04 Beckwourth | War Chief of the Crow | Born in Chains, Died a Warrior | Free Trappers

Jim Beckwourth was born into slavery in Virginia around 1798. He rode west with Ashley's men and never went back. He trapped the Yellowstone and the Bighorn. He fought the Blackfoot in a dozen passes. He rode to the rendezvous every summer and drank with men who weren't entirely sure what to make of him. The Crow watched him fight, made their decision, painted him a warrior, and gave him a name — Morning Star. He became a war chief on the Powder River and the Bighorn. He married into the nation and buried his dead beside them. He lived between two worlds and belonged to neither fully. The mountains asked him nothing about Virginia. Track 04 of Act 2 of Free Trappers — a folk and Americana concept album on the Rocky Mountain fur trade era, 1804–1845. 🎵 Act 2 Playlist — Fur Trappers: The Rendezvous Years:    • Free Trappers | The Mountain Men  Act 2 | ...   🎵 Act 1 — Fur Trappers: The Mountain Men:    • Fur Trappers | The Mountain Men Act 1 | Th...   Part of The Wandering Bard — historically grounded folk and Americana.