This picture shows the Oregon Trail, the path that pioneers took in the 19th century to start new lives in Oregon Country. They had to abandon their homes, possessions, and sometimes family members to make this journey, but for most it was worth it.
Oregon Trail
How did the Oregon Trail transform our nation?
Oregon, or basically the Northwest section of present day USA, was a very popular area back in 1819. It was claimed by four countries; Russia, Spain, Great Britain, and, of course, the US. Spain and Russia dropped out of their claim on Oregon when Spain purchased Florida and Russia purchased the area of land now known as Alaska. No one had ever been over into this territory except Lewis and Clark, and people had heard wonderful stories about Oregon. Then in 1824, Jedidiah Smith found an easier way through the Rockies called the South Pass. Pioneers could not use the same passage Lewis and Clark used, because they all had wagons, called Conestogas, and all of their belongings and livestock. And so Oregon Fever began.
The first people to travel the Oregon Trail were missionaries, who saw the land as fertile, and great for farming. When they sent letters back to friends and family, they created propaganda, and over exaggerated about the land's qualities. In 1843 about 1,000 pioneers packed up everything they needed to start a new life in Oregon, and headed off in covered wagons. The next year, twice that many went. That year, 1844, James Polk won the election, and had promised Americans that he would make sure the US claimed all of Oregon. Things did not go as planned though, and he had to compromise; he agreed to a treaty with Great Britain that divided Oregon in half, at what is now the border between the US and Canada.
The first people to travel the Oregon Trail were missionaries, who saw the land as fertile, and great for farming. When they sent letters back to friends and family, they created propaganda, and over exaggerated about the land's qualities. In 1843 about 1,000 pioneers packed up everything they needed to start a new life in Oregon, and headed off in covered wagons. The next year, twice that many went. That year, 1844, James Polk won the election, and had promised Americans that he would make sure the US claimed all of Oregon. Things did not go as planned though, and he had to compromise; he agreed to a treaty with Great Britain that divided Oregon in half, at what is now the border between the US and Canada.
One woman who traveled on the Oregon Trail shared her experience; her name is Sara Byrd. She arrived in Oregon from Iowa, to her, "I-O-WAY" in 1848. She was a small child and did not remember much, but she still recalled a lot of what it was like to travel along that trail. According to Sara, pioneers camped at night in a circle of connected wagons, with a guard on post and the livestock nearby. They cooked over open fires, and most times ate buffalo chips, because there were many buffaloes in that area. One time she even experienced a buffalo stampede that literally shook the ground.
More information on Sara Byrd and her journey: http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/expref/oregtral/pionlife.html