Nancy Kelsey

Nancy Kelsey (August 1, 1823, Barren County, Kentucky – August 10, 1896, Cuyama, California) was a member of the Bartleson-Bidwell party. She was the first white woman to travel overland from Missouri, seeing Utah and Nevada before crossing the Sierra Nevada mountains into California on November 25, 1841. Wife of Benjamin Kelsey, and the mother of eight surviving children, she is sometimes referred to as the "Betsy Ross of California" for her role in creation of the original Bear Flag from which Bear Flag Rebellion got its name.

Personal life

Born in Barren County, Kentucky, her family moved to Jackson County, Missouri when she was three years old.

Nancy married Benjamin "Ben" Kelsey on October 25, 1838 in Henry County, Missouri. Her husband and his brothers, David, Samuel and Andrew had settled a section in the Hoffman Bend area of what would become St. Clair County, Missouri and had already been in some trouble with the authorities. There were some shady dealings in real estate; Samuel was indicted for murder, and a lawsuit was filed against Andrew in 1841. After his brothers left for the west, David remained behind as David Kelso in Missouri, taking care of their elderly father, Samuel Kelsey Sr.