Bidwell, John

Bidwell, John
born Aug. 5, 1819, Chautauqua county, N.Y., U.S.
died April 4, 1900, near Sacramento, Calif.

U.S. political leader.

He was a member of the first group to travel by wagon train to California from Independence, Mo. Reluctant to join the Bear Flag revolt of Americans in California against Mexico, he nonetheless helped draw up the Bear Flag Republic's resolution of independence in July 1846. He fought under John C. Frémont in the Mexican War and assisted in the recapture of Los Angeles in 1847. At the end of the war he returned to Sutter's Fort, where he was the first to find gold on the Feather River. Later he became a leading agriculturalist and played a prominent role in state politics. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1864 and later ran for governor three times, though he was never elected. In 1892 he became the presidential candidate of the Prohibition Party.

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▪ American politician
born Aug. 5, 1819, Chautauqua County, N.Y., U.S.
died April 4, 1900, near Sacramento, Calif.

      California civic and political leader who ran unsuccessfully for U.S. president in 1892 as the candidate of the Prohibition Party.

      The Bidwell family moved from New York to Pennsylvania in 1829 and to Ohio in 1831. In 1836 Bidwell walked 300 miles from the family home in Ashtabula to enroll at Kingsville Academy—of which he was made principal the following year at the age of 17.

      After returning to Ashtabula to accept a teaching position, Bidwell moved west, settling temporarily in Missouri before joining the first emigrant group to travel by wagon train from the town of Independence to California. On arrival there, Bidwell went to work at Sutter's Fort and, after a few years, became a naturalized Mexican citizen. Reluctant to join the Bear Flag Revolt of Americans in California against Mexico, he nonetheless helped draw up the Bear Flag Republic's resolution of independence in July 1846.

      Bidwell fought in the Mexican War, marching to Monterey (California) with Colonel John C. Frémont, serving as civil magistrate in Los Angeles, and finally assisting Commodore Robert F. Stockton in the recapture of Los Angeles in 1847. At the end of the war he returned to Sutter's Fort and became the first to find gold on the Feather River.

      With his newly discovered wealth Bidwell purchased a 22,000-acre ranch, Rancho Chico, north of Sacramento. There he became the state's leading agriculturalist while simultaneously taking a prominent role in California politics. He served in the state senate and was a delegate to several Democratic Party national conventions. With the advent of the Civil War, Bidwell, a staunch Unionist, became a supporter of Lincoln.

      Elected to the House of Representatives in 1864, Bidwell declined renomination in order to run for governor of California on the Republican ticket in 1867; his bid was unsuccessful, as were his two others, one in 1875 as an anti-monopolist independent and another in 1890 as a candidate of the Prohibition Party, which nominated him for president in 1892.

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  • Bidwell, John — (5 ago. 1819, cond. de Chautauqua, N.Y., EE.UU.–4 abr. 1900, cerca de Sacramento, Cal.). Dirigente político estadounidense. Perteneció al primer grupo que viajó en carretas tiradas por caballos a California desde Independence, Mo. Reacio a… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • John Bidwell — (5 août 1819 4 avril 1900) était un célèbre explorateur, soldat, homme politique et philanthrope américain. Il conduisit, en 1841, la première caravane d immigrants sur la Piste de la Californie où il fonda la ville de Chico …   Wikipédia en Français

  • John Carne Bidwill — (1815 – 16 March 1853cite web |url=http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A010092b.htm |title=Bidwill, John Carne (1815 1853) |accessdate=2008 02 12 |author=D. A. Herbert |work=Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 1 |publisher=MUP… …   Wikipedia

  • john — /jon/, n. Slang. 1. a toilet or bathroom. 2. (sometimes cap.) a fellow; guy. 3. (sometimes cap.) a prostitute s customer. [generic use of the proper name] * * * I known as John Lackland born Dec. 24, 1167, Oxford, Eng. died Oct. 18/19, 1216,… …   Universalium

  • John — /jon/, n. 1. the apostle John, believed to be the author of the fourth Gospel, three Epistles, and the book of Revelation. 2. See John the Baptist. 3. (John Lackland) 1167? 1216, king of England 1199 1216; signer of the Magna Carta 1215 (son of… …   Universalium

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  • John Bidwell — (August 5 1819 ndash; April 4, 1900) was known throughout California and across the nation as an important pioneer, farmer, soldier, statesman, politician, prohibitionist and philanthropist. He is famous for leading one of the first emigrant… …   Wikipedia

  • John Bidwell — (* 5. August 1819 im Chautauqua County, New York; † 4. April 1900 in Chico, Kalifornien) war in ganz Kalifornien und den Vereinigten Staaten als bedeutender Siedler, Farmer, Soldat, Staatsmann, Politiker und Philanthrop bekannt. Berühmtheit… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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  • Bidwell Park — is a municipal park located in Chico, California. The park was established July 20, 1905 through the donation by Annie Bidwell (widow of Chico s founder, John Bidwell) of approximately 2,500 acres (10 km²) of land to the City of Chico. Since that …   Wikipedia

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