The Fate of Cherokee Bob
Henry J. Talbot, alias Cherokee Bob, was the son of a prominent father with a long line of noble ancestors, and a Cherokee mother. He was from Wilkes County, Georgia. After his father refused to allow him to go West, he ran away from home. He was only 15 when he ended up in Mariposa County, California. But the placer mining there was hard work. And finding other work was even harder. For it was here that Henry first encountered prejudice against his obvious Indian appearance. Back home in Georgia his family was well known and respected. Here in California, his family's name was unknown. His appearance and his pro-Southern sympathies were constantly mocked and challenged.
But Henry was determined to make a success of himself. He became a professional gambler and abided by the frontier's gambling rules of fairness. He was still derided whenever he talked about the pride of the South. His genteel manner was even considered arrogance. So when there was trouble with Henry, people were all too willing to believe it.
One of Henry's friends had stolen a horse and somehow Henry was implicated as an accomplice. It didn't take long for the jury to find him guilty. The usual sentence was one to four years, but the judge gave him the maximum of ten years. Henry was taken to San Quentin prison on March 21, 1854, shortly after it opened. Conditions there were deplorable. And Henry worried that when his 90-year-old father found out he was in prison, the shock would kill him. So while he was still in prison, he chose the alias Cherokee Bob to hide his identity. At one point during his stay, prisoners tried to capture the prison sloop. Cherokee Bob was injured in the commotion.
A few months later, he tried to escape and actually got away. He was found several months later and taken back to prison on January 11, 1856. On March 3, 1858, he wrote a letter to the governor, begging him for a pardon. His request was granted 18 months later. It was another seven months before prison officials acted on it. He was released on May 15, 1860.
When he was released, he found he couldn't go back to Mariposa County because of his bad reputation. He had even been blamed for crimes he couldn't have committed because he was in prison. So he headed for Washington Territory. Unfortunately, he also had trouble there. The Civil War had just started and all the troops from Fort Walla Walla were sent to the front. A
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