in Southern Texas

known as the Alamo

nearly 260 men, women, and children

prepare for a siege.

Among their commanders

is celebrated frontiersman..

...Davy Crockett.

Outside the walls, cle to 5000 Mexican troops

led by the ruthless general, Santa Anna..

...surround the mission.

The Texians believed that Santa Anna's troops

were two months out

but once Crockett got to the Alamo

and it became clear that Santa Anna's troops

were on the march and they were much closer

than had been anticipated

there was no getting out of it

at this point for Crockett.

Alright, close it up.

Right, there on the walls.

Let's go, go, go!

This massive, well-trained army

you know, surrounding this, this little mission

in the middle of the desert.

The Alamo looks like a complete

uh, disaster waiting to happen.

Outnumbered fifteen to one..

...Crockett knows the odds of survival are bleak.

Man, uh, th-there's a thing that happens

when death's at the door.

Most people don't know when the reaper's gonna show up, right?

You just kinda, hopefully, y-you die in peace or you die quickly.

When you see the reaper standing outside the door

and you know he's comin' in here for us

your world just kinda lends perspective in that moment.

What was important, what's not important

who I wish I would've talked to.

Man, it's a hell of a thing to, to go through that.

Over the course of an hour, Crockett and the Texans

repel the Mexican advances three times.

But Santa Anna is relentless

accepting heavy losses to breach the fortress.

Santa Anna sent his troops from many different sides.

Wave, after wave, after wave of men

uh, who scaled ladders

and swarmed literally like locusts.

Davy Crockett did what many American patriots have done

and that is decide to stay and fight for a cause

in the face of an attacking enemy.

And it speaks volumes about him

uh, and about his character.

Ninety minutes after the battle begins..

...the Mexican Army takes the Alamo.

Almost all of the fort's defenders are killed.

Most accounts suggest

that Crockett was in some of the heaviest fighting

and that he was one of the last remaining survivors.

They were led out and executed right in front of Santa Anna.

Then they were loaded into three separate human pyres

and lit aflame.

For Crockett to live this incredible life

on the frontier and then die at the Alamo

sealed him as legendary.

Davy Crockett was not this kind of

backwoods outdoorsman, uh, entirely.

Uh, he was a man with great political ambitions

who got into trouble because he was also

very independent-minded, so he wouldn't always play ball

uh, with the political establishment.

Crockett was always the congressman of the little guy.

It is that underdog struggle

uh, fighting against a-a tyranny.

And so, the story

of Davy Crockett goin' down swinging

fighting to the very last man, and the very last breath

uh, feeds the legend of the King of the Wild Frontier.

Word of the slaughter at the Alamo

soon spreads across the country..

...enraging Americans.

In Washington, President Andrew Jackson

sees the defeat in Texas as a much bigger concern.

By 1836..

...Mexico is a significant territorial rival

in North America.

Mexico controls land stretching from California

to the border of Oregon

covering more than 1.7 million square miles.

The US hasn't added a new state

since Missouri in 1821

and the promise of expansion west feels stalled.

Andrew Jackson was among those Americans

who believed that Texas ought to be

part of the United States.

But Jackson was also a man with a keen strategic sense

who wanted to strike at the right moment.

He didn't want to have a war with Mexico just then.

Didn't think the time was right.

If Texas can win its own independence

Jackson can bring it into the union.

Until then, his hands are tied.

Fortunately, for Jackson..

...one Texan sees the crushing loss at the Alamo

as an opportunity.

His name is Sam Houston.

Crockett and Sam Houston

both served in Andrew Jackson's militia

during the Creek War.

Houston became famous for the Battle of Horseshoe Bend

where he was impaled through the groin with an arrow

and had one of his other soldiers yank it out

and he just kept on fighting.

And Houston also was really a rugged frontiersman.

Houston is now the leader of some 370 untrained men.

They comprise the Army of Texas

and their fight for independence isn't over.

To increase his numbers in the face of a much larger enemy

Houston calls on Texans to avenge Crockett's death..

...and remember the Alamo.

The way I see it..

The defeat at the Alamo ended up

creating a great rallying cry of patriotism

to fight for independence

and to fight to the death, to fight to the end.

...it is really important to..

Hundreds of angry Texans

are drawn to the cause of independence.

In just a month, Houston's army swells

to nearly a thousand.

They're positioned near the San Jacinto River..

...right in the path of General Santa Anna

and 1500 Mexican troops.

Just six weeks after Crockett's death at the Alamo

Sam Houston takes his revenge..

...unleashing 900 furious Texans

against a larger Mexican force.

Santa Anna is camped near the San Jacinto River

where the Texans surprise them.

Ultimately, the Battle of San Jacinto

only lasted 18 minutes.

It was a chaotic 18 minutes.

I don't think anyone expected the battle to go this way.

Over 630 Mexican soldiers are killed.

The Texans suffer just 11 casualties.

The crushing defeat leads to Mexico's surrender.

And Texas finally wins independence.

Back in Washington, DC..

...Jackson welcomes the news.

He's dreamed of Texas joining the US for years.

But the future of Texas is caught in the growing debate

over slavery.

Congress wasn't willing to go along with annexation

because Texas would enter the union with slavery.

And the addition of Texas

would tip the balance in the senate

in favor of the pro slavery side.

The result of this was that Texas remained in this limbo

for almost a decade.

In 1837, Jackson's presidency ends

with one goal unfulfilled.

A nation stretching all the way to the Pacific.

Andrew Jackson remained politically involved

even after he retired.

He was writing constant letters to people

giving very strong opinions about subject

after subject after subject.

And he was a man who believed in the expansion

of the United States.

Expansion in the southwest may be stalled

but the United States still has a claim

in the northwest.

Located between British Canada and Mexico's holdings

the Oregon Territory is 250,000 square miles

of disputed land..

...claimed by Britain, Native Americans, and the US.

Lewis and Clark planted a flag here

four decades ago.

But to truly own it, the US needs settlers..

...and that's a problem.

Americans really didn't know how to make it to Oregon.

They were aware that there was very fertile farmland there

but no one was exactly sure how to make it there.

And the entire prospect of traveling all the way

across the nation was understandably daunting.

So, in 1842..

...the United States Army sends a lieutenant

from the topographical corps.

His name is John C. Fremont.

His mission, map a route

from Missouri to Oregon

that wagon trains of pioneers

can safely travel.

John C. Fremont is actually an illegitimate son.

He's born in poverty.

He gets a mentor

who actually goes on to become Secretary of War

who gets him a job surveying

on the Upper Mississippi River.

Fremont was vainglorious

arrogant, extremely ambitious.

Eh, he didn't just want to be an explorer

he wanted to be a senator, he wanted to be president.

But he's never been west of the Mississippi.

So he turns to the most skilled guide on the frontier..

...Kit Carson.

Kit Carson came from very humble origins.

He had no formal education, he was illiterate

yet he was incredibly knowledgeable

about the land of the west.

He spoke multiple languages.

He had relationships with native tribes.

He knew the topography.

Uh, he knew how to fight, he knew how to hunt.

So here is somebody who had an invaluable knowledge

that allowed him to go between both worlds.

Growing up, Carson was raised among frontier legends

and mastered wilderness skills at an early age.

Carson was born in Kentucky

and he moved to Missouri as a child.

His family became close friends with the Boones.

They lived in a place called Boone's Lick.

The Carson family, of course, was-was quite well aware

of Daniel Boone and his legend, and there was this desire

to keep that westward movement going, uh, to keep finding

the frontier, to keep breaking ground.

They were literally carving a civilization

out of the wilderness there.

By age 16, he left home for good.

Hungry for adventure.

Now, with Fremont, he'll embark on a mission

that will test all of his skills.

Fremont and Carson were a bit of an odd couple.

They were completely opposite.

Uh, today, we might say Fremont was a bit of a nerd

and Carson was the cool kid.

Carson was rugged

and had experience in the frontier.

He didn't seek fame or fortune.

He didn't look for the spotlight.

And so, these two in many ways

couldn't have been more different, but at the same time

complemented each other very well.

Over the course of five months

Fremont and Carson lead some three dozen men

more than 2000 miles, through treacherous terrain

known for extreme changes in temperature and altitude.

This expedition was very, very dangerous.

They were going to parts of the world

that had never been explored before.

They were a small party.

Um, they were relatively well-armed

but, um, they could always be ambushed.

And certainly Fremont understood that

and, and was very, very glad to have a guide like Carson.

On October 24th, 1843..

...Fremont and Carson finally reach

the Oregon Territory.

We made it!

The path they chart

becomes famous..

...the Oregon Trail.

It paves the way for 400,000 settlers

to move west in the decades to come..

...opening a new frontier

and strengthening the United States' claim

to the northwest.

One year after Carson and Fremont reach Oregon..

...the 1844 campaign for the presidency is underway.

In my opinion, our national security

requires the annexation of Texas.

'And should not stop'

until our domain extends from ocean to ocean.

Dark horse candidate, James K. Polk

believes in one thing above all..

...expanding America's borders.

It's a vision he shares with his mentor

Andrew Jackson.

We're vulnerable here and here.

And we're going to continue to be vulnerable

unless we secure our borders to the south and to the west.

I couldn't agree more.

Andrew Jackson was known as Old Hickory

because he was so tough.

James K. Polk was known as Young Hickory

the idea being that he was a sapling

in Andrew Jackson's model.

The last two presidents have done nothing.

They're useless. They're, they're afraid to act.

We have to take Texas.

That has to be our first priority.

Polk was a younger generation of politician.

As the 1844 election approached

Jackson made clear that if you were a supporter

of Andrew Jackson, you would go with James Polk.

Polk is able to capitalize

on the legacy of Andrew Jackson.

This idea that Americans have a right

in fact, a duty, a responsibility

to continue to expand westward.

That ultimately, it's this God-given dictate

that they must fulfill.

And Polk is able to turn that into a political agenda

that serves his own political designs.

Polk rides a wave of popular support

to the White House..

...then immediately delivers

on his campaign promise.

By his first days in office

Texas is on its way to becoming the 28th state..

...adding another 300,000 square miles

to the nation.

So, Polk does what I wish more presidential candidates would do

says he's gonna do this, this, and this

and he's only gonna serve one term

so that he can, uh, step on a lot of toes

and deny the special interests

and just pursue what he's elected to do.

The move fulfills

Andrew Jackson's long-held dream

to make Texas a state.

But he doesn't live to see it come true.

Jackson's legacy was firmly establishing the principal

that the ordinary people of America

wielded political power.

He was a self-made individual. He didn't have an inheritance.

He didn't have name recognition handed to him.

Today, people don't like Jackson

largely because Jackson's hard Indian policy

offend modern sensibilities.

But what's forgotten about Jackson

is his enormous positive contributions.

To hold the United States together

in the face of challenges..

Fire!

...and to defend the United States

against foreign attack.

Jackson recognized that the American experiment

in self-government was an ongoing experiment

and its success was not guaranteed.

He was the one who really imprinted that

on the American psyche.

Jackson was emblematic of the contradictions

of the American frontiersmen.

It was all jumbled together in this one huge figure

the impressive, and the not so impressive

and the good, and the appalling.

President Polk intends to build on Jackson's legacy..

Seizing the final open pieces of land

in North America.

Polk isn't content to just look at Texas.

Of course, he wants Texas

but he's going to look broader beyond that.

Polk wants the entire continent.

There's just one concern.

Mexico controls most of it

including the biggest prize, California.

This is what I want and it should not be hard to take.

Overflowing with natural resources

California also has over 3000 miles of coastline

offering unparalleled access to Pacific trade

something every president since Jefferson has coveted.

California is a very desirable place in the world.

Very, uh, beautiful and, and very fertile.

The Mexicans, of course, have their claim to it

the British are quite interested in settling its

uh, and expanding, uh

the northwestern territories for themselves.

Americans knew all about the glory of California

the immense wealth of California.

There was a very important trade already going on in hides

animal hides, and above all

Americans were interested in the main ports.

Thank you, gentlemen.

That will be all.

Polk is determined to take California..

...but with congress unwilling to start a new war

he devises a secret plan.

Using the Texas rebellion as a model

he'll try to incite an uprising

and the man he chooses to lead his mission

is the most famous explorer in America.

Mr. Fremont.

I read your reports.

And I found them very interesting.

Thank you, Mr. President, I'm honored.

But I, uh, I don't imagine

you took time out of your schedule

just to tell me that.

No, no, I didn't invite you here

to talk about your past expeditions

but rather a future one.

Another trail to Oregon?

Not exactly.

Officially, your mission will be to map out

a new territory, and to discover

the source of the Arkansas River.

Unofficially, when you get to the Rocky Mountains

I want you to ride south..

...into California.

Once in California

I want you to talk to the local settlers.

And if you can..

...incite rebellion.

And you're sending me because you don't want it

to appear to be a military operation.

Exactly.

I just need one thing from you.

And that would be?

Kit Carson.

President Polk was purposefully

placing an explorer in a capacity to take advantage

of any sort of instability in California.

The idea that he's simply there

in official capacity as an explorer and a map maker.

Polk needed to provide plausible deniability.

With around 60 heavily armed men

Fremont moves towards California.

Tasked with inciting a rebellion

without starting a war.

John Fremont and Kit Carson are on their way to California

part of President Polk's covert scheme

to extend US borders all the way to the coast.

Polk was an outspoken expansionist.

He wanted Texas, he wanted California, he wanted Oregon.

He was going to push out the American frontier

all the way to the Pacific.

Disguised as a surveying mission

their real goal is to find American settlers..

...and incite them into rebelling against Mexico.

By winter, Fremont and Carson arrive at Sutter's Fort

in modern-day Sacramento

the first American settlement in California.

In California of 1845

there were about eight to ten thousand people

living in California, mostly Mexican Californios

and about a thousand or so Americans

couple hundred foreigners

German, British, Swiss.

And the Mexicans had welcomed them

because California was a far-flung province

and underpopulated.

The American settlers who pushed west

were looking for land but in Northern California

it's, it's really kind of a, a rabble.

A lot of these guys are drunks.

Unsavory characters.

You look empty there, friend, can I buy you a drink?

- Can I ask why you came? - Good land.

You don't really own that land, do you?

Mexican government does.

Mexico allows Americans to settle and work the land

but not to legally own it..

...infuriating settlers

and playing right into Fremont's hands.

Mexico's hold over California is quite tenuous.

And, lo and behold, there is John C. Fremont

in the middle of all this.

This explorer who has these secret orders

from Washington, who's very well connected

uh, who's part of the army.

'Now did you know there's a Mexican fellow'

in charge of California? Did you?

That's because he doesn't come around.

When Fremont showed up in California in 1845

he found a populous that was deeply disenchanted

with Mexican rule.

It doesn't matter if you bought the land, if you own the land

if you work the land, it doesn't even matter

if you have become a Mexican citizen

all for the love of your land

the Mexican government will take it away

whenever they find that convenient.

Fremont was very skilled.

He was outgoing

and so he attracted a lot of people to him.

Who by right owns this land? Who by right owns it?

Fremont convinced Californian residents

there was fighting to do.

- 'Yeah.' - California, gentlemen.

'California.'

In Washington, Polk impatiently awaits

news from Fremont..

...hoping California settlers

will rise up on their own.

He knows congress won't approve a war with Mexico..

...unless the US is attacked.

Tired of waiting

Polk sends the army to a disputed border

between Texas and Mexico.

Certain he can provoke Mexico to strike first.

How many men in the fifth regiment?

Polk was waiting for Mexico

to rise to the bait and attack American forces.

He believed that any war fought

was going to result in more territory for the United States.

On April 25th, 1846

convinced American troops are invading

Mexico assaults a US patrol..

...killing 11..

...giving Polk exactly the provocation he needs.

Polk went to congress and he said

"American blood has been shed on American soil

"and despite our best efforts to prevent war with Mexico

they have attacked us."

Now, this was a lie.

In fact, the land in question was not American land.

I won't say that this is the only instance

in American history in which, let's say, we fudge some things

in order to get something we wanted

through an act of aggression

but this is certainly a great example.

Mere weeks after the attack..

...the US declares war on Mexico.

In California

Fremont receives a message from Polk.

His mission is no longer secret.

It's time to attack.

Fremont equips a rag tag army with rifles..

...then marches toward present-day Sonoma.

His goal, win California for Polk..

...at any cost.

Following orders from President Polk

John Fremont leads a militia of 100 men, south.

His mission, seize California for the US.

He plans first to attack Sonoma

the largest settlement in Northern California.

Then, he hopes to continue south

to Monterey, Los Angeles

and finally, San Diego.

Let's go!

The Americans are relatively few in number

but because of John C. Fremont

they are going to make their presence known

much more loudly than their numbers would indicate.

Relying on grit and determination

Fremont and Kit Carson begin their improbable conquest.

If there's one thing that marks John C. Fremont

it's his ambition.

He was, he was driven to succeed.

He was driven to be independent

and I think the frontier for John C. Fremont

represented the route to secure his ambition.

Notoriety, fame, wealth.

That's what California offered.

As word of Fremont's revolt begins to spread

other settlers join the fight.

They call themselves Los Osos

Spanish for "The Bears."

On June 14th, 1846..

...Fremont's fighters reach Sonoma.

But are surprised to find the Mexican outpost

virtually undefended.

They capture it, in what becomes known

as The Bear Flag Revolt.

To mark their victory, they raise a makeshift flag

made from a cotton sheet

and decorated with a red grizzly bear.

The design will later inspire

the state flag of California.

Alright, let's go!

This revolt that begins to emerge

it was enough of a movement, um, to take hold

at least in Northern California

and to start this process

of the American conquest of California.

In just two months with few casualties

Fremont and Carson conquer most of California's coast.

Under the direction of Fremont, this rabble of guys

have accomplished this great feat.

Never before in history had so much terrain been won

with so little conflict, with so little bloodshed

and won by such a small party of individuals.

Polk's plan to win California seems to be working

but without communication, he has no idea

if Fremont and Carson are even alive.

To hedge his bets, he dispatches a cavalry force

from Texas..

...led by General Stephen Kearny.

Stephen Watts Kearny has been an officer

he's known Lewis and Clark

and Polk orders him west

to go and capture Santa Fe

and then continue on down the Rio Grande

and eventually strike westward to California.

In early August, 1846..

...Fremont and Carson reach Los Angeles.

After joining forces with US Marines sent by Polk..

...they seize the city

and with it, the final Mexican stronghold in California.

It's kind of incredible.

Fremont took California

against relatively light resistance.

It fell into American hands

partly because of the skill and bravery

of someone like John C. Fremont

but partly because of pure good fortune

because it was there for the taking.

It was at that point, Fremont assumed that-that-that

California was theirs, that they had taken it.

They believed that-that Mexicans weren't really good soldiers.

They believed that they were sort of indifferent politically

and they took this as a sign

that-that, that California was theirs.

Fremont, always ambitious

wants to share his good news with Polk quickly.

Fremont decides now is the time

to-to let Washington know what has happened

to let Polk know what has happened

to sort of solidify the victory.

Fremont was interested in expanding his own celebrity

making this conquest part of his own personal story.

Fremont decides to send a courier east.

Who am I gonna hire to do this?

Well, why not the most competent and pragmatic

strongest member of my expedition, Kit Carson.

Adept at survival

Carson picks the fastest route possible.

Even though it means crossing hundreds of miles

of inhospitable desert.

The famed frontiersman is unaware

he's about to face his most grueling test yet.

By 1846..

...Kit Carson is one of the few Americans

to ever reach California.

Now, he's undertaking a new epic quest

to cross the continent and hand-deliver

an urgent message to President James K. Polk

sharing that Fremont and his army have taken California.

He sets out from Los Angeles

with orders to travel to Washington and back.

A distance of 6000 miles in 140 days.

We have to remind ourselves that

there was no transcontinental railroad

there was no telegraph, there was only one way

to get a message to Washington

and that was to travel overland

and this is exactly the kind of expedition

that Carson was perfect for.

But the most direct route across the country

cuts through one of the most hostile places in America..

...the Sonoran Desert.

Well, for Kit Carson to cross the desert

in what's now the Southwest

would be a very difficult situation.

There's the danger of heat stroke, of getting lost

there are many dangers.

Dehydration would be a huge one.

Carson's frontier skills make him uniquely suited

for this test.

He survives for weeks

by harvesting water from creek beds

and cactus roots buried below the ground.

Carson knew, you know where to find water in a cactus.

He had a little trick where he would nick the ear of a mule

and drink its blood.

He had all these little tricks up his sleeve.

Aah!

But it's not enough

to overcome the relentless heat of the Sonoran summer.

Typically, say a 155-pound male would need about

one and a half liters of water a day to stay alive.

If you're crossing a desert in the heat

instead of 1.5 liters a day you need 1.5 liters an hour.

After traveling more than 1000 miles..

...Carson's life is in danger.

In the desert, as one's body becomes dehydrated..

...one's blood is actually thickening like oil.

The water inside your cells is being drawn out

to thin your thickening blood.

So, your body is sucking itself dry

and these changes can occur in the brain as well.

The hallucinations typically accompany severe dehydration.

The victim can hallucinate pools of water.

In the latter stages, they will try

to bite their own arm and suck the liquid out.

Then finally..

...relief is on the horizon.

Kit Carson gets to a spot in New Mexico

and sees this cloud of dust coming from the west.

"Well, who is this? What's going on?"

It turns out to be the army of the west.

Under the orders of President Polk

General Stephen Kearney has spent the last six months

driving towards California.

'If you have any extra supplies you could share'

'I'd appreciate it.'

- Where is it you're headed? - Washington.

I have a message I need to relay.

- Where from? - California.

Well, that's where we're headed. We ride out in the morning.

What did you say your name was?

- Kit Carson. - You're Fremont's guide.

The meeting between Carson and Kearny

is one of the most serendipitous meetings in American history.

General Kearny had heard of Carson.

He knew about his exploits, he knew that Carson

had just been over this very inhospitable terrain.

He needed a guide.

Just as Fremont earlier had needed a guide.

Now Kearny needed a guide to get him back to California.

So Kearny has to pull rank basically.

"Look, I'm a general, uh, you're gonna do what I tell you to do.

I need you."

You get some rest.

We move out first thing in the morning.

Kearny recognized that Carson was an experienced guide

uh, had been on these expeditions with Fremont

and I think Kearny just made a sound decision.

He said, "You know where you're going, take me into San Diego."

Carson, always the dutiful soldier

accepts the orders begrudgingly and returns with Kearny.

So, Carson is guiding Kearny west and he probably is fuming

he's resentful, he probably hates this expedition

but there he is again moving back and forth

across this huge nation.

Carson heads back into the desert

unaware that he's walking straight into a war.

It's been two months since John Fremont

dispatched Kit Carson east to Washington

in a race to deliver the news that they've taken California.

But Carson's mission has changed.

Now, he's heading back west

leading General Kearny's troops to San Diego.

Stephen Kearny was the commander

of the American Army of the west.

He was sent by Polk

to advance into Mexican territory

to secure California for the United States.

And Kit Carson is saying, "Don't worry about California.

Fremont's already captured California."

Well, Kearny's in a little bit of a quandary.

He's been told to do this, he's a good military officer

he's gonna follow orders.

The slow-moving army takes eight weeks

to retrace Carson's steps through the Sonoran Desert.

Kearny sends Carson ahead to scout the best route.

Fifty miles outside of San Diego..

...Carson discovers..

...that Mexico is far from defeated.

And its army..

...is on the move.

They get near San Diego.

Carson rides ahead..

...and, wait a minute, California is not conquered.

Everything is kind of turned around now.

The Americans have lost ground.

Initially, Fremont's troops encountered

almost no resistance

taking towns from Sausalito to Los Angeles.

But now the Mexican Army has surged north

reclaiming the territory

and Fremont is trying to regroup.

Fremont sends Carson back to basically say

"We've won and, uh, everybody should celebrate."

Well, those greetings were a little bit premature.

Essentially, the Mexican Army had, had regrouped

and reorganized, ready to defend their land.

'How many of them over there?'

A hundred, maybe more.

Well-mounted too.

Kearny's men have, have marched from Santa Fe, New Mexico.

His men are cold and tired.

It's raining. His powder is wet.

Despite all of this, Kearny thinks

he can engage with the Mexican Army.

We have to attack.

- Are you with me? - Yes, sir.

Carson was the sort of guy you would want to have on your side

if you were in a firefight.

He has an incredible violent streak.

He was a violent man even for his times.

Once he's perceived that this was a violent situation

he was about to enter into, he went for the jugular.

Charge!

Keep moving forward! Keep the pressure up!

Kearny completely underestimates

the Mexican presence.

And there's disorganization amongst the Americans

a bit of overzealousness..

And the result is..

...Kearny's men get stretched out

and the Mexicans are able to take advantage of this.

Carson is momentarily unconscious.

Then he stands up and he finds his rifle.

And he begins to pick off the enemy, one by one.

It's classic Carson.

Carson grew up with a gun in his hand.

He could shoot straight.

He was calm, he was composed

he would dispatch you as quickly as possible.

He would talk about a firefight, and he would say

"That was the, the prettiest fight I ever saw."

Almost like a mafia killer.

The Mexicans suffered some wounded, but it's this point

that Kearny realizes he's in trouble.

Kearny himself was nearly killed in this conflict.

It's, uh, nip and tuck

whether they're gonna survive this thing.

Retreat! Retreat!

Retreat!

They have to regroup and create a perimeter

and it's the beginning of a siege, basically.

The siege at San Pasqual goes on for several days

and Kearny realizes that they're not going to survive this.

They don't have enough food and water

and ammunition to hold out much longer.

What he needs to do is find out

whether there are any other American forces in the area.

How many troops you think are still out there?

More than we've got.

We need to sneak someone through enemy lines.

Get word to San Diego.

I'll do it.

There's a belief that somewhere in, near San Diego

is the US Navy and the Marines.

And if he could get reinforcements, and get help

that they might be able to break this siege.

So, again, who raises his hand? It's Carson. "I'll do it."

Whenever there's a risky mission into enemy territory

he's the guy that raises his hand.

But San Diego is 40 miles away.

And no one knows if help is there..

...or if Carson will survive the journey.

Kit Carson has just volunteered

for a mission that could cost his life.

To save General Kearney's trapped army

he'll try to reach US Marines he hopes are in San Diego.

You have to imagine the danger inherent in this mission.

Carson has to sneak through Mexican lines

through enemy territory, through hills

rock and cactus, and thorns.

It is an unforgiving environment.

And he's not on a horse, he's on hands and knees.

He's got to now make his way across this

uh, expansive desert

with prickly pear and all kinds of cactus

he is traveling in enemy territory.

It's just another one of the exploits that

contributes to the mythology of Kit Carson

as this kind of incredibly plucky, self-reliant guy.

Against all odds

Kit Carson reaches San Diego in one day.

Halt! Who goes there?

Hold your fire!

Wait, I'm an American.

General Kearny sent me.

The Mexican Army has his entire battalion surrounded.

What?

About 35 miles back

across the desert.

By the time he makes it to American lines

his feet are all torn up

and he's lacerated, he can't walk.

This is one of the great feats in American history.

After a brief reprieve, Carson returns to San Pasqual

with 200 reinforcements.

As they approach General Kearney's position

their opposition scatters.

The sight of these approaching marines, very well-armed

was enough to scatter the Mexican soldiers.

They didn't want any part of this.

Carson learns Kearney has survived

and now intends to continue his mission.

We'll make straight for San Diego, resupply

then on, to Los Angeles.

You think we can take it?

We'll see.

As he prepares to leave, Carson is unaware

his friend, John C. Fremont, is alive

and planning his own mission.

Carson hadn't seen Fremont in a long time now.

He didn't know if Fremont was alive or dead.

He's near Monterey, trying to gather an army

to retake Southern California.

By late November

he's amassed a force of more than 400 men.

Determined to reconquer Los Angeles

and burnish his reputation, Fremont heads south.

At the same time, Kearney and Carson

plan their own route north.

Between them, the Mexican Army.

At stake, control of California

and the final piece of American western expansion.

President James K. Polk is determined to seize California.

But his plan depends on the outcome of a battle

erupting 3000 miles away.

Los Angeles is Mexico's final stronghold in the territory.

A prize the Americans want to reclaim.

John Fremont closes in from the north..

...as Kit Carson and General Kearney

move to attack.

If you think about Los Angeles

you have Kearny approaching from the south..

...and Fremont was advancing along the coastal range

and controlled the Cahuenga Pass.

There wasn't really anywhere for the Mexican Army to go.

Kearny's army arrives first..

Charge!

...and overwhelms the enemy

defeating them in a matter of hours.

A combined force of Kearny's soldiers

and some American volunteers pin the Mexican Army down.

Between Fremont's advancing army from the north

and their combined force in the south..

...the Mexican Army realizes, "Look, we're, you know,

we're surrounded," and decided that it was

it was time to, to capitulate.

The US flag is raised over Los Angeles..

...but the war isn't over.

Polk had basically gotten what he wanted.

California was in American hands

New Mexico was in American hands..

...Texas was secured, and Polk decided

it was time for the war to end.

Unfortunately, Mexicans had no interest in ending the war.

They were angry, and they refused to come to terms.

To force Mexico's hand

Polk launches an invasion.

Grabbing California, the United States

actually had to land an army..

...on the coast of Mexico, at Veracruz

and then march up and take Mexico City.

The resulting treaty..

...finally pushes the frontier

to the western coast.

Fulfilling the dream of building a nation..

...that spans from the Atlantic

to the Pacific.

American expansionism, that's something

that has been on, uh, the agenda, uh

right from the American Revolution with Daniel Boone.

So, wh-what we see in 1840s is a fulfillment of the promise

uh, of the founding fathers, and even the col-colonists

who arrive and go out there

to, uh, get their piece of the American landmass.

The empire of liberty first imagined

by Thomas Jefferson..

...and championed by Andrew Jackson..

...is achieved by the unlikeliest of leaders..

...James Polk.

President Polk is one of our most underrated presidents.

I mean, this was a very powerful man.

Uh, um, a guy with very clear intentions.

When Polk assumed office

he looked west and he saw all that land, and he said

"You know what, I want it all."

It was really one of the greatest

land grabs in the history of the world

to take that whole western third of the continent

and to get it all in one generation.

If you wanna understand how important

Polk's presidency was, just consider this.

California, if it were an independent country

would be the fifth largest economy on Earth.

Imagine American history without California

and then imagine Mexican history with California.

The history of the entire world would be different.

In California..

...John Fremont is appointed

temporary governor of the territory.

He and his trusted partner, Kit Carson

parted ways six months before.

But now..

- Sir. - Hello, Carson.

It's good to see you again, sir.

...with the war over

they finally reunite.

Carson hadn't seen Fremont in a long time now.

He didn't know if Fremont was alive or dead..

...and theirs was a deep and lasting friendship.

So Carson was probably very, very glad to see him.

Well, there's plenty of work to be done.

'If you'd like to stay on, I could certainly use you.'

Yes, sir.

Fremont goes on to become California's first senator..

...while Carson fights for the Union in the Civil War.

But it's their adventures on the frontier

that make them legends.

Fremont's explorations changed the way

Americans thought about the west.

Prior to his explorations

Americans tended to think of the west

as-as merely a direction.

After Fremont, the west becomes a place

with known features, it forces Americans to see

America not as an Atlantic-bound seaboard nation

more as a continental nation state.

The newspapers back east called Fremont "The Pathfinder"

but really, that title

would more appropriately go to Carson.

Carson was the real pathfinder.

He's the one that kept the expeditions on track

and out of harm's way.

These two men, uh, just sort of desperately

and-and rather profoundly, needed each other

in order to accomplish everything that, that they

that they accomplished.

By the end of 1847

California is officially a US territory.

But only 7000 Americans are living here.

If America wants to hold this ground

it has to settle it.

Polk wanted to get as many warm bodies on the ground

living there, to start this process of California

to kind of assert their own interest in, uh

refashioning California as American terrain.

There was a policy on the, on the part of US Government

to get as many people out there.

Uh, because if you had boots on the ground

populating these territories

well, uh, that makes it a fact

uh, that this is the future of America.

And nothing motivates settlers more

than the chance to make a fortune.

In January of 1848

the promise of California pays off..

...when gold is discovered.

This gold rush, now makes this, this amazing kind of land grab

really, really worth it.

I mean, this is like America winning the lottery

all of a sudden.

A gold rush will soon compel

thousands to move west.

The man who crosses the country to deliver the message..

...is none other than Kit Carson.

The amazing postscript to this is that Kit Carson

meets with President Polk, in December of 1848

and what news is he bringing?

He's bringing news that gold

gold has been discovered in California.

Gold fever is about to transform the frontier.

With the addition of California

the United States, at last, stretches from sea to sea.

The land itself is sparsely settled by Americans.

Until a surprising discovery in 1848..

Gold.

When gold was discovered in California in early 1848.

No one expected anything like this.

California, when the United States acquired it

at the end of the war with Mexico

was about as far from the civilized portions

of America as you could be and still be

on the face of the planet Earth.

Nobody expected that California would be settled in any hurry.

Word of the find travels quickly..

...igniting gold fever across the United States.

Soon, over 300,000 pioneers stream into California..

...one of the biggest migrations in American history.

Once the gold rush is ignited

all of these men go west on these trails that had been

mapped and charted by Fremont and Carson.

This ensures that California

is going to be American territory forever.

Over the course of the gold rush..

...settlers mine over 750,000 pounds of gold..

...generating more than two billion dollars..

...over 61 billion today.

In 1850, California becomes the 31st state.

Completing a chapter in American history

that began 75 years before on the Appalachian Frontier.

In many ways this was a continuation

of the American Revolution.

You know, we were 13 colonies

we, but, kept pushing west and pushing west.

But it wouldn't be a complete picture

until we were a nation from sea to shining sea.

The daring frontiersmen

who first braved the wilderness..

...helped shape the future of America.

The American frontier spirit was right there

at the very beginning, during the American Revolution.

That notion where nothing is going to stop you

from going out and getting your piece of the pie.

As they relentlessly moved west

seeking new land and opportunity..

...they clashed with Native American tribes

determined to defend what was rightfully theirs.

The frontier was both the dark side and the light side

of American expansion.

Native people, just like settler people

need to be counted as Americans.

Like any human being, American Indians fought

for their families, for their nations

for their lands, for their assets, for their life.

We are still here.

We've not been exterminated.

American Indians are to be honored for that

and they continue to fight today.

Brave explorers mapped the unknown

blazing trails for settlers to follow.

Bold and resourceful

the frontiersmen became American legends.

Come on, men!

There was always a fascination

with this image of The Pathfinder.

With buckskin and rifle, sorta going out

into the great unknown.

Icons who inspired generations

with tales of their endurance and skill.

The kinda people who would go to the frontier were tough..

...and they seemed to relish danger in the unknown.

The frontier was not for the faint of heart.

The frontier was hard and it bit back and it hurt.

Fire!

They were willing to put up with insane risks.

This was a world without outlaws.

There were no laws to be outside of.

You kinda created your own code.

The frontier itself helped to forge

the nation's identity

and has come to define the American spirit.

Congratulations, captain.

The frontier is in America's DNA.

It is the way we think of ourselves.

We no longer think of ourselves as a frontier society

but we like to think of ourselves as these individuals.

That was an essence of the frontier.

The frontier represented the quintessence

of American opportunity.

The frontier disappeared from American history

over a hundred years ago.

But the frontier remains very much alive

in the way Americans define ourselves.