PRESENTATION OUTLINE
OREGON TRAIL
- Amanda Kaltwasser
- 2nd hour
The trail started in Independence, Missouri and was a cleared trail all the way to Willimette Valley, Oregon.
People that traveled on the Oregon Trail went from East to West.
Many of the people that traveled this trail during the mid-1800s were poor.
Most of the settlers traveled in farm wagons.
The wagons were four feet by ten feet.
There was normally about 1,000 pounds of food in the wagons.
The wagons were equipped with tool boxes, water containers, and spare axels.
The wagons were covered with cotton and treated with linseed oil to keep the rain out.
These wagons help people move across the world faster and with more goods.
The Oregon Trail was laid down by traders and fur trappers.
It was built between 1811-1840.
It could be traveled by wheeled wagons, horseback, or on foot.
This began an important time of migration from different areas in the United States.
Travelers were motivated by difficult economic times in the east and diseases. For example, some of the diseases were yellow fever and malaria.
Travelers were inspired by dreams of gold and rich farmland.
These two factors are why so many people had a reason to migrate.
The Oregon Trail was a critical transportation route for emigrants traveling from Missouri to Oregon.
Between 1830-1869 the trail was used by an estimated 350,000 settlers.
The trail was about 1,170 miles long.
Use of the trail declined when the first railroad was completed.
Unfortunately traveling was not always safe and many people died while traveling.
