Major threats to pioneer life and limb came from accidents, exhaustion, and disease. Crossing rivers were probably the most dangerous thing pioneers did. Swollen rivers could tip over and drown both people and oxen. Such accidents could cause the loss of life and most or all of valuable supplies.
What challenges did the Oregon Trail face?
The hardships of weather, limited diet, and exhaustion made travelers very vulnerable to infectious diseases such as cholera, flu, dysentery, measles, mumps, tuberculosis , and typhoid fever which could spread quickly through an entire wagon camp.
Which was most challenging to travelers on the Oregon Trail in the 1850s?
Which was most challenging to travelers on the Oregon Trail in the 1850s? protect white settlers from attacks by American Indians . ... The law led to conflict with US troops and the loss of territory.
What challenges did travelers on the Oregon Trail face in the mid 1800s?
Some hardships of the journey were death of relatives due to accidents, indian attacks, supply shortages, weather, drowning, disease, terrain, and even medicine. A challenge faced by most travelers was to steady their usage of money along the Oregon Trail .
What made traveling on the Oregon Trail difficult?
A fully loaded wagon could weigh as much as 2,500 pounds. A lot of the time the pioneers walked alongside the wagons. Traveling wasn’t too bad with the wagons on the flat terrain of the prairies, but once the settlers reached the Rocky Mountains, getting the wagons up and down steep trails was very difficult.
What causes the most deaths on the Oregon Trail?
, being crushed by wagon wheels and injuries from handling domestic animals were the biggest accidental killers on the trail. Wagon accidents were the most common. Both children and adults sometimes fell off or under wagons and were crushed under the wheels.
Were there bandits on the Oregon Trail?
Some people would sit on the side of the trail waiting for travelers to come , these people were known as thieves or bandits, therefore helpless travelers had their horses, food, and equipment stolen by thieves who sold the items to the next group of travelers who passed through.
What were the biggest dangers on the Oregon Trail?
Shootings, drownings, being crushed by wagon wheels, and injuries from handling domestic animals were the common killers on the trail. Wagon accidents were the most prevalent. Both children and adults sometimes fell off or under wagons and were crushed under the wheels.
How did they treat cholera on the Oregon Trail?
Emigrants treated the sick with pain medications such as camphor, the oil of the Asian camphor tree, and laudanum , a bitter-tasting, addictive tincture made from opium, but victims often died within a matter of hours— healthy in the morning and dead by noon.
Why did Pioneers go to Oregon?
There were many reasons for the westward movement to Oregon and California. Economic problems upset farmers and businessmen . Free land in Oregon and the possibility of finding gold in California lured them westward. ... Most of the pioneer families either followed the Oregon-California Trail or the Mormon Trail.
How many died on the Oregon Trail?
Combined with accidents, drowning at dangerous river crossings, and other illnesses, at least 20,000 people died along the Oregon Trail. Most trailside graves are unknown, as burials were quick and the wagon trains moved on.
What year did the Oregon Trail end?
The Oregon Trail was a route used by people who traveled to Oregon Country, which is what Oregon was called before it became a state in 1859. The Oregon Trail was the most popular way to get to Oregon Country from about 1843 through the 1870s .
What was the most common way for white settlers to travel the Oregon Trail?
From about 1811-1840 the Oregon Trail was laid down by traders and fur trappers. It could only be traveled by horseback or on foot. By the year 1836, the first of the migrant train of wagons was put together. It started in Independence, Missouri and traveled a cleared trail that reached to Fort Hall, Idaho.
What if you were a child on the Oregon Trail?
As Josephine Jenkins sets off on the Oregon Trail with her mother and younger brothers to reunite with her father out West, she realizes that her beloved diary has gone missing. Meanwhile, her fellow traveler Stephen Byrd is sad to be leaving his friends behind as his family makes the move to Oregon.
How many miles a day on the Oregon Trail?
These vehicles typically included a wooden bed about four feet wide and ten feet long. When pulled by teams of oxen or mules, they could creak their way toward Oregon Country at a pace of around 15 to 20 miles a day .
Can you walk the Oregon Trail?
That’s right, you too can walk the Oregon Trail . Several long segments of trail exist that can be backpacked or day-hiked, and there are dozens of short hikes around historic attractions and interpretive centers.
