Traveling West
People moved to the west because in the east there was *no room for farming* *economic depression* *and there was no space for farming and agriculture*
People also moved west because of the gold rush, in search of religious freedom, privacy, cotton in Texas, and also to trap furs.
Also, Americans thought of it as free land to settle into.
Some trails were Oregon trail, Mormon Trail, Old spanish trail
People also moved west because of the gold rush, in search of religious freedom, privacy, cotton in Texas, and also to trap furs.
Also, Americans thought of it as free land to settle into.
Some trails were Oregon trail, Mormon Trail, Old spanish trail
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The roles of women as pioneer were to serve as wives,mothers, and housekeepers. These pioneer women had it impossible to be able to escape. At this job they were to work with men as partners to bring food to their youngsters. Women's pioneer life was not so dangerous and hard. Living as a pioneer brought domination qualities of each individual. As a result women learned to become independent of themselves at an early age it also taught them to face many consequences life brought. The pioneer women had the most important part on the frontier, and that is why we believe that the strongest people were in fact the pioneer women. The role of the woman was wife, mother, helpmate of her husband and the homemaker. It would stay this way for many years to come.
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A mountain man is a trapper and explorer who lives in the wilderness. They were most common in the North American Rocky Mountains from about 1810 through the 1880s (with a peak population in the early 1840s). They were instrumental in opening up the various Emigrant Trails (widened into wagon roads) allowing Americans in the east to settle the new territories of the far west by organized wagon trains traveling over roads explored and in many cases, physically improved by the mountain men and the big fur companies originally to serve the mule train based inland fur trade.
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The longest and most famous trails followed by American pioneers in the 1800′s were the Mormon Trail, the Oregon Trail, the California Trail and the Pony Express Trail. These and others in other parts of the country have been designated by Congress as National Historic Trails. They have been the subjects of much research to document their exact routes. Americans young and old are captivated by the stories of pioneer adventures. Much of historic fact, and much of romance has been written. These stories are worthy of study by families who treasure their past.
On some portions of their routes, the four western trails are very close together. But each follows its own unique path over long stretches. The United States National Park Service is preparing a series of Auto Tour Route Interpretive Guides for each state through which these four trails pass.
Jedediah Smith (1799-1831)
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"I wanted to be the first to view a country on which the eyes of a white man had never gazed and to follow the course of rivers that run through a new land."At the age of 22, Jedediah Smith signed on with the expedition of General William Ashley to travel to the Upper Missouri and trap beaver. A year later, he led another of Ashley's groups deep into the central Rockies where he rediscovered the forgotten South Pass, the key to the settlement of Oregon and California.
The wandering spirit was planted deep in the heart of Jedediah Smith. Born January 6th, 1799, Smith's family moved several times in an effort to stay on the edge of the growing frontier boundary. According to family tradition, young Jedediah read Biddle's 1814 edition of the Lewis and Clark journals and was set on living a life in the wilderness.
In his lifetime, Smith would travel more extensively in unknown territory than any other single mountain man. He traveled in the central Rockies, then down to Arizona, across the Mojave Desert and into California making him the first American to travel overland to California through the southwest. In a most amazing journey, he also came back from California across the desert of the Great Basin. The heat became so unbearable Smith and his men had to bury themselves in sand to keep cool.
James Pierson Beckwourth (April 6,1798-October 29, 1866)
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James Pierson Beckwourth was an American mountain man,fur trader, and explorer. An African American born into slavery in Virginia, he later moved to the American West. As a fur trapper, he lived with the Crow for years. He is credited with the discovery of Beckwourth Pass through the Sierra Nevada (U.S.) Mountains between present day Reno, Nevada and Portola, California during the California Gold Rush years, and improved the Beckwourth Trail, which thousands of settlers followed to central California.
He narrated his life story to Thomas D. Bonner, an itinerant justice of the peace. The book was published in New York and London in 1856 as The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout and Pioneer, and Chief of the Crow Nation of Indians. A translation was published in France in 1860.
Early historians of the Old West originally considered the book little more than campfire lore. It has since been reassessed as a valuable source of social history, especially for life among the Crow, although not all its details are reliable or accurate. The civil rights movementof the 1960s celebrated Beckwourth as an early African-American pioneer. He has since been featured as a role model in children's literature and textbooks.
He narrated his life story to Thomas D. Bonner, an itinerant justice of the peace. The book was published in New York and London in 1856 as The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout and Pioneer, and Chief of the Crow Nation of Indians. A translation was published in France in 1860.
Early historians of the Old West originally considered the book little more than campfire lore. It has since been reassessed as a valuable source of social history, especially for life among the Crow, although not all its details are reliable or accurate. The civil rights movementof the 1960s celebrated Beckwourth as an early African-American pioneer. He has since been featured as a role model in children's literature and textbooks.
Brigham Young (1801-1877)
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Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah Territory, United States. Young also led the foundings of the precursors to the University of Utah and Brigham Young University.
Young had a variety of nicknames, among the most popular being "American Moses," (alternatively the "Modern Moses" or the "Mormon Moses") because, like the biblical figure, Young led his followers, the Mormon pioneers, in an exodus through a desert, to what they saw as a promised land. Young was dubbed by his followers the "Lion of the Lord" for his bold personality, and was also commonly called "Brother Brigham" by Latter-day Saints. Young was a polygamist and was involved in controversies regarding black people and the Priesthood, the Utah War, and the Mountain Meadows massacre.
Young had a variety of nicknames, among the most popular being "American Moses," (alternatively the "Modern Moses" or the "Mormon Moses") because, like the biblical figure, Young led his followers, the Mormon pioneers, in an exodus through a desert, to what they saw as a promised land. Young was dubbed by his followers the "Lion of the Lord" for his bold personality, and was also commonly called "Brother Brigham" by Latter-day Saints. Young was a polygamist and was involved in controversies regarding black people and the Priesthood, the Utah War, and the Mountain Meadows massacre.
Jessie Ann Benton (1824-1902)
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Notably remembered for being the daughter of Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton and the wife of military officer, explorer and politician, John C. Frémont, she wrote many stories that were printed in popular magazines of the time as well as several books of historical value. Her writings, which helped support her family during times of financial difficulty, were memoirs of her husband's, and her own, time in the American West—back when the West was an exotic frontier.
A great supporter of her husband, who was one of the first two Senators of the new U.S. state of California and a Governor of the Territory of Arizona, she was outspoken on political issues and a determined opponent of slavery, which was excluded from the formation of California. By maintaining a high level of political involvement during a period that was extremely unfavorable for women, Jessie Benton Frémont proved herself to be years ahead of her time.
A great supporter of her husband, who was one of the first two Senators of the new U.S. state of California and a Governor of the Territory of Arizona, she was outspoken on political issues and a determined opponent of slavery, which was excluded from the formation of California. By maintaining a high level of political involvement during a period that was extremely unfavorable for women, Jessie Benton Frémont proved herself to be years ahead of her time.