Sam Clemens, July of 1861, found himself escapting the Civil War by heading west to the Nevada Territory, Carson City. His brother, Orion, had been appointed Secretary of Nevada Territory and Sam had financed the trip. They departed from St. Joseph, Missouri on the Overland Stage.

Richard Francis Burton made the same journey the previous year. Burton was a man Bram Stoker described as “steel”. “He would go through you like a sword.” He was also quite detailed in his journal of the trip, far more than was Sam Clemens.

Here is a link to my pages on their respective journeys across the Great Plains, over the Rocky Mountains, and across the arid lands of the Basin and Range province.

Sam Clemens Goes West