Pedro Vial

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Pedro Vial, sometimes called Pierre Vial, was born around 1746 in Lyon, France, and died in October 1814 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He was a French explorer and frontiersman who lived for many years among the Comanche and Wichita people. Later he worked for the Spanish government as a peacemaker, guide, and interpreter. He opened trails across the Great Plains to connect Spanish and French settlements in Texas, New Mexico, Missouri, and Louisiana, and he led three Spanish expeditions to stop the Lewis and Clark Expedition, though those efforts failed.

Vial first came to wider attention in 1779 when he visited Natchitoches and New Orleans. Spanish officials described him as a gunsmith who usually lived among native nations. By then he had spent years with the Taovaya, a Wichita group living near the Red River in what is now Texas and Oklahoma. He spoke French, Wichita, and some Spanish, and could communicate with the Comanche through Wichita.

In Autumn 1784, Vial went to San Antonio with two Frenchmen and four Wichita leaders to ease tensions with the Wichita people. The Spanish governor asked him to lead a peace mission to the Comanche, who often raided Texas settlements. He took a Spaniard named Francisco Xavier Cháves, who had been raised by the Wichita and Comanche, as his companion. In 1785 they traveled from Nacogdoches to the Taovaya villages, then on to meet the Comanche bands near the Little Wichita River. The chiefs agreed to meet the Governor in San Antonio, and on September 19, 1785 a peace agreement was signed that lasted for about 35 years.

Building on this peace, Vial was asked to find a route from San Antonio to the Spanish settlements in New Mexico. He and Cháves began the journey on October 4, 1786, reached the Taovaya villages by December 28, and then moved west along the Red River, wintering with the Comanche near Wichita Falls, Texas. In spring 1787 they crossed the Great Plains and reached Santa Fe on May 26, 1787, becoming the first Europeans to travel from San Antonio to Santa Fe overland. He stayed in Santa Fe for a time, then made another crossing to Natchitoches and back to Santa Fe, arriving in 1789 after traveling thousands of miles.

In 1792 Vial was ordered to establish links between New Mexico and St. Louis, Missouri. He left Santa Fe on May 21, 1792, with companions, was captured by the Kaw near the Arkansas River, and taken to their village on the Kansas River. A French trader rescued him, and he continued by boat down the Missouri River to St. Louis, arriving October 3, 1792. He stayed in St. Louis until June 1793 because Osage raids disrupted Missouri River travel. He returned to Santa Fe by November 1793, traveling via the Pawnee and other communities.

In 1795 Vial was briefly arrested in Santa Fe on suspicion of disloyalty, but he was soon freed and sent again to negotiate peace with the Pawnee. He did so, but was re-arrested on his return. He escaped with Comanche help and spent several years near St. Louis before returning to Santa Fe in 1803, where he was pardoned and given back pay.

When news reached the Spanish that the Lewis and Clark Expedition was moving through their lands, they tried to stop them. In 1804 Vial and Jose Jarvet led 52 soldiers, Spanish settlers, and Pueblo allies to pursue the Americans. They learned Lewis and Clark were already far ahead and returned to Santa Fe. In 1805 they went out again with about 100 men to form alliances with Plains tribes to block the Americans, but were forced back after attacks. In 1806 another large Spanish force, led by Melgares with about 600 men, tried to make peace with the Pawnee and stop Lewis and Clark, but the campaign faced raids and desertions, and Melgares returned.

Vial later accepted the U.S. rule after the Louisiana Purchase. On September 14, 1808, Meriwether Lewis gave him a permit to trap on the Missouri River. He continued to serve New Mexico as an interpreter and guide. He wrote his will on October 2, 1814, in Santa Fe, leaving his belongings to Maria Manuela Martin and noting that he had no wife or children. He likely died soon after.

Pedro Vial is credited with the first overland trip from San Antonio to Santa Fe, the first overland journey from Santa Fe to Natchitoches, and the first crossing of the Santa Fe Trail between Santa Fe and St. Louis. Some historians consider him the greatest frontiersman of his time. He may have drawn an extensive map in 1787 showing the territories he traveled, including the upper Missouri River, possibly predating the Three Forks discovery associated with Lewis and Clark.