Helena Frye
Many pioneers took boats to go west, travelling down the Mississippi River, by ship to Panama, overland to the Pacific, and then by ship again to San Francisco and Portland. They used two primary types of wagons on wagon trails going west: the Conestoga wagon, which was huge and very heavy, and the Prairie Schooner, which was much smaller.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | 24 September 1853 |
| Route | Down the Mississippi River, by ship to Panama, overland to the Pacific, then another ship to San Francisco, then Portland |
| Transport | Boat, ship |
| Wagon type | Conestoga, Prairie Schooner |
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What You'll Learn
The Oregon Trail
Pioneers usually travelled by wagon, though some also travelled by boat. The two primary types of wagons used on the Oregon Trail were the Conestoga wagon and the Prairie Schooner. The Conestoga wagon was huge and very heavy, weighing as much as six tons when loaded and requiring three pairs of oxen to pull. The Prairie Schooner was much smaller, weighing only two tons when loaded and requiring fewer animals to pull. It could also move faster, covering 20 miles a day compared to the Conestoga's 15.
One of the biggest challenges on the Oregon Trail was finding enough food to last the journey. Pioneers would often have to buy food from other travellers or from people living along the trail. They also had to guard their cattle closely, as they could easily be lost in the timber.
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The California Trail
Pioneers travelled by boat down the Mississippi River, by ship to Panama, overland to the Pacific, and then took another ship to San Francisco. Two primary types of wagons were used on wagon trails going west: the Conestoga wagon and the Prairie Schooner. The Conestoga wagon was huge and very heavy, 28 feet long with wheels five feet tall, and, when loaded, could weigh as much as six tons and took three pairs of oxen to pull. The Prairie Schooner was half the size of the Conestoga, 12-13 feet long, and weighed 1,300 pounds empty and as much as two tons when loaded. It required fewer animals to pull and to feed on the trail and could move faster.
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The Sante Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a famous wagon trail and commercial route from Independence, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was opened by William Becknell, a trader, in 1821 and was used by merchant wagon caravans travelling in parallel columns. It was one of many transportation routes opened by the Indigenous people of North America as well as European trappers and traders in the second half of the 18th century. It was later used extensively by people from the United States in the 19th century after the Louisiana Purchase.
The trail was about 900 miles long and stretched from Franklin, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. It consisted of two distinctly different routes and a number of short variations. The Mountain Route, used by Becknell's 1821 pack train, followed the Arkansas River through Kansas to near present-day Trinidad, Colorado, crossed the mountains through Raton Pass into New Mexico, and then skirted the foothills of the Rocky Mountains until finally arriving at Santa Fe. At the western end, several routes trended southwest to Santa Fe, the shortest being the “Cimarron Cutoff” through the valley of the Cimarron River.
The trail was an important commercial route and played a vital role in the westward expansion of the United States. It was America's first great international commercial highway and for nearly 60 years was one of the nation's great routes of adventure and western expansion. It was used extensively by traders and settlers crossing the southwest of North America. Its major market in Missouri was St. Louis, with its port on the Mississippi River.
The Santa Fe Trail is commemorated today by the National Park Service as the Santa Fe National Historic Trail. A highway route that roughly follows the trail's path, through the entire length of Kansas, the southeast corner of Colorado and northern New Mexico, has been designated to preserve its many physical traces and landmarks that still exist upon the face of the American West.
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The Mormon Trail
From Council Bluffs, Iowa to Fort Bridger in Wyoming, the trail follows much the same route as the Oregon Trail and the California Trail; these trails are collectively known as the Emigrant Trail.
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The Appalachian Trail
The trail passes through 14 states along the East Coast of the United States from Georgia to Maine. The states the trail passes through are Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
The trail was conceived by Benton MacKaye, a forester, in 1921. The first section of the trail was completed in 1923, and the entire trail was completed in 1937. The trail is maintained by a combination of government agencies and nonprofit organisations, including the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, the National Park Service, and various state agencies.
In the 1750s, German pioneers used the Conestoga wagon to travel west on the Appalachian Trail. The Conestoga wagon was named for Conestoga Township in Pennsylvania, where the pioneers first started their journey. The Conestoga wagon was a huge and very heavy wagon, 28 feet long with wheels five feet tall, and, when loaded, could weigh as much as six tons and took three pairs of oxen to pull.
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Frequently asked questions
The Oregon, California, Sante Fe, and Mormon Trails.
The Appalachian Trail.
Rumours of rich farming lands in Oregon, gold in California, and refuge across the country.
The Conestoga wagon.
28 feet long.
