Jim Savage

James D. Savage (1817–1852) was a California pioneer. He was a 49er, businessman, American soldier in the Mexican American War, and commander of the California Militia, Mariposa Battalion in the Mariposa Warand the discoverer of the Yosemite Valley.

James D. Savage was born in Morgan County, Illinois in 1817. When he was sixteen, his family settled in Princeton, Bureau County, Illinois. Although poorly educated he had a gift for learning languages. Savage married and moved to Peru, Illinois, where his daughter was born. In April 1846, Savage and his brother, Morgan, decided to migrate to California. At Independence, Missouri, they joined the party led by former Missouri Governor Lilburn Boggs for the trip to California. During the six-month journey, both his wife and child died.

Boggs' party arrived in California in late October 1846, and Savage joined John Fremonts, California Battalion during the California Campaign of the Mexican American War. In April 1847, Frémont disbanded the battalion and Savage went to the San Joaquin Valley where he lived with the Tularenos and learned their language. He eventually married several daughters of the tribal leaders of the tribes in the Sierra foothill region and led them in war against other tribes as one of their chieftains.

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