Roads, Canals, and Trails
Led the Way for Western Settlers
Americans who heeded the call to “go west, young man” may have been proceeding with a great sense of adventure. But in most cases, those trekking to the wide-open spaces were following paths that had already been marked.
What traveled from Europe to the Americas?
The Europeans brought technologies, ideas, plants, and animals that were new to America and would transform peoples’ lives:
guns, iron tools, and weapons; Christianity and Roman law; sugarcane and wheat; horses and cattle
. They also carried diseases against which the Indian peoples had no defenses.
How did the settlers get to America?
The initial Pilgrim settlers
sailed to North America in 1620 on the Mayflower
. Upon their arrival, they drew up the Mayflower Compact, by which they bound themselves together as a united community, thus establishing the small Plymouth Colony.
How long did it take settlers to travel west?
The covered wagon made 8 to 20 miles per day depending upon weather, roadway conditions and the health of the travelers. It could take
up to six months or longer
to reach their destination.
Why did settlers travel in groups?
What was the trip like for these individuals and groups? Settlers traveled west because
they wanted to expand their dominion and wanted more freedom
. They believed God told them they were destined to govern the entirety of North American territory.
How did most settlers travel west?
Most settlers traveled
in large parties or “trains” of up to several hundred wagons led by a wagon master
.
Why did settlers travel to Oregon?
Travelers were
inspired by dreams of gold and rich farmlands
, but they were also motivated by difficult economic times in the east and diseases like yellow fever and malaria that were decimating the Midwest around 1837.
Which main route was used by settlers traveling west in the first half of the 1800s?
The Oregon Trail
was a roughly 2,000-mile route from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon, which was used by hundreds of thousands of American pioneers in the mid-1800s to emigrate west. The trail was arduous and snaked through Missouri and present-day Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho and finally into Oregon.
Why did the first European settlers come to America?
European nations came to the Americas
to increase their wealth and broaden their influence over world affairs
. The Spanish were among the first Europeans to explore the New World and the first to settle in what is now the United States.
What happened when European settlers arrived in America?
After European contact,
the native population of the Americas plummeted by an estimated 80%
(from around 50 million in 1492 to eight million in 1650), due in part to Old World diseases carried to the New World, and the conditions that colonization imposed on Indigenous populations, such as forced labor and removal from …
Why did Europeans want to spread Christianity in the Americas?
What were the religious motives for exploration? Them being
for the sake of their economy, religion and glory
. They wanted to improve their economy for instance by acquiring more spices, gold, and better and faster trading routes. Also, they really believed in the need to spread their religion, Christianity.
How did Settlements Begin?
Settlements may include hamlets, villages, towns and cities.
A settlement may have known historical properties such as the date or era in which it was first settled, or first settled by a particular people
.
When did the first settlers arrive in America?
The invasion of the North American continent and its peoples began with the Spanish in
1565
at St. Augustine, Florida, then British in 1587 when the Plymouth Company established a settlement that they dubbed Roanoke in present-day Virginia.
Why did the colonists leave Europe?
Many fled
political and religious persecution
. Others hoped to improve their condition by owning their own land or by participating in the fur trade. Some came as servants.
What time did travelers typically wake up every day on the Oregon Trail?
TRAIL BASICS – A DAY ON THE TRAIL
Pioneers were awakened shortly before daybreak by the sound of a bugle or a shotgun from the guard. After several days on the trail, certain routines were followed:
4:00 am
: A bugler blows a trumpet or a rifle is fired by the night guards to wake up the camp.
How many miles per day do the settlers walk?
Settlers can walk
10 miles
a day for six months straight on the trails to get to Oregon.
What route did settlers take to California?
The California Trail
was an emigrant trail of about 1,600 mi (2,600 km) across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California.
What was a reason for settlers to use the Santa Fe Trail?
The Santa Fe Trail was mainly a trade route but saw its share of emigrants, especially during the California Gold Rush and the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush in Colorado. The trail also became
an important route for stagecoach travel, stagecoach mail delivery and as a mail route for the famed Pony Express
.
How did the early pioneers find their way while traveling west?
They followed a route blazed by fur traders
, which took them west along the Platte River through the Rocky Mountains via the easy South Pass in Wyoming and then northwest to the Columbia River. In the years to come, pioneers came to call the route the Oregon Trail.
What were some reasons settlers needed a trail to the west?
The causes of westward migration were
the strong belief in Manifest Destiny by the American public, opportunities for trade, opportunities for better farming land, opportunities for more land, and the possibility of refuge for the Mormons
.
Why did immigrants travel west?
Gold rush and mining opportunities
(silver in Nevada) The opportunity to work in the cattle industry; to be a “cowboy” Faster travel to the West by railroad; availability of supplies due to the railroad. The opportunity to own land cheaply under the Homestead Act.
Why did pioneers move west for kids?
Pioneers and settlers moved out west for different reasons.
Some of them wanted to claim free land for ranching and farming from the government through the Homestead Act
. Others came to California during the gold rush to strike it rich. Even others, such as the Mormons, moved west to avoid persecution.
Did pioneers travel in groups?
Most groups traveled at a pace of fifteen miles a day
. Few traveled the overland trails alone; most settlers traveled with their families. Large groups of settlers joined together to form “trains.” Groups were usually led by “pilots” who were fur trappers or mountain men that would guide them on the trails.
