Eric Braun - Fighting to Survive in the American West: Terrifying True Stories

The world today is small. Technology helps us get information about any place on Earth within seconds. We can see amazing photos of remote locations with a simple online search. We can video chat with people on the opposite side of the globe. And we can travel nearly anywhere we want with relative ease.

But the world wasnt always like it is today. Life was much more difficult in the days when people explored the faced all these challenges and more.

As the United States grew westward, white settlers and explorers also faced sometimes risky encounters with American Indian people. Unfortunately, white people had a long history of using lies, threats, and violence to force Indians off their land. Many Indians had good reason to distrust white people. Relations were peaceful with some Indian groups. But some groups were hostile toward whites. Regardless of the intentions of white settlers and explorers, the history of mistreatment by whites added danger to encounters with American Indians.

What drove people to explore the frontier? What made pioneers and explorers want to plunge into the unknown? Many wanted to find a new, better life for their families in the West, which was rumored to be sunny and mild and green. Some were tasked with opening up pathways that others could follow, making it easier for future generations. Some hardy souls just loved the adventure.

Whatever their motivation, they all needed to be well prepared and courageous. Danger and death lay in wait for them. Only the strong and the wiseand sometimes the luckywould make it to their destinations alive.

One desire drove Hugh Glass more than anything else, perhaps even more than the basic instinct to survive. It was his wish for revenge. Miles from civilization, he had been mauled and severely injured by a bear. Two men were supposed to care for him until he recoveredor more likely until he died. Instead, they abandoned him, leaving him to suffer alone. In the end, his dogged pursuit of those men may be why he lived.

The Missouri River flows more than 2,300 miles (3,700 kilometers) from the Rocky Mountains in Montana until it joins the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri.

Glass was one of the early fur trappers and adventurers known as mountain men. These tough men explored much of the American West during the first half of the 1800s. Many fascinating stories of mountain men have survived the years, but historical records are difficult to find. Some of the stories have been exaggerated or invented, and its hard to be sure what is true. But historians have confirmed much of Glasss saga.

Glass was born probably around 1783 in the Philadelphia area. In his early career, he was a sailor. Though evidence is unclear, Glass may have been captured by the pirate Jean Lafitte around 1817. He was then forced into piracy until he escaped by swimming ashore near what is now Galveston, Texas. He began exploring and trapping furs in the West in the early 1820s.

By 1823 he was in St. Louis. That year he joined a group of 100 men organized by William Ashley, who was the lieutenant governor of Missouri and a militia general. The groups mission was to trap beaver on the Missouri River as they sailed 2,000 miles (3,220 kilometers) upriver to the recently established Fort Henry in what is now North Dakota. Working against the rivers current, the journey was slow and difficult.

Continuing north, the group stopped to trade with the Arikara nation. These American Indians had a fenced village along the river. The Arikara had recently had conflicts with other fur-trapping companies over fair payments for their furs. The conflicts had led to violence, and several Arikara warriors had been killed. Ashleys company hadnt been involved in those battles. But the Arikara still wanted payment for the deaths of their men. Ashley gave them gifts, which the Arikara seemed to accept. The white men traded rifles and ammunition for horses. From the Arikara village, Ashley planned to send half his crew over land with the horses and supplies to Fort Henry. The rest of the men would continue to take the boats upriver.

Though the trading appeared to be peaceful, there was trouble later that night when two of Ashleys men went into the village. A fight broke out and one of them was killed. The Arikara then attacked the main company at dawn. After a short battle, several men were killed on both sides. Hugh Glass was shot in the leg.

Arikara Indians usually lived in earth lodges built next to rivers on the Great Plains. The villages later became centers of trade during the mid-1800s.

Fort Henry. Henry came from the fort with more horses. The men decided to abandon the idea of traveling the river. Hugh Glass was part of the first band of men who left with Henry to travel overland to the fort. A second group waited while more horses were acquired.

Did You Know?

Another famous mountain man led the second group of Ashleys men. Jedediah Smith had a reputation as a courageous fighter and explorer. Like Glass, Smith was attacked by a large grizzly bear during the fall of 1823. The bear knocked Smith to the ground, breaking his ribs and tearing open his side. The bear even took Smiths head in its mouth. After the bear left him, other men in Smiths party rushed to his side. His scalp and ear had been torn off and lay on the ground. Smith coached a friend to sew them back onto his head. For the rest of his life, he wore his hair long to cover the wicked scar.

Glass, Henry, and about 30 men left the river in August 1823. The group had made it to the upper Grand River in South Dakota when Glass heard a terrifying roar.

As one of the groups hunters, Glass was walking ahead of the others with his rifle. He scanned the brush along the river bottom, looking for game. When he heard an animals roar, he looked up to see a grizzly bear charging at him. He had just enough time to notice two bear cubs nearby. That was bad news. It meant the grizzly was a mother bear. Protecting her young was a job she took very seriously.

Glass barely had time to raise his rifle and get off a shot. But it didnt stop the angry bear. With massive paws and razor-sharp claws, she shredded his back and arms. Hearing his cries for help, the rest of the men ran to catch up. They shot and killed the bear. By then, however, Glasss throat was slashed, and chunks of flesh were ripped from his back.

Henry and the rest of the men assumed Glass would die overnight. But in the morning, he was still alive. The men were in dangerous , where they were vulnerable to Indian attacks. Glasss injury put everyone in danger. It was risky to stay where they were. Henry decided the men would have to carry Glass.