Welcome to our newest addition to the blog - Historical Tidbit Thursdays!
The next few weeks I'm veering off my normal Texas History research trail to dive deep into the Oregon Trail and share my research with you! Hope you enjoy!
As we mentioned in the first post, the first group journey consisted of a 1000 people but only 120 wagons. That means a little over 8 people for every wagon. Each wagon had to be filled with enough food and supplies to last 6 months.
Only very young children, those who couldn't walk or ride, would sit in the wagon. Most walked. They averaged 12 to 15 miles of walking per day.
Children had their use along the journey - collecting firewood or buffalo chips for fires.
The emigrants (as they were called) faced blistering heat, snowstorms, raging rivers, accidents, wild animals, and contagious diseases (like cholera).
But the end of the journey was worth it - each adult male was granted 640 acres.
Source:
The Oregon Trail by Rachel Lynette; ISBN#978-1-4777-0786-9
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