The irony of the discriminatory state laws in California was heightened by the important role of black explorers in the development of the West.  In 1863, the same year as the effective date of the Emancipation Proclamation, the Autobiography of James P. Beckwourth was a best-seller.  Beckwourth, now recognized with Beckwourth Pass on U.S. 50 and with the preservation of his ranch nearby by the Department of Water Resources, discovered the low pass through the Sierra Nevada and was a scout for the U.S. Army during the Mexican War. He had been in California since the era of Mexican rule.