The first and most important thing to settlers after their land claim was, of course, a roof over their heads. Depending on where they settled, the house could be anything from a solid log cabin to a rock house, from a grass sod house to primitive a dugout.
To build our first temporary dugout home on the plains we start by digging a hole 6 foot deep on a sloping area in a rise of ground. We have laid out our rectangle and when we begin digging we find the soil is the consistency of putty. A shovel is our tool but it would be just as easy if we used our boots and did the digging by foot!
When the hole is big enough, we erect front and side walls with chunks of sod cut from the surrounding prairie. The walls are 2 1/2 feet above the surface. We then roof the whole thing with boards, straw and more sod. Finally we sprinkle corn seed over the earth from where we cut out the sod to make our house.
Altogether the project cost us $10.05 with $4.05 in cash for nails, hinges, and a window. The rest was labor cost which we have bartered for firewood and lumber to make us some furniture.
We worry that the first rains will collaspe our shelter and wash all our money away!
Underground living like this is a temporary solution, so as soon as we rebuild our money supplies, we will build us the "soddy" which is the classic style of prairie house.
Next time - we move up to a sod house!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Gaining More Land
There were several legitimate ways for settlers to increase their land holdings in the West. One of these was "pre-emptions" which means a settler could purchase land outright from the government at $1.25 per acre up to another quarter section of the original 160 acres.
What was wrong with that? Well, the smallest unit that they were allowed to buy was 40 acres plus a registration fee of $50. The 40 acres were consider to small too be of much use and the registration fee killed any other hopes of purchase - just too much money for a small farmer. Most farmers arrived at their new settlements with little else but the bare necessities that they would need for farming. There was no extra money for anything like registration fees.
There was also the "timber claim" which would give the settler another quarter section in exchange for planting 10 acres of timber-producing trees. The problem with this solution was that the plains' soil was so hard packed that most settler's doubted that trees could grow there.
All these ways of getting more land ended up not being benefical to the settlers. With so much land to farm, the single farmer was overwhelmed and his crops suffered.
The smart farmer started out small and farmed just enough to support his family until he could buy land AND the help it required to farm it.
Next time - time to put us up a home!
What was wrong with that? Well, the smallest unit that they were allowed to buy was 40 acres plus a registration fee of $50. The 40 acres were consider to small too be of much use and the registration fee killed any other hopes of purchase - just too much money for a small farmer. Most farmers arrived at their new settlements with little else but the bare necessities that they would need for farming. There was no extra money for anything like registration fees.
There was also the "timber claim" which would give the settler another quarter section in exchange for planting 10 acres of timber-producing trees. The problem with this solution was that the plains' soil was so hard packed that most settler's doubted that trees could grow there.
All these ways of getting more land ended up not being benefical to the settlers. With so much land to farm, the single farmer was overwhelmed and his crops suffered.
The smart farmer started out small and farmed just enough to support his family until he could buy land AND the help it required to farm it.
Next time - time to put us up a home!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Homesteading the West
The government offered land in the West for settlers who lived on the land and farmed it for 5 years. Their was a limit on the number of acres that a settler could claim - 160 acres. Congress hoped that this would encourage small, independent farmers rather than plantations. In 6 months, Kansas and Nebraska had 224,500 acres that had been claimed. An authentic receipt issued to such a settler of that period shows a payment of $6.00for 160 acres of prairie land.
Actually land was divided into squares of 640 acres each and each square further divided into quarters of 160 acres each of which the quarters were available under the Homestead Act.
The provisions of the Homestead Act - living off the land for 5 years, were intended to keep speculators from taking huge tracts of free land and then selling them off in pieces at a profit such as the railroad baron did for $2.50 an acre.
It the these areas of remote land, the laws were near impossible to enforce, though, and land agents had so vast an area that they could not even make inspections of settler's claims. So, of course, the laws were frequently ignored or broken after a short time on the claim.
Here is an example: One federal regulation required that a settler build a 12 by 12 house with windows on his claim. To visit every house to make sure it was 12 by 12 with windows as well was just not possible. Some land sharks even build log cabins on wheels that rolled them from claim to claim. Another would build "minature" 12 inch by 12 inch cabins with sticks.
There was another way that settler's could increase their land - next time we look at pre-emptions.
Actually land was divided into squares of 640 acres each and each square further divided into quarters of 160 acres each of which the quarters were available under the Homestead Act.
The provisions of the Homestead Act - living off the land for 5 years, were intended to keep speculators from taking huge tracts of free land and then selling them off in pieces at a profit such as the railroad baron did for $2.50 an acre.
It the these areas of remote land, the laws were near impossible to enforce, though, and land agents had so vast an area that they could not even make inspections of settler's claims. So, of course, the laws were frequently ignored or broken after a short time on the claim.
Here is an example: One federal regulation required that a settler build a 12 by 12 house with windows on his claim. To visit every house to make sure it was 12 by 12 with windows as well was just not possible. Some land sharks even build log cabins on wheels that rolled them from claim to claim. Another would build "minature" 12 inch by 12 inch cabins with sticks.
There was another way that settler's could increase their land - next time we look at pre-emptions.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Cholera!
Many dangers threathen even our reaching the new west. Wild Animals like grizzly and black bear, coyotes and wolves are a constant fear. But the silent killer these days that threaten the entire wagon train is cholera.
Cholera killed more settlers on the westward trail that all other diseases combined. The symptoms were dysentary, vomiting, fever, convulsions, and death. Cholera could only be stopped by the Rocky Mountains higher elevations, or in the death of an entire wagon train.
At some places entire cementarys were created to bury the victims of one outbreak. Death was so certain as the end that graves were actually built before the victim had actually died.
With no lumber to build coffins on the trail, bodies were wrapped as in Biblical times in cloth and then buried in shallow graves even under large rocks that could be moved. Some victims were buried in the deep wagon ruts in an effort to conceal their graves from Indians, but the numerous wolves were next in line.
Cholera came west with the pioneers from the East Coast were it had been brought over by Asians in the 1830s.
Here a some period remedies for Cholera circulated among the pioneers:
1. Laundanum Mixture
A tablespoon with 60 drops of Laudanum in half a wine glassful of cold water. If this fails to relieve, repeat two spoonfuls with 30 drops of Laudanum every 1/2 hour. Half dose for children under 14 and 1/4 for children under 7. Do not exceed doses prescribed and stop when vomiting and cramp cease.
2. Cholera Pills
To be used if the first mixture is vomited. Two pills first, and then one every half-hour, if the first fails to relieve. Half doses for children under 14, 1/4 for children under 7.
3. Cholera Cysters (Enemas)
Injext three teaspoonfuls in a wine glassful of thin warm gruel and retain as long as possible by pressure below with a warm cloth. If not, repeat immediately by not otherwise. Half dose for children under 14, 1/4 for children under 7.
4. Mustard Poultices
A fourth part is enough for one person. Dust it thickly over porridge poutices, of which apply a large one on the belly, and others on the soles and calves. Remove when patient complains much from the pain.
That sheet is a copy of the actual sheet circulated in the plains during the 1840-1850s by the "Edinburgh Board of Health and approved by the Faculty of New York"
It was "carefully prepared" it states by Jefferson B Nones, Apothecary and Alchemist, No 644 1/2 Broadway, New York.
Until Next Time...happy trails!
Cholera killed more settlers on the westward trail that all other diseases combined. The symptoms were dysentary, vomiting, fever, convulsions, and death. Cholera could only be stopped by the Rocky Mountains higher elevations, or in the death of an entire wagon train.
At some places entire cementarys were created to bury the victims of one outbreak. Death was so certain as the end that graves were actually built before the victim had actually died.
With no lumber to build coffins on the trail, bodies were wrapped as in Biblical times in cloth and then buried in shallow graves even under large rocks that could be moved. Some victims were buried in the deep wagon ruts in an effort to conceal their graves from Indians, but the numerous wolves were next in line.
Cholera came west with the pioneers from the East Coast were it had been brought over by Asians in the 1830s.
Here a some period remedies for Cholera circulated among the pioneers:
1. Laundanum Mixture
A tablespoon with 60 drops of Laudanum in half a wine glassful of cold water. If this fails to relieve, repeat two spoonfuls with 30 drops of Laudanum every 1/2 hour. Half dose for children under 14 and 1/4 for children under 7. Do not exceed doses prescribed and stop when vomiting and cramp cease.
2. Cholera Pills
To be used if the first mixture is vomited. Two pills first, and then one every half-hour, if the first fails to relieve. Half doses for children under 14, 1/4 for children under 7.
3. Cholera Cysters (Enemas)
Injext three teaspoonfuls in a wine glassful of thin warm gruel and retain as long as possible by pressure below with a warm cloth. If not, repeat immediately by not otherwise. Half dose for children under 14, 1/4 for children under 7.
4. Mustard Poultices
A fourth part is enough for one person. Dust it thickly over porridge poutices, of which apply a large one on the belly, and others on the soles and calves. Remove when patient complains much from the pain.
That sheet is a copy of the actual sheet circulated in the plains during the 1840-1850s by the "Edinburgh Board of Health and approved by the Faculty of New York"
It was "carefully prepared" it states by Jefferson B Nones, Apothecary and Alchemist, No 644 1/2 Broadway, New York.
Until Next Time...happy trails!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Evening's Entertainment
Dinner's done, the dishes done, the moon is high - time for some R & R.
The night time entertainment is devoted first to children's games like tag, hide and seek.
Once the children are to bed, we party, dance and play a little fiddle until the moon. We danced so much that we left the prairie grass flatten from our dancing feet!
On Sundays each family had the freedom to choose how they would pass their time. Some folks attend the church services, some would rather race horses with the Indians (at the same time the church services are going on) and some just lounge around enjoying the day off. We don't travel on Sundays in our wagon train.
Next time - water runs deep...
The night time entertainment is devoted first to children's games like tag, hide and seek.
Once the children are to bed, we party, dance and play a little fiddle until the moon. We danced so much that we left the prairie grass flatten from our dancing feet!
On Sundays each family had the freedom to choose how they would pass their time. Some folks attend the church services, some would rather race horses with the Indians (at the same time the church services are going on) and some just lounge around enjoying the day off. We don't travel on Sundays in our wagon train.
Next time - water runs deep...
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
The Waters Run Deep
On the trail, water is a commodity that we must continually refurnish, so it is with great joy when we find a water source.
Two rivers that we come across on our way west have totally opposite offerings to us.
The Big Blue River, a tributary of the Kansas River is a romantic, peaceful place with a "large spring of water, as cold and pure as if melted from ice". It gushes from a ledge of rocks on the bank falling some 10 feet into a clear basin. It's name is said to be engraved on the rocks around the river as "Alcove Springs".
On the other hand, the Platte River, recorded as a mile wide and an inch deep is described as "bad to ford, destitute of fish, too dirty to bathe in, and too thick to drink". The Platte Rivers runs from the Rocky Mountains to Missouri.
Next time we meet danger on the trail...
Two rivers that we come across on our way west have totally opposite offerings to us.
The Big Blue River, a tributary of the Kansas River is a romantic, peaceful place with a "large spring of water, as cold and pure as if melted from ice". It gushes from a ledge of rocks on the bank falling some 10 feet into a clear basin. It's name is said to be engraved on the rocks around the river as "Alcove Springs".
On the other hand, the Platte River, recorded as a mile wide and an inch deep is described as "bad to ford, destitute of fish, too dirty to bathe in, and too thick to drink". The Platte Rivers runs from the Rocky Mountains to Missouri.
Next time we meet danger on the trail...
Monday, July 20, 2009
Chow Time!
Twide a day, the wagon trains stops - for afternoon lunch and evening's supper.
All of our meals are cooked over an open campfire - with buffalo chips, sagebrush or weeds were used for fuel.
The staple food on the trail is bacon, bread, and coffee. Whatever we find in route is added for a balanced diet for a pioneer.
Game was hunted depended on location including - fresh buffalo meat, rabbit, sage hen, badger, prairie dog and rattlesnack.
Here is our nightly meal cooked up by both men and women in the group:
Buffalo Steak
Render some fat in a hot skillet. Add sirloin of buffalo steak and sear on both sides. At lower heat, cook meat until tender. For gravy, add a tablespoon of flour to the pan drippings and cook until brown. Stirring constantly add a cup of milk or water and bring to boil. Salt to taste.
Fried Cakes
Combine 1 1/2 cups of flour with 1 cup of water. Mix well with a fork. Using plenty of flour on hands, roll out dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into 2 inch squares. Render beef fat in a skillet and add squares of dough. Brown slowly on both sides. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Makes 20 cakes.
Dried Apple Pie
Soak 2 cups of dried apples in water overnight. Drain off the water and mix apples with 1/2 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon each of allspice and cinnanom. Line 8 inch pie pan with a crust and add the apple mixture, dot with 3 tablespoon of butter and cover with a second crust. Make a few slashes in the top for ventilation and bake over moderate heat for 1 hour until crust is golden brown.
Butter was available on the wagon trains because the women put the cream from the cows milk in the pail that hung under the wagon. Along the rough trail, the pail rewarded us with butter for meals.
As one of my fellow travelers put it "our appetites are good, our digestion strong, and our sleep sweet".
Next time - night time entertainment.
All of our meals are cooked over an open campfire - with buffalo chips, sagebrush or weeds were used for fuel.
The staple food on the trail is bacon, bread, and coffee. Whatever we find in route is added for a balanced diet for a pioneer.
Game was hunted depended on location including - fresh buffalo meat, rabbit, sage hen, badger, prairie dog and rattlesnack.
Here is our nightly meal cooked up by both men and women in the group:
Buffalo Steak
Render some fat in a hot skillet. Add sirloin of buffalo steak and sear on both sides. At lower heat, cook meat until tender. For gravy, add a tablespoon of flour to the pan drippings and cook until brown. Stirring constantly add a cup of milk or water and bring to boil. Salt to taste.
Fried Cakes
Combine 1 1/2 cups of flour with 1 cup of water. Mix well with a fork. Using plenty of flour on hands, roll out dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into 2 inch squares. Render beef fat in a skillet and add squares of dough. Brown slowly on both sides. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Makes 20 cakes.
Dried Apple Pie
Soak 2 cups of dried apples in water overnight. Drain off the water and mix apples with 1/2 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon each of allspice and cinnanom. Line 8 inch pie pan with a crust and add the apple mixture, dot with 3 tablespoon of butter and cover with a second crust. Make a few slashes in the top for ventilation and bake over moderate heat for 1 hour until crust is golden brown.
Butter was available on the wagon trains because the women put the cream from the cows milk in the pail that hung under the wagon. Along the rough trail, the pail rewarded us with butter for meals.
As one of my fellow travelers put it "our appetites are good, our digestion strong, and our sleep sweet".
Next time - night time entertainment.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
The Circle of Safety
After a long day of dusty rough trails, the wagon master has determined it is time to camp for the night, and just like most of what happens on the wagon trail, it is never just a matter of pulling back the reins and climbing in the wagon for some much needed shut-eye...
Where the wagon train will stop for the night is based on providing the most safety for the families. Indians and wild animals were a very real threat through the prairie, while further west the problems remain the same with terrain added on.
We are told to lead our wagon into a circle in the same position we have in the wagon trail. It isn't as easy to drive wagons into a tight circle as it would seem. First the wheels offer like turning radius, and the horses have to be unhitched and wagons moved close together.
Our wagons are then interlocked together by the iron tongue of our wagon and each successive wagon, extending under the rear wheels of the wagon before us. Once all wagons are interlocked the chains are applied through the wheels and running through all the wagons in the circle.
Before the last wagon is locked together the livestock and horses are rounded up inside the circle. Once all the animals are safe inside the circle to graze, our women began to start the huge campfire that will warm us, cook our supper and breakfast, and provide us light for the evening.
The wagon master assigns a couple of guards to watch the outside rim of the circle and we are as safe as can be in numbers.
Safety was the number one concern on the wagon trail and the circle of wagons remains one of the best ideas the pioneers had. In fact, there are only a handful of recorded Indian attacks that succeeded against the wagon circle. The Indians incurred extensive casualities with such strategy - faced the pioneer men behind the safety of their wagon.
Next time it is chow time on the Wagon Trail....
Where the wagon train will stop for the night is based on providing the most safety for the families. Indians and wild animals were a very real threat through the prairie, while further west the problems remain the same with terrain added on.
We are told to lead our wagon into a circle in the same position we have in the wagon trail. It isn't as easy to drive wagons into a tight circle as it would seem. First the wheels offer like turning radius, and the horses have to be unhitched and wagons moved close together.
Our wagons are then interlocked together by the iron tongue of our wagon and each successive wagon, extending under the rear wheels of the wagon before us. Once all wagons are interlocked the chains are applied through the wheels and running through all the wagons in the circle.
Before the last wagon is locked together the livestock and horses are rounded up inside the circle. Once all the animals are safe inside the circle to graze, our women began to start the huge campfire that will warm us, cook our supper and breakfast, and provide us light for the evening.
The wagon master assigns a couple of guards to watch the outside rim of the circle and we are as safe as can be in numbers.
Safety was the number one concern on the wagon trail and the circle of wagons remains one of the best ideas the pioneers had. In fact, there are only a handful of recorded Indian attacks that succeeded against the wagon circle. The Indians incurred extensive casualities with such strategy - faced the pioneer men behind the safety of their wagon.
Next time it is chow time on the Wagon Trail....
Saturday, July 18, 2009
The Wagon Master/Captain
Wagon Trains without a master or captain would have been like any group without order - chaos. So before our journey begins, a wagon captain must be chosen. For most wagon trains, like ours, a single wagon captain and a couple of "deputies" was all that was required, although there is record of complete governments created for a single wagon train.
The wagon captain was responsible for most decisions on the trail - from when the started, when the train stopped, and where it stopped. His was the choice of where the train would set up camp for the night. His was the consequences for disputes and "trouble" between the members of his train.
To that end, each wagon captain assigned each family wagon a specific spot in the order of the train, and saw to it that each time the wagon train stopped and started the order was kept as assigned. Even the placement of each wagon in the nightly campfire circle was pre-determined by the wagon captain.
Obviously the wagon master was a sort of mayor, keeping order and assigning order.
He was not always well though of after the journey came to an end, but he was usually elected prior to the trip by popular vote.
We take our place in line and the wagon train set out - wheels slowly creaking along and by the end of the day we will have covered between 10 and 15 miles. A good first day.
Next time we make our first stop along the trail...
The wagon captain was responsible for most decisions on the trail - from when the started, when the train stopped, and where it stopped. His was the choice of where the train would set up camp for the night. His was the consequences for disputes and "trouble" between the members of his train.
To that end, each wagon captain assigned each family wagon a specific spot in the order of the train, and saw to it that each time the wagon train stopped and started the order was kept as assigned. Even the placement of each wagon in the nightly campfire circle was pre-determined by the wagon captain.
Obviously the wagon master was a sort of mayor, keeping order and assigning order.
He was not always well though of after the journey came to an end, but he was usually elected prior to the trip by popular vote.
We take our place in line and the wagon train set out - wheels slowly creaking along and by the end of the day we will have covered between 10 and 15 miles. A good first day.
Next time we make our first stop along the trail...
Friday, July 17, 2009
Take A Peek Inside!
Almost ready to start our journey but today we are packing the wagon...We have many possessions that we must choose whether it is benefical to take or leave behind. We will discover along the way that some things we have chosen to take will have to be left alongside the trail as well.
Attached to the side of the wagon is our double barreled, precision lock shotgun, always handy in reach for hunting or protecting the family.
Bedding Supplies - blankets, feather beds, ground cloths, pillows, tents, poles, stakes and ropes
Cooking Utensils - dutch oven, kettle, skillet, coffee grinder, coffeepot, teapot, butcher knife, ladle, tin tableware, water keg, matches, spider (3 legged skillet)
Food - flour, bacon, coffee, baking soda, corn meal, hardtack, dried beans, dried beef, dried fruit, molasses, vinegar, pepper, eggs, salt, sugar, rice, tea.
Weapons - rifle, pistol, knife, hatchet, gunpowder, lead, bullet mold, powder horn, bullet pouch, holster
Clothing - wool sack coats, rubber coats, cotton dresses, wool pantaloons, buckskin pants, duck trousers, cotton shirts, flannel shirts, cotton socks, brogans, boots, felt hat, palm leaf sun hat, green goggles, sunbonnet
Tools - set of augers, gimlet, ax, hammer, hoe, plow, shovel, spade, whetstone, oxbows, axiles, kingbolts, linchpins, oxshoes, spokes, wagon tongue, heavy ropes, chains.
Medical and Handy Supplies - surgical instruments, liniments, bandages, campstoolm chamber pot, washbowl, lanterns, candle molds, tallow, spyglasses, scissors, needles, pins and thread.
Luxury Items - canned food, plant cuttings, schoolbooks, musical instruments, dolls, family albums, jewelry, china, silverware, fine linens, iron stove, furniture, clocks.
How can all of this fit in a 10 feet by 4 foot wagon bed??
Attached to the side of the wagon is our double barreled, precision lock shotgun, always handy in reach for hunting or protecting the family.
Bedding Supplies - blankets, feather beds, ground cloths, pillows, tents, poles, stakes and ropes
Cooking Utensils - dutch oven, kettle, skillet, coffee grinder, coffeepot, teapot, butcher knife, ladle, tin tableware, water keg, matches, spider (3 legged skillet)
Food - flour, bacon, coffee, baking soda, corn meal, hardtack, dried beans, dried beef, dried fruit, molasses, vinegar, pepper, eggs, salt, sugar, rice, tea.
Weapons - rifle, pistol, knife, hatchet, gunpowder, lead, bullet mold, powder horn, bullet pouch, holster
Clothing - wool sack coats, rubber coats, cotton dresses, wool pantaloons, buckskin pants, duck trousers, cotton shirts, flannel shirts, cotton socks, brogans, boots, felt hat, palm leaf sun hat, green goggles, sunbonnet
Tools - set of augers, gimlet, ax, hammer, hoe, plow, shovel, spade, whetstone, oxbows, axiles, kingbolts, linchpins, oxshoes, spokes, wagon tongue, heavy ropes, chains.
Medical and Handy Supplies - surgical instruments, liniments, bandages, campstoolm chamber pot, washbowl, lanterns, candle molds, tallow, spyglasses, scissors, needles, pins and thread.
Luxury Items - canned food, plant cuttings, schoolbooks, musical instruments, dolls, family albums, jewelry, china, silverware, fine linens, iron stove, furniture, clocks.
How can all of this fit in a 10 feet by 4 foot wagon bed??
Thursday, July 16, 2009
The 2nd Most Important Decision
Now that we have chosen our wagon, we have another important choice to make...what is going to pull it?
As stated before our finances will not allow us the expense of horses to ride or to pull our wagon, so we must decide between mules and oxen. Either choice has it drawbacks...
Mules are hard to break (hence the saying "stubborn as a mule!), and we could lose our lives trying to break them in order to make the trip, but if we can get them broken, they would be sure-footed, smart and quick moving - as well as durable.
Oxen on the other hand, can pull a heavier load, will eat anything, and would not "run away" from camp in the dark of night. They were also cheaper at $50 a piece whereas a mule was $90 a piece. Oxen were less often stolen by Indians too.
But oxen hooves were not made for moutain and steep terrian travel and they were slow! One settler quoted as saying they don't "walk, they plod", so we would have to add considerable time to our journey if we chose oxen.
We need a minimum of two teams of 2 animals a piece (this is where our money is going) because with the shared load of another team, our teams will last the entire journey.
Which one should we choose? Mule or oxen?
As stated before our finances will not allow us the expense of horses to ride or to pull our wagon, so we must decide between mules and oxen. Either choice has it drawbacks...
Mules are hard to break (hence the saying "stubborn as a mule!), and we could lose our lives trying to break them in order to make the trip, but if we can get them broken, they would be sure-footed, smart and quick moving - as well as durable.
Oxen on the other hand, can pull a heavier load, will eat anything, and would not "run away" from camp in the dark of night. They were also cheaper at $50 a piece whereas a mule was $90 a piece. Oxen were less often stolen by Indians too.
But oxen hooves were not made for moutain and steep terrian travel and they were slow! One settler quoted as saying they don't "walk, they plod", so we would have to add considerable time to our journey if we chose oxen.
We need a minimum of two teams of 2 animals a piece (this is where our money is going) because with the shared load of another team, our teams will last the entire journey.
Which one should we choose? Mule or oxen?
The Conestoga Wagon
Before we take off on our westward adventure, we need to make some important choices - the first being our wagon, our means of transportation. If we were wealthy enough, we could ride horses and just take a wagon for our supplies, but since we are of average means, we will use our wagon for both transportation and storage. Since we are budget minded, we will not be purchasing a new wagon at a cost of $60 to $90, but will be using our own farm wagon which we will modify to make the trip.
All Conestoga Wagons, aka Prairie Schooners, had several common features, whether purchased new or adapted from common farm wagons.
1. It has to be light enough to be able to be pulled by our team.
2. It has to be strong enough to make the trip at all under wilderness conditions and to carry up to 2500 pounds. (Most wagons are made of hardwoods - maple, hickory or oak for that purpose.)
3. It has to have a canvas or cotton covering, waterproofed with linseed oil that will protect us from the weather and afford us a bit of privacy on our long journey by pulling the drawstrings at each end. We will keep the end open during the day to allow for air circulation. The canvas is pulled over and supported by hickory bows shaped in arcs over the wagon. Our women have added extra storage by sewing pockets into the insides of the canvas~
4. The wagon itself will means a meer 10 to 12 feet long and just 4 feet wide.
5. Iron was used only for certain parts like the axles because of the added weight of iron.
Some things which we will discover on the way about our means of transport will not endear us - since there are no springs on the wagon, the ride will be a rough and uncomfortable journey. The wagon, due to it large wheels has limited maneuverability and the wooden wheels were not so good on the long haul as on the farm. We will have to replace them along the way, even sacrificing a piece of furniture in order to continue our journey.
Add to that the fact that with all our household goods inside, there won't be much room for people. Most of us will walk, with the exception of the small children, the sick or pregnant women. We can not afford the luxury of horses to ride.
Next time we will pack our wagon before we head out for the west...
All Conestoga Wagons, aka Prairie Schooners, had several common features, whether purchased new or adapted from common farm wagons.
1. It has to be light enough to be able to be pulled by our team.
2. It has to be strong enough to make the trip at all under wilderness conditions and to carry up to 2500 pounds. (Most wagons are made of hardwoods - maple, hickory or oak for that purpose.)
3. It has to have a canvas or cotton covering, waterproofed with linseed oil that will protect us from the weather and afford us a bit of privacy on our long journey by pulling the drawstrings at each end. We will keep the end open during the day to allow for air circulation. The canvas is pulled over and supported by hickory bows shaped in arcs over the wagon. Our women have added extra storage by sewing pockets into the insides of the canvas~
4. The wagon itself will means a meer 10 to 12 feet long and just 4 feet wide.
5. Iron was used only for certain parts like the axles because of the added weight of iron.
Some things which we will discover on the way about our means of transport will not endear us - since there are no springs on the wagon, the ride will be a rough and uncomfortable journey. The wagon, due to it large wheels has limited maneuverability and the wooden wheels were not so good on the long haul as on the farm. We will have to replace them along the way, even sacrificing a piece of furniture in order to continue our journey.
Add to that the fact that with all our household goods inside, there won't be much room for people. Most of us will walk, with the exception of the small children, the sick or pregnant women. We can not afford the luxury of horses to ride.
Next time we will pack our wagon before we head out for the west...
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Moving the Blog
Working on moving the blog to Blogger - my server is down again today. Hopefully we won't lose all the posts made to this blog in the last two months.
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