| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 90.4

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| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 90.4 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Pathfinder: John Charles Frémont and the Course of American Empire. By Tom Chaffin. (New York: Hill and Wang, 2002. xxx, 559 pp. $35.00, ISBN 0-8090-7557-1.)
Thanks to a celebrated but controversial career as explorer, soldier, and candidate, John C. Frémont has attracted numerous biographers, some approving but many critical, if not damning. Once an American icon, Frémont's image tarnished after a long, ultimately unfulfilled life and the searching analyses of both political and historiographic foes. A celebrity long before the concept of one existed, Frémont invited criticism because of his mercurial rise to glory and his inconstant fortune. That criticism perhaps partially gratified those who sought to unravel the mystery of fame while toppling a legend from his pedestal. Today little remains of the mystique that once pleased and fascinated countless Frémont admirers.	1
This latest biography by Tom Chaffin seeks a wide audience but adopts a tone less harsh than that of Frémont's fiercest critics. This muted approach, however, is due to the fact that criticism of Frémont's character has apparently become accepted wisdom. Thus Chaffin largely accepts that the one-time hero lacked political ability, business ethics, and personal morality. Although Frémont was not without some talents, his heroic stature nonetheless rested on fortunate political connections, opportunism, and questionable achievements.	. . .

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