Recently, my wife and I were traveling along I-80 in western Wyoming near
the Utah border, I notice a sign that said next exit to visit the Fort
Bridger State Historical Site so we decided to go and see the Fort which was
only 3 miles from the I-80. There is a $8 fee per car and we received a
brochure showing all of the buildings inside the fort. On the map I notice
Carter cemetery was listed which tweaked my interest as my mother was a
Carter and Carter is my middle name. I was born and raised in Virginia
about 45 miles from Jamestown, VA. I asked one of the guides about the
Carter cemetery and he explained that William Alexander Carter was a very
influential person at the fort and that he had come from Virginia and was
descended from Robert “King” Carter. The following is an excerpt taken from
an article about Carter:
William Alexander Carter took charge of the fort and made it profitable.
Carter had come with Johnston's Army as a sutler or storekeeper. He rebuilt
and restocked the fort and stayed there with his family. He opened a general
store and carried on a brisk trade with soldiers, scientific expeditions,
miners and mountaineers, Indians, and emigrants on the Overland Trail. It
made him wealthy. From 1859 until his death in 1881 Carter was a sutler and
probate judge for Green River County. He was a key player in the economic
development of the intermountain west. Carter was involved in mining, oil,
logging, cattle ranching and he operated a sawmill. To read more about
Carter and a photo of Carter cemetery, go to:
http://lettersfromabus.com/63FortBridger/63FortBridger.html
I found the following web pages that tells about his genealogy:
http://www.angelfire.com/ne/PhyllisGenealogy/williamcarter.html
http://hdhdata.org/roots/c1280.html he is listed towards the end of the
listin.
I think all Carter’s researchers will find this most interesting.
Gordon Carter Ward in Louisiana