When Did the Era of the "Mountain Man" End?

[ralph124c]

I just saw Robert Redford’s 1972 flick “Jeremiah Johnson”. It was a pretty good movie, and I was interested to know when the last of the mountain men threw in the towel. The Redford movie portrayed Johnson as beeing a Mexican War veteran, so I assume the film depicts events of the 1840’s. It was a very unique period-the USA was getting ready for the Civil War, and the huge westward migration had yet to come. When did the era end? Being a “mountain man” was probably a very lonely life-but there were quite a few of them.
Did they die out when the fur bearing animals were all trapped out?

[RyJae]

@ralph124c

I just saw Robert Redford’s 1972 flick “Jeremiah Johnson”. It was a pretty good movie, and I was interested to know when the last of the mountain men threw in the towel. The Redford movie portrayed Johnson as beeing a Mexican War veteran, so I assume the film depicts events of the 1840’s. It was a very unique period-the USA was getting ready for the Civil War, and the huge westward migration had yet to come. When did the era end? Being a “mountain man” was probably a very lonely life-but there were quite a few of them.
Did they die out when the fur bearing animals were all trapped out?

Well they still exist, not to the extent of the past but people still live like that. I personally knew a couple when I lived out west. And I mean the grizzled guy who came into town once a month. But then again we lived about 4 miles from the nearest neighbor. My allowance was what my dad was able to make off the animals I trapped and skinned, boarded etc. My brothers also maintained a trapline of there own. It wasn’t fun getting up 3-4 hours before a normal kid and walking the mountains in the dark. But it was a beautiful place.

(This is the where I was Google Maps)
Wiki says 1840 was the end of the historical idea of mountain men.

Mountain man

Just to dispel your thought that fur bearing animals are all trapped out, trapping was still somewhat profitable up to the 1980’s when the price fell out.

And even in the 1800’s it wasn’t so much a lack of fur bearing animals as it was a combination of things.

The fur trade slowly collapsed. The trade had only worked when the Indians had control of the land. The fur trade did not die entirely from a lack of furs. Furs had become hard to find at a number of times during the fur trade era. The lack of Indians available to assist with trapping and maintaining the trading system was perhaps as important. The change in fashion to the silk hat in Europe was the final blow.

http://www.whiteoak.org/learning/timeline.htm

A fur trapper is a person whose occupation involved the trapping of animals for their fur. It was a popular trade particularly in the early days of the settlement of North America between the settlers and the local Indians. Many locations at which trading took place were referred to as trading posts.

Trapping continues to be a profession in many areas around the world, although relatively few people make a full-time living from it. Competition from farm-raised animals and fluctuating populations of wild animals have made trapping a minor industry. Fur prices have trended downward for many years, resulting in a dramatically lessened economic incentive.

Some species have collapsed to such an extent that harvesting them is not allowed in some locations. This is especially true of predator species such as Canadian lynx within the lower 48 United States. Yet certain other fur-bearing species, including beaver and coyote, have shown dramatic population increases in certain regions.

Popular quarry of fur trappers are beaver, and also raccoon, mink, ermine, American pine marten, bobcat, and muskrat.

Trapping

And still a market for wild fur. Which is good considering almost every state has a trapping license option.

http://www.furharvesters.com/wildfurmarket.htm

[The_Flying_Dutchman]

Your question brings Richard Proenneke who lived alone in the wilderness of Alaska for 30 years starting in 1967.

Fascinating story. Fascinating man.