The Long Haul West: Life on the Oregon Trail By ... - Lourdes College

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industry, escape from religious persecution, the desire for adventure and the need for rich farm land on which to live were all part of the American dream that drove people west down the long trail. <strong>The</strong> Oregon Trail was known by many different names depending on who was traveling on it or where it went. During the Mormon migration to Utah, it was called the Mormon Trail, and it went to the Great Salt Lake. It was known as the California Trail during the Gold Rush when every man went out to make his fortune in California. It was called the Platte Trail because it went through the Platte River Basin, not a pleasant place to be. <strong>The</strong> Indians had a few names for it, too, like the Great Medicine Road of the Whites and the White-Topped Wagon Road. But history came to know it as the Oregon Trail. 1 To understand the Oregon Trail, we must understand where exactly its path wove. <strong>The</strong> 2,000 mile path across the <strong>West</strong>ern United States began in Independence, Missouri and many similar cities along the Missouri River. This was near the border with Kansas along the Missouri River. From there, the trail entered Kansas and took a turn north towards Nebraska. Once in Nebraska, the trail cut across the state diagonally to the northwest. A third of the way into Nebraska, the trail met the Platte River at Fort Kearney. <strong>The</strong> trail followed the Platte River until it split into the North and South Platte Rivers. This was in Nebraska near the northeastern most point where it met Colorado. It continued on, following the North Platte River into Wyoming. Before leaving Wyoming, the trail passed through Scott's Bluffs, home to some of the most famous rock formations in the country including Chimney Rock. Once farther into Wyoming, the trail’s first stop was Fort Laramie. Half way through Wyoming, it would pass by Independence Rock before heading up the steep stretch to the South Pass. This is where the Oregon Trail crossed the Rocky Mountains, at the source of the North Platte River. Once through 2
the pass, the trail crossed the Green River and headed a short way to Fort Bridger. From there, the Mormon Trail broke off to the south, while the Oregon Trail cut sharply to the north and entered Idaho. In Idaho, the emigrants would meet the Snake River, right where Fort Hall stood. At the fort, the trail split in two. <strong>The</strong> way to California went south while the way to Oregon followed the Snake all the way across Idaho. Fort Boise stood near the western end of Idaho. This was the last American fort on the Oregon Trail. Past Fort Boise, the trail finally entered the Oregon Territory. It cut north to the Whitman Mission and met the Columbia River. Once at the Columbia, it was a boat ride west to the Promised Land. 2 Discovery 1800's <strong>The</strong> first era can be named the “Era of Discovery.” In the year 1792 Captain Robert Gray was one the first known white man to explore what would later be known as Oregon. Gray took to the sea on a voyage and found the Columbia River. Gray’s discovery helped convince Thomas Jefferson to buy the Louisiana territory in 1803. This purchase from France, secured for the United States by Monroe and Livingston, included New Orleans for ten million dollars and the entire state of Louisiana for an additional five million dollars. 3 <strong>The</strong> great port city of New Orleans was highly valuable, positioned at the mouth of the Mississippi River. 4 Jefferson went on to commission Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore this new territory and, if at all possible, find a route to the Pacific through it. Lewis and Clark did not take the Oregon Trail nor did they start it. However, their reports about the American Northwest had the mouths of Americans watering for more land. <strong>The</strong> two men and their crew traveled all along the Missouri River and continued on to the Pacific Ocean. Gunther Barth, in his book <strong>The</strong> Lewis and Clark Expedition, said that Lewis and Clark took a mysterious area of the continent and turned it into a tangible, reachable part of the continent. 5 It is relevant, to the story of the 3
Page 1: Introduction The <
Page 5 and 6: problem until Astor went to Congres
Page 7 and 8: straight out of Mary Ann Richardson
Page 9 and 10: While on the trail, the emigrants f
Page 11 and 12: with the Indians would be typical o
Page 13 and 14: The Boatman party
Page 15 and 16: on the trail. 38 The</stron
Page 17 and 18: filled up every container they had
Page 19 and 20: Mary Ann said this of the river,
Page 21 and 22: families who travelled there for ma
Page 23 and 24: Endnotes 1 Robert Richmond, A Natio
Page 25: List of Sources Primary Sources A N

The Long Haul West: Life on the Oregon Trail By ... - Lourdes College

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