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Location of Marker: Section Thirty-two, Township Fifteen North, Range Twelve West, Blaine County.
Jesse Chisholm, for whom the Chisholm Trail was named, camped at Left Hand Spring in early March, 1868. Becoming ill, probably from food poisoning, he died on March 4, and was buried on a nearby knoll.
Abert Expedition
Location of Marker: One and one-half miles northwest, then one mile north and seven miles west of the Canadian River bridge on former U.S. Highway 66, Blaine County.
At this location on October 1, 1845, a military expedition to the Rocky Mountains under the command of James William Abert paused on its return journey to sketch the buttes appearing to the south. This was the first expedition to make the overland trip with a train of wagons from Bent's Fort, in present-day Colorado, down the Canadian River to Fort Gibson.
The above information is from the book, Mark of Heritage, by Muriel H. Wright, courtesy of Oklahoma Historical Society.
We received a lone exception to the above information regarding Jesse's demise.
JESSE CHISHOLM DID NOT DIE AT LEFTHAND SPRING. HE WAS MANUFACTURING SALT AT SALT CREEK CANYON LOCATED ABOUT THREE MILES SOUTHEAST OF SOUTHARD, OKLAHOMA WHEN HE DIED.
PLEASE SEE "HUNTING AND TRADING ON THE GREAT PLAINS, 1859-1875" BY JAMES R MEAD, AN INDIAN TRADER AND ONE TIME PARTNER OF JESSE CHISHOLM. SEE PAGES 218 TO 225.