Lot
62 
Sullivan (California), Aug. 26th, 1849, dateline on folded letter from Ebenezer Bower Bateman to his father in Jacksonville, Ill., entered the mails with "San Francisco, Cal, Oct 1" cds and reddish brown manuscript "40" rate, with lengthy 3½ page letter detailing his route and journey from Santa Fe, Indians and the gold regions…I arrived here on the 20th inst, after a very tedious journey of 135 days from Santa Fe. Our rout was down the Rio Grande 150 miles to Socoro (Soccoro), thence across the mountains to the head-waters of the Rio Gila, thence down that River to a point six miles below its mouth where we crossed the Rio Colorado of the West; thence across the Great Desert & through the mountains again to the Pueblo Los Angalos, or "City of the Angels". Thence on & near the coast northward about 250 miles, thence Eastward across the Mountains again to the head of the Tulalles Lake in the Tulary Valley, thence across & up the Rio del Rey, or Kings River to the point where it emenates from the Base of the Sierra Nevada, thence a north-westerly course up the valley & across the Mercey, Tuwalamie, Merri-posas, Stanish-Low & a branch of the San Joaquin Rivers to Stockton;- thence to this place 75 miles; which is a small stream emptying into the Tuwalarnie twelve miles distant. From the point where I last struck into the Mountains you will perceive a great disgression from the ordinary rout, this was owing to our having fallen in with a Detachment of Dragoons dispatched to the head of Kings River to chastise some Indians who had recently killed a party of Americans & we thought it a good opportunity to penetrate where others had failed & have the first chance at the Gold which is said to exist there in great quantity, but greatly to our disappointment on arriving in about two days travel of the designated point, we learned the Indians had fled far into the Snowy mountains. Our rations falling short & animals broke down, the commanding Officer determined to proceed as fast as possible to the neighborhood of Stockton…The Gold region as far as discovered, you will perceive has two great natural divisions by the watercourses they contain, the one with the Sacramento & the other the San Joaquin as their tributaries; I am in the last mentioned region, which is generally is about 100 miles from & Southward of the central portion of the other., Very Fine.Estimate $1,000 - 1,500.