By Kathy Krause

Many have heard tales of camels in our state, but few realize the significance they have in our history. Actually, the camel family originated in North America where fossils of many kinds of camel ‘prototypes’ have been discovered. Eventually, the American camels migrated; some into South America, where today they appear as llamas and alpacas; others migrated northwest towards Alaska and the ancient land bridge into Asia, gradually evolving into the camel of today. It wasn’t until the early 1700s that a few were re-introduced as curiosities in Massachusetts. Then came the real test of their usefulness in the United States.

At the end of the war with Mexico in 1848, the U.S. acquired several hundred thousand square miles of new land when Mexico was compelled to abandon its claim to Texas and cede to the U.S. the territory comprising what is currently CA, NV, and UT, most of AZ and parts of CO, WY and NM. Five years later, another 45,535 square miles of southern AZ and NM were added by the Gadsden Purchase. This combined area was well over half desert terrain.

The U.S. congress had plans for this region long before it belonged to us. Since the discovery of gold in 1849 in California, there was a clamor for services by the people living there. The mail and freight service from the east was by ship to Panama, overland, then via ship to San Francisco, a whole month in transit. Another frequented and longer water route was around Cape Horn, South America. California started to talk of secession if communications and overland travel were not improved to their state. The U.S. desperately needed a shorter land route.

U.S. Army Major George Crosman, in the early 1850s, had researched the use of camels to help open this new land but his findings fell on deaf ears until he became acquainted with Major Henry Wayne. Wayne, in turn, studied the feasibility and contacted then Senator, Jefferson Davis from Mississippi, who was very interested in the idea. The camels could be used to help build and supply a western wagon route from Texas to California and the dry, hot and otherwise hostile region was not unlike the camel’s natural terrain of the Middle East. Besides, they would require much less water and forage than the military horses and mules. It made perfect sense. Davis was chairman of the Commission of Military Affairs and sought approval from Congress for three years but got nowhere until he was appointed Secretary of War in 1855. He then proposed a Camel Military Corps to Congress; they agreed and $30,000 was appropriated for the "experiment." Davis also was looking to use the camels for construction of a transcontinental railroad between the eastern states and California, believing they would perform best for the crews working in the arid west.

Although opposition sprang up everywhere, Major Wayne was sent to the Middle East via Navy ship to procure 33 camels. With little more than book knowledge of the animals, it turned out to be quite a fiasco. The first few he purchased were sick and died before the trip back to the states. Finally, after several stops in the Mediterranean, he had procured his quota and the time came to load the animals onto the ship. It was a struggle: the animals were unmanageable and stubborn but eventually were boarded and secured. On the nearly three-month ocean voyage, two colts were born and one adult camel died. Along with the camels, Wayne brought back several Greek men to look after them and teach the soldiers how to pack and handle them. The ship arrived in Texas in the spring of 1856.

The camels and drovers were taken to Camp Verde (near San Antonio) where 34-year-old Lieutenant Edward Beale took over. He had envisioned a camel cavalry as early as 1850 and was much in favor of the experiment while many other military personnel opposed it openly. He and his camel drovers began training soldiers for an expedition across what is now NM and AZ to establish a Federal wagon road all the way to the Colorado River from Fort Defiance, NM (now AZ). Another shipment of about 40 camels arrived at Camp Verde before Beale’s departure date in June of 1857.

(Next week, a much anticipated shipping, mail and immigrant road to California was about to become a reality, thanks to the camel corps, and a railroad route would be proposed to congress.)

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(cover, Camels in the West) Reuse only by permission.

Booklet "Camels in the West" by Deane and Peggy Robertson.