Entitled: "The Youth's Companion. Historic milestones. Kit Carson", 1922. Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 - May 23, 1868), known as Kit Carson, was an American trailblazer and Indian fighter. He was hired by John C. Fremont as a guide, and led "the Pathfinder" through much of California, Oregon and the Great Basin area. During the Mexican-American war (1846-48), he was a courier and scout, celebrated for his rescue mission after the Battle of San Pasqual and for his coast-to-coast journey from California to Washington, DC to deliver news of the war. In the Civil War, he led a regiment of mostly Hispanic volunteers on the side of the Union at the Battle of Valverde in 1862. Later during the Indian Wars, Carson led armies to pacify the Navajo, Mescalero Apache, and the Kiowa and Comanche Indians. He is vilified for his conquest of the Navajo and their forced transfer to Bosque Redondo, where many died. Breveted a general, Carson is probably the only illiterate American to reach such a high military rank; he could sign his name. He died in 1868 at the age of 59. His last words were: "Adios Compadres".