Legendary Jacob Hamblin

From Find A Grave added by Chad Stowell

Few men in American history have the reputation for courage and truthfulness of Jacob Hamblin. He was truly one of the great men of our history and certainly of the history of the Southwest. One story that I have heard all my life gives an idea of the estimation in which the Indians held him.

As told by his son Jacob Hamblin, Jr. it is transcribed as follows:

One day my father sent me to trade a horse with an old Navajo Indian chief. I was a little fellow and I went on horseback, leading the horse to be traded. The old chief came out and lifted me down from my horse. I told him my father wanted me to trade the horse for some blankets. He brought out a number of handsome blankets, but, as my father had told me to be sure and make a good trade, I shook my head and said I would have to have more. He then brought out two buffalo robes and quite a number of other blankets and finally, when I thought I had done very well, I took the roll on my horse, and started for home. When I gave the blankets to my father, he unrolled them, looked at them, and then began to separate them. He put blanket after blanket into a roll and then did them up and told me to get on my horse and take them back and tell the chief he had sent me too many. When I got back, the old chief took them and smiled. He said, "I knew you would come back; I knew Jacob would not keep so many; you know Jacob is our father, as well as your father.

Jacob Hamblin died of malarial fever, August 31, 1886, at Pleasanton, in Williams Valley, New Mexico, where a settlement of Saints had been made in October, 1882. Hamblin's remains were removed from Pleasanton before 1889, to Alpine, Arizona, where was erected a shaft bearing this very appropriate inscription:

In memory of

JACOB V. HAMBLIN,

Born April 2, 1819,

Died August 31, 1886.

Peacemaker in the Camp of the Lamanites