On the Road Again

 

We are on the road again - well, the trail again.  The trip west, and the communities settled there were unique in the things they left behind.  Unlike their ancestors back east, the first thing they left behind was the ritual of burial in a churchyard cemetery.  Burial "according to the custom of the Prairies" was quick.  No funeral clothes, no casket and no tombstone.  The grave was filled with stones as a safeguard against wild animals.  The livestock were allowed to roam over the grave to trample it, then the wagons were driven across it to hide clues that the Indians might use to dig up the body.  Along the trail, there was left no evidence that anyone had died or had been buried there.

Secondly, any ancestoral bonds that remained were replaced by their latest companions and their surnames were lost.  They received names or nicknames that identified their personal characteristics, a way of speaking or even the food they ate.  You might have been known simply as "Honest Whiskey Joe", "Truthful James" or "The American-Pie Eater."  Women were known as the "wife of" or by their first names.  Surnames were rarely used once settled in the West.

Thirdly, the westward traveler learned to give up possessions.  James Abbey, who left New Albany, Indiana for California in 1849, recorded the property toll of a trip west by covered wagon...

    "August 2nd - started out at four in the morning, at six stopped to cook breakfast and lighten our wagons by throwing away heavier portions of our clothing and such articles we can spare.  We pushed forward today determined to reach the desert, but our cattle showed signs of exhaustion, We had to stop.  Being completely out of water, we bought two gallons from a trader for $1 a gallon.

    The desert is strewn with dead cattle, horses, mules and oxen.  In the distance of 15 miles I counted 350 dead horses, 280 oxen, and 120 mules.  We saw vast amounts of valuable property abandoned - leather trunks, clothing, wagons...at least a value of over $100,000 in just 20 miles.  In the last 10 miles I have counted 362 wagons left behind at a value of $120 a piece back home.  In order to save animals and reach the end of the journey, the loss of personal goods is a matter of small importance."

 The settlers gave up costly things to come west - traditions, people, names, and possessions.  All left behind to reach the dream of land in the West.

Next time... Not left behind - the women

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Today in Pioneer History: "On August 10, 1846, the Smithsonian Institute was created.  After a decade debate on how to best spend a bequest left to America from an obscure English scientist, President James Polk signs the Smithsonian Act into law.  James Smithsonian left in his will that the whole of his estate would go to the United States of America to found at Washington an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.  Thank you Mr. Smithsonian!"

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.