Jim Beckwourth
Explorer
Iconic African American pioneer who worked as a fur trapper while living with the Crow.
He was born into slavery in Virginia, and moved west during the California Gold Rush.
He discovered the Beckwourth Pass, which is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains between Reno, Nevada and Portola, California.
In the 1960s, the Civil Rights leaders championed him as an African American pioneer.
Another their pioneer of his time was John Henry Mears.