Trials on the Trail

From prosperous New Englanders and Midwestern families with sturdy well-provisioned wagons and ample livestock, to penniless frontiersmen who joined wagon trains as hired hands, to the young and restless who could not resist the lure of a far away adventure - the early Oregon trail blazers had much in common.  They were touchy and quarrelsome for one thing, had little knowledge  of wilderness survival or the hardships that lay before them.  They did have a sturdy determination to survive the brutal tests of the Oregon Trail.

They shared a common enemy - time.  Their traveling season was short and one week difference could be the death of them.  Before the prairie grasses were up in early May, it was time to leave Missouri where they had waited all the winter through.  Their livestock would not survive if they left later in the Spring.  The westernmost mountains had be to crossed before mid-October when the snows came.  They had five months to cover 2,000 miles at an average of 15-20 miles a day if the skies were sunny and clear and the rivers were not swollen from rains. 

The opening stretch to the Platte River through present day Kansas to Nebraska was usually an "easy" journey.  Following that, they went through what pioneers called "the mile wide and an inch deep" section along the Platte River.  The land got gradually higher, more broken and more arid. 

They marked their journey with landmarks like Chimney Rock and Scott's Bluff on the way to Laramie where fresh supplies awaited them.  Independence Rock was the marker where the route left the Platte River and traveled across the Rockies at the South Pass.  Following the main route to Fort Bridger and then northwest to Fort Hall brought them to the Snake River Canyon at Farewell Bend.  Before crossing the Blue Mountains, the Grand Valley was a welcome respite before the mighty Columbia River awaited them.  Through the Willamette Valley the route diverged.  Here cautious travelers took jolting trails over the Cascades, or if they were risk takers, they built makeshift rafts and plunged down the Columbia.  Which would you have been?

Next time - Hazards Galore
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Today in Pioneer History:  "On February 19, 1792, George Washington signs the United States Postal Act creating the United State Post Office.

2400 Miles to Paradise

From the Missouri River, the Overland journey was 2400 miles.  The first stops were at Fort Kearney and Scott's Bluff in Nebraska Territory.  Here the pioneers stopped for water, rest, and provisions.  By the time they reached Fort Laramie they had traveled 635 miles.

Summer days were hot, and nights were cool as the trail climbed to higher elevations.  Add in the hailstorms as all dairies of the journey seem to mention, "fierce pelting of ice the size of snowballs" and the weather must have been one of the most unpredictable parts of the journey.

The trail went through Sioux territory and although expected, the travelers probably met no Indians at all except those wishing to barter or be paid to guide the settlers across the rivers. 

The next stop on the trail was Independence Rock where countless mountain men and trappers had inscribed their names.  The pioneer continued the custom, carving or painting or marking their names in axle grease.  Many left letters, notices and directions for future travelers.  Leaving Independence Rock, the trail led by easy grades up 8000 feet of the Rocky Mountains to the South Pass where the westward flow of river waters told them they had crossed the Pacific water shed.

From South Pass to Fort Bridger to Fort Hall , the second major leg of the journey covered 535 miles.  Total miles traveled so far:  1170 miles.

Next time - the pioneer separate for different destinations....
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This Day in Pioneer History:  On June 16, 1890,  Alaskan explorer Fred Fickett retires from the military to become a civilian lawyer after he contracted aliments during an arduous exploration of the Alaskan frontier.

Rules of the Road

In June 1840 Joseph Walker was carving his name into Independence Rock, the first of 1000s of settlers who

would do the same, making the natural tower the "Gateway to the Rockies".  Later that month he met up with some of his brother, Joe's men who led them further into Oregon, being the first to go beyond Boise and entering the Columbia Plateau.

Somewhere in that region they ran into Indian trouble because the Walker children remembered their mothers leading them to the river to hide.  Joel then composed a formal set of safety rules for settlers traveling to the Northwest:

1.  Be careful never to camp in timber.
2.  Be careful never to let Indians come among you.
3.  Never let Indians have any ammunition on any account.
4.  Keep careful watch day and night.
5.  Never neglect camp - guard at any account.
6.  Never fire a gun after crossing the Umqua Mountains until you cross the Siskiew Mountain perhaps a 5 day travel..
7.  Keep  yourselves as close as possible  in traveling through the brush.
8.  Never scatter after game or make any division.
9.  Keep your guns in the best firing conditions.

Next time...19th Century Pharisees

Pioneer Holidays

It's Holiday Season so let's look at the most important holidays in a pioneer's life...

Independence Day - pioneers dedicated Independence Rock a huge piece of granite rock in Wyoming.  128 feet tall, 700 feet wide and 1900 feet long.  Pioneers would carve their names and dates on the rock as they passed through to the Pacific Coast.  Independence Rock became the point on the trail of "keeping on schedule".  If the party arrived at Independence Rock by a certain date, it was certain that they would make it through the mountains before winter set in.

For Independence Day, special food was purchased along the trail at Fort Laramie including pies,  lemonade and fresh bread. Flags were sewn from scraps of fabric, dances were held and the name carvings all marked the 4th of July on the pioneer trail.

Fort Laramie was 1/3 of the distance on the Oregon Trail.  A US Army post since 1849, it was the main stop on the way west where pioneers purchased fresh animals (horses, oxen and mules), supplies, and had repairs done.  It was quite expensive and many had to turn back east when they got this far.  Most heavy items were left at Fort Laramie - like stoves and furniture because going over the mountains was difficult enough without extra weight to carry. 

One of the landmarks that told the pioneers they were near Fort Laramie was Chimney Rock which measured 325 feet high from the base.

Weddings - Weddings on the frontier were quite different than ours are today.   Shot guns went off, kettles and pans were banging and the couple's wagon was shaken until late into the night.  This celebration was called a chivaree with fiddles and banjos providing the music. Weddings were anything but quiet, subdued affairs!!

Of course we can see where we get the tying of cans and streamers to the "Just Married" cars today, as well as the music for the reception.  However, today we don't usually shoot off shot guns to announce our weddings :)

Next time we will finish up the Wagon Train and then share some recipes for a Thanksgiving Dinner.