Quartzsite Revisited and the Camel in America Story
01-26-2015
This week, I am again visiting parks near me in Quartzsite, Arizona. It was seven or eight years since my last visit. Most RVers know of this place, located on Interstate 10 just 20 miles east of the California, Arizona border. It draws thousands (500,000 is one figure that I heard) of snow birds and short- term visitors. This week, there are two giant shows taking place, one a gem show and the second an RV Show.
One particular bit of history that I have found most interesting is that about a camel driver who lived in the area and is buried here. His name was Hadji Ali nick named Hi Jolly, 1828-1902.
A local historian and columnist, Rosalee Oldham Wheeler wrote in her book: “Early in 1855 Jefferson Davis, then Secretary of War, went to President Abraham Lincoln and suggested that camels be used in an experiment for finding a different mode of transportation across the arid deserts of the Southwest. Lincoln was aware that many of the horses used by pioneers were not holding up very well as they traveled across the desert. President Lincoln signed a proclamation authorizing the U. S. Army and Navy to purchase camels from Arabia. Hi Jolly accompanied the second shipment of camels to the U. S. Both shipments came through a port in Texas called Indianola.” (1)
Hi Jolly spent a year training Army personnel to drive the camels. In the summer of 1857, Lieutenant Edward F. Beal was ordered to set out with the first camel supply train that would open a new wagon road across New Mexico to Fort Defiance, Arizona and then to California.
This was the only transcontinental trip ever made by the camels. Californians were scornful of the whole idea. They loved their horses and the camel’s odor caused them to run away. Even wagon trains with mules experienced runaways with many wagons ending up turned upside down.
The Civil War brought a halt to the camel experiment. All available military and human resources headed back East to fight in the war. Soon, the rails would come and there was no need for camels or wagon trains. Most of the camels were turned loose in the desert to fend for themselves. Hi Jolly kept a few favorites and made a little money hauling water to mining camps in the mountains.
A few years later, on my trip to West Texas and the Gulf of Mexico, I visited Indianola, Texas. It tied together the story of camels in the U. S. as it was here the camels arrived in February 10, 1856 from Arabia. The Port of Indianola was competing with Galveston, Texas to become the largest port in the U.S. but hurricanes destroyed it and the city moved inland.
Much could be written about the gold miners and early pioneers in the area in the early 1900’s. and much could be written about all the activities and sights in Quartzsite today. Better yet, visit Quartzsite and experience the warm winter sun and the shopping, music and food so abundant here.
_____________
One particular bit of history that I have found most interesting is that about a camel driver who lived in the area and is buried here. His name was Hadji Ali nick named Hi Jolly, 1828-1902.
A local historian and columnist, Rosalee Oldham Wheeler wrote in her book: “Early in 1855 Jefferson Davis, then Secretary of War, went to President Abraham Lincoln and suggested that camels be used in an experiment for finding a different mode of transportation across the arid deserts of the Southwest. Lincoln was aware that many of the horses used by pioneers were not holding up very well as they traveled across the desert. President Lincoln signed a proclamation authorizing the U. S. Army and Navy to purchase camels from Arabia. Hi Jolly accompanied the second shipment of camels to the U. S. Both shipments came through a port in Texas called Indianola.” (1)
Hi Jolly spent a year training Army personnel to drive the camels. In the summer of 1857, Lieutenant Edward F. Beal was ordered to set out with the first camel supply train that would open a new wagon road across New Mexico to Fort Defiance, Arizona and then to California.
This was the only transcontinental trip ever made by the camels. Californians were scornful of the whole idea. They loved their horses and the camel’s odor caused them to run away. Even wagon trains with mules experienced runaways with many wagons ending up turned upside down.
The Civil War brought a halt to the camel experiment. All available military and human resources headed back East to fight in the war. Soon, the rails would come and there was no need for camels or wagon trains. Most of the camels were turned loose in the desert to fend for themselves. Hi Jolly kept a few favorites and made a little money hauling water to mining camps in the mountains.
A few years later, on my trip to West Texas and the Gulf of Mexico, I visited Indianola, Texas. It tied together the story of camels in the U. S. as it was here the camels arrived in February 10, 1856 from Arabia. The Port of Indianola was competing with Galveston, Texas to become the largest port in the U.S. but hurricanes destroyed it and the city moved inland.
Much could be written about the gold miners and early pioneers in the area in the early 1900’s. and much could be written about all the activities and sights in Quartzsite today. Better yet, visit Quartzsite and experience the warm winter sun and the shopping, music and food so abundant here.
_____________
- In the Shadow of Saguaros, vol.1, Rosalee Olham Wheeler.
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