between 1840 and 1860 roughly 400
000 people traveled the 2 000 mile path
of the oregon trail
encountering sickness death exhaustion
and other hardships the road was long
and arduous but for these determined
pioneers
life continued on and even settled into
a routine
here's what life was really like on the
oregon trail
pioneers who journeyed on the oregon
trail used wagons
pioneer wagons had to be light but
durable enough to take a beating
most settlers used converted farm wagons
while others relied on ones
specially made for the oregon trail a
common misconception is that overlanders
used conestoga wagons
they did not those famous wagons were
used for freight on other trails
they were much too heavy for crossing
the prairies the wagons that pioneers
used were often
simple farm wagons fitted with covers
made of canvas
they weighed up to 1400 pounds and
hauled nearly a ton and a half
because of the strain trail wagons were
usually mostly made of hardwoods such as
oak hickory and maple
the wagon bed at only four feet by ten
feet was crammed with supplies
if the wagon broke down on the trail it
could be an arduous if not impossible
process to fix it
the tires axles and the connections in
the undercarriage took the most of use
these parts were reinforced by iron the
whole ensemble was covered up with white
canvas held by hoops which led some to
call the pioneer wagons prairie
schooners
prairie schooners made for an
uncomfortable ride there were no springs
or suspension systems to cushion the
jolts of 2 000 miles of rocky wilderness
most overlanders therefore walked not
just because of the lack of comfort but
because the wagon was full of stuff
because the oregon trail was so long and
so full of unknown hazards
pioneers organized themselves into
larger caravans called wagon trains
this created a mobile community that had
the virtue of protection in numbers
it's best not to get too far from the
train miss
it's like the ocean out here the
pioneers were also well structured
wagon trains operated through written
agreements that dictated rules of who
does what and
designated officers to the caravan such
contracts were used until about 1850
when they were replaced by more informal
agreements
all these wagons had a direct impact on
the environment
to this day ruts from oregon trail wagon
trains are still visible
in fact the trail was modified over time
as pioneers discovered shortcuts
overlanders even carved graffiti into
stone with one prominent example being
independence rock in casper wyoming
which was dubbed one of the
registers of the desert oregon trail
pioneers needed a considerable amount of
equipment in order to survive
the months-long journey not only did
they need basic tools to repair broken
wagons
but also rifles to hunt game bedding
tents
and cooking equipment pioneers usually
only had
up to three sets of clothes made of wool
or linen and that had to last through
the entire journey
there are actually few surviving
examples of oregon trail dress
since the clothes were so worn out by
the time the pioneers reached the
trail's end
they were either recycled or discarded
also discarded were those items that
were found to be impractically too heavy
for the trail
as the animals hauling the wagons grew
increasingly tired
the pioneers were forced to get rid of
all things not essential
the trail was strewn with furniture
trunks beds
cast iron stoves and other personal
belongings
what was most essential for the pioneers
was to have a large stockpile of food
when you walk for two thousand miles you
are going to burn lots of calories
a hiker without a pack walking four
miles per hour on level ground path
burns about 106 calories per mile
in the best of circumstances it may be
assumed that an oregon trail pioneer
walking 15 miles a day
was expending about 1600 calories a day
at minimum
this is a very low estimate since a
pioneer would be dealing with rugged
terrain
to fuel their bodies the settlers needed
lots of food
the oregon trail pioneers didn't concern
themselves with eating healthy
instead they focused on eating food that
could last for months
it's estimated that a family of four
required 400 pounds of bacon
600 pounds of flour 100 pounds of sugar
and 200 pounds of lard they also often
brought dried peaches and apples as well
as sacks of rice
to wash it all down they carried 60
pounds of coffee and 4 pounds of tea
in addition they also frequently carried
cornmeal
butter vinegar salt and baking soda from
the larder
and of course there was whiskey or
brandy for medicinal purposes
on the journey overlanders would
supplement their meals through hunting
and fishing
a larger family often required more food
which could exceed the recommended
carrying load of the wagon
some families had to bring two wagons
with them while others brought their own
livestock
like cows for dairy products one of the
most important choices an
oregon trail pioneer had to make was
what animals to bring
and potentially the most critical was
selecting which draft animals to haul
the wagon
this choice boiled down to either mules
or oxen
oxen were sometimes preferred since they
were able to live off of the wild
pasturage
some overlanders believed that these
animals would not wander off
and native americans were uninterested
in them so there was no threat of theft
the same was true for mules however
while mules had the virtue of speed
they were harder to handle than oxen
oxen were also
cheaper than mules overlanders often
waited until they reached a departure
point to purchase their supplies and
draft animals
so that they were in the freshest
condition it was also cheaper to buy the
animals and say
independence rather than back east many
of these animals
never finished the journey after a few
weeks of hauling heavily laid in wagons
the animals would flag and many would
either refuse to go any further
simply collapse and die the pioneers
would see dead animals on the trail
every day
sometimes the bodies could be eaten or
sometimes the meat was sold
when animals did perish the immigrants
often were forced to buy replacements
for stiff prices
at the far-flung trading posts and forts
along the trail
one of the great myths of the oregon
trail that is finally being thoroughly
debunked
is that native american tribes were a
menace to the pioneers
the truth is that the relationship
between the immigrants and native
americans were more complex
the pioneers were passing through the
lands of a number of tribes with complex
societies
including the sioux cheyenne comanche
and arapaho the pioneers were generally
filled with paranoia
about native american attacks and it's
that paranoia that is carried down in
popular memory
mr harris for those who are wild indians
oh no richard
they were friendly the native americans
generally viewed the travelers as
potential trading partners
they would supply the settlers with food
in exchange for tools
firearms and small trade goods like
mirrors and metal tools
overlanders hired native americans to
herd their livestock
assisting crossing rivers and help guide
them along the trail
rinker buck author of the oregon trail
a new american journey in an interview
with national geographic stated
they bartered with immigrants for
trinkets supplies and horses
they were very helpful at first in fact
the ingenuity of the indians in crossing
the rivers was a crucial aspect of the
oregon trail
you had to ford numerous rivers and the
shoshones
pawnees and sue were extremely adept at
helping the pioneers make these forts
as time went by the relations between
the pioneers and native americans grew
worse
the immigrants never got over their
paranoia and frequently shot at peaceful
native americans
rinker buck noted to national geographic
for about 20 years
it was very friendly as opposed to the
impression that you get from hollywood
movies
but when the indians realized the white
man was there to slaughter the buffalo
their protein source
and we did in hellacious numbers they
turned hostile
and declared war most of the attacks on
the oregon trail
occurred near the snake and humboldt
rivers or near the southern end of the
willamette valley
to the applegate trail still casualties
were lower than you may have thought
john unruh calculates in his book the
planes across
that between 1840 and 1860 362 pioneers
were killed by native american attack
and 426 native americans were killed by
pioneers
with most of the deaths occurring in the
latter years keep in mind that native
americans were far more impacted by the
diseases brought by settlers
and their impact on the environment even
though the threat
of violence from native americans was
exceedingly minimal
the oregon trail was still highly
dangerous the mortality rate of the
pioneers may have been
up to 10 the causes of death were
numerous
pioneers brought firearms with them for
hunting and sport
and accidents through inept handling
frequently occurred
other major accidents included drownings
and being run over by wagon wheels
or by the animals they brought harsh
weather also played a factor
which included lightning strikes yet the
biggest killer was disease
pioneers suffered from measles rocky
mountain spotted fever
and dysentery these diseases were
dwarfed however by cholera which was the
chief
killer on the oregon trail cholera which
is caused by bacteria in tainted water
causes abdominal pain diarrhea vomiting
and death
a person may die within 12 hours of the
onset of symptoms
yesterday morning
he was fine
it was very quick the worst outbreaks of
cholera
occurred between 1849 and 1852.
overlander cecilia adams wrote in her
1852 diary
passed seven new made graves one had
four bodies in it
cholera a man died with the cholera
ahead of us
estimates vary but disease alone may
have claimed up to thirty
000 pioneers children shared the dangers
of the oregon trail with their parents
some estimates say that as many as 40
000 of the pioneers were children
children on the trail took part in the
same chores and duties as adults
one family with nine children only
permitted the three and five-year-olds
to escape work
such chores may be to help bake food
assist driving the wagon
or minding any of the loose livestock
the settlers brought
there was no formal schooling on the
trail except for what the family could
tutor them
children brought with them vivaciousness
which enlivened the camp
at night they played games like leapfrog
and london bridge
as well as song and dance one such
account states that a boy named robert
got his hands on a pair of spanish spurs
he put these on and then attempted to
ride one of the tempestuous mules
one of the party reported quote he looks
so ridiculous flying over the mule's
head
we heard no more of spanish furs as that
story illustrates
children often were seriously injured
with some dying in accidents on the
oregon trail
such cases included a wagon wheel
rolling over a child
breaking limbs or outright killing them
an 1849
diary entry records a lady and four
children were drowned through the
carelessness of those in charge of the
ferry
as the emigrants crossed north america
each wagon train fell into a routine
a typical day began at 4am to the sound
of a bugle or rifle to wake up the
caravan
at 5 am the livestock that was let loose
to graze overnight were rounded up
after which breakfast was served by 7 am
the evening camp was packed
and wagons hitched at a sound of a
trumpet and a call
wagon's hoe the caravan proceeded with
men riding ahead on horses to scout the
path
at noon the wagon train halted for a
rest in a meal
at one the caravan was on the way again
generally proceeding until about 5 pm
when camp was made by circling the
wagons as a corral
followed by suppers daily tasks and some
leisure time
typically the camp turned in at 8 pm and
a guard was set who was relieved at
midnight the process would then repeat
itself at 4am
with the exception of some wagon trains
that halted for extended periods or for
the entire day on sundays for
religious observances with a journey so
long
and monotonous oregon trail pioneers
adopted routines
and even a semblance of what settled
life was like there were a number of
marriages and births on the trail
most weddings occurred at the
debarcation points in the east
romance also bloomed on the road though
and couples married
the newlywed couples were often
subjected to a joking custom
supposed to prevent the consummation of
the marriage which might entail banging
pots and pans and dragging the newlyweds
out into a drunken mock parade
with a journey so long though tempers
sometimes frayed
according to rank or buck as pioneers
moved further
fights would break out especially during
river crossings in which people's
livestock and possessions would get
mixed up
buck said people would pull their guns
out and start shooting each other
i feel that the oregon trail years and
the stresses and the tensions of the
crossing
introduced this kind of violence into
the american ethos
perhaps the pioneer lauren hastings
summed up the oregon trail experience
best
when she later told the oregon pioneer
association
i look back upon the long dangerous and
precarious
emigrant road with a degree of romance
and pleasure but to others
it is the graveyard of their friends
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