Journal of My Trip On the Oregon

Trail

By Sarah Robbins

Mother told me today that we are going to move to Oregon! We are going to have to leave all my friends and school and everything! We are going to leave in three days! I won't even have much time to say goodbye to my friends. I am only allowed to take a feed bag full of my things. I was also informed that I would have to walk most of the way! According to my mother and father, the wagon is only for the few things and lots of food that we can take with us. We are going down the Oregon Trail and father said that it will take more than six months! He said that we are going because Oregon has pleasant weather and the farming land is good and plentiful.

May 4, 1843

May 6,1843

Here is our old house with our new covered wagon out front. The wagon is fairly small and there is barely enough room for all of our furniture and food.

We left today after a sad goodbye to my friends. Our wagon is full to

the brim and the weather is nice. We traveled to the Missouri River, where we loaded our wagon onto a steamboat and traveled west. We got out in the city of Independence, Missouri. We then began our journey by wagon. We are traveling with what is called a wagon train. They will travel with us throughout the journey. I saw some girls that look about my age and I hope that I can make friends with some of them.

After traveling during the afternoon, if feels like we have traveled forever but father said that we have only gone about 5 miles. The trail is hot and dusty and I am exhausted. For dinner we are going to have bread and dried meat. Mother said that one of my chores is to help make dinner and collect water to drink. For lunch we had hardtack and dried fruit, which I can only hope I won't get tired of. Hopefully the walking will get easier as I get used to the warm temperatures and dry dusty trail.

May 7, 1843

May 10, 1843

This is all of the scenery that we have seen so far since leaving. Just flat dry plains, dust and buffalo. Hopefully we come across some mountains or something soon.

It has now been a week since we left and it has been horrible! I am covered in

dust from head to toe and I am constantly thirsty. It is getting warmer and the dress with the corset I am forced to wear seems to be suffocating me but I do not complain. We sleep in blankets under the stars, where rocks constantly poke my back. I dream of endless dust and buffalo which I guess is what seeing empty plains full of dry dust and millions of buffalo every day will do to you. The walking is torture and my legs hurt constantly. Only occasionally I am allowed to ride in the wagon to take a break from the hot sun and walking. My mother however walks the whole time and never rides in the wagon. I don't see how she can do it! We travel an average of 13 miles a day and eat bread and dried fruit for lunch and dried meat, beans, and rice for dinner. We can’t find anymore firewood so I was forced to collect buffalo chips for fuel for our fire, which are plentiful on these plains.

The mornings on the open plain are my favorite time of day, and we wake before sunrise to get a head start on the trail. The sunrise is always beautiful- the sky filled with reds, yellows, purples, and oranges, and an early morning haze that reflects all the colors. It reminds me of back at home in Missouri when I used to get up early and watch the sun rise with my mother. It was always a special time for both of us, and be both appreciate the reminder of our past home in this flat, dry plain.

May 14, 1843

May 23, 1843

This is our wagon trail traveling along the Oregon Trail. The first wagon in this picture holds our new friends that we have met, Molly and John.

The past couple of weeks have gone by very slow and have been

filled with dust, dust and more dust. We had to dump some of our food when we got to Independence because we had overloaded our wagon so our food supply is running low. Maybe we will finally get to eat something different for a change when we find some more food to eat. My shoes have worn holes in them from the constant waking and bled for the first couple days with the holes, but now, thankfully, they are calloused. I am also required to do chores. I gather water, help fix the evening meal, and gather buffalo chips as fuel for our fire. I have made a couple of friends from our wagon train, Nancy and Ann. We figured out that we could use the buffalo chips for doing something that we found to be quite fun. We throw the chips back and forth to each other and call it frisbee. It’s a very fun game and even some of the adults join in. Sleeping has gotten better since I got used to sleeping on rocks and the stars are kind of nice to have above your head.

We have heard about a disease that has left a couple people dead and so we try to be as sanitary as possible. I am also not looking forward to the day when we encounter Indians and I hope father will be able to handle it.

June 10, 1843

June 19, 1843

Friends and family from our wagon train after a long day on the trail. Both families are headed to Oregon with us.

This morning the sunrise was especially beautiful, filled with almost all the colors of the rainbow. We even stopped traveling for a few minuets to enjoy the spectacle! The bad news is that the days are getting to be unbelievably hot and the nights are turning colder, but we will live- luckily we brought lots of blankets. Yesterday we did a river crossing and we had to wade through the raging river to the other side and trust that the oxen would carry our wagon to safety. Thankfully, no one was hurt and all the wagons made it through without damage. It was scary though and father had to help mother and me across the rapidly flowing water. I was scared that I would float away on the current and never see mother and father or any of my new friends again! Nancy, Ann, and I have become closer in the last few weeks and we often travel with each other for the day. This helps keep me from dying of boredom and takes my mind off my throbbing legs and parched throat.

We also have to be careful about the water we drink and we have to make sure that we are sanitary because one of the people in our wagon train has become ill. I haven't seen the person but I heard that she is in very bad condition and could possibly die. Mother has warned me not to go anywhere near the family's wagon because she fears that whatever the person has might be contagious. I happened to notice that the family who’s mother had the illness has a brother about my age and a sister of about five. I feel terrible for the two siblings and their father for I could not imagine losing either one of my parents or a sibling if I had one.

June 25, 1843

July 1, 1843

Our wagon on our lunch break with our livestock that we use for fresh meat and for fresh milk.

Today was our first day of rain on the trail. It started around eight in the morning and lasted into the afternoon. We haven't been able to go anywhere today because the trail is now very muddy. Father says that we might have to stay here till the ground is dryer. Also during the storm our wagon started to leaking and our food supply that we have left got wet- including the flour. All of our furniture also got wet and my clothes are drenched. It is positively freezing right now because there wasn’t much sun after the storm to dry things out. We did however get the privilege to see a beautiful rainbow that came out after the storm. I think that it helped all of us restore our appreciation for the little things in life.

July 7, 1843

July 13, 1843

This is one of the many beautiful landmarks that we have passed on the trail. They call this one Devil's Gate. It was beautiful with its shadowy gorge and the sun cast shadows into it that made it look evil. We were allowed to explore the gorge and we camped the night inside its opening.

Our food supply is getting low and mother and father are beginning to get worried. We have been trying to ration the food for the past week or so but we are still running lower every day. We are also no where near a city so that we can trade for food and shoes. We have also heard that there is a threat of Indians in the area. I am scared and last night I had dreams about an Indian attacking us. Also, one of the families at the back of our wagon lost a wheel and we had to leave them behind. I feel bad for their three kids- one older sister about my age and two younger brothers. I hope they can get it fixed and join us again but we didn’t want to loss a couple days travel.As I am writing this I hear the Indians calling in the night but father is outside with his shotgun and I feel better and safer. I fear that we will be attacked by Indians during the night because we have heard rumors about attacks. I can only hope for the best.

July 26, 1843

Today we encountered the Indians. I was terrified at first but it turned out okay- thank heavens. Father approached them as they came near our camp and kept peace with them. He convinced them to trade some of their food for some of our extra clothes. During all this however, I was forced to stay in the wagon just in case but I was able find a crack and look through it into the action. Father traded a few of my extra clothes along with a pair of his worn jeans. The Indians were appreciative of our clothes and we were elated to have more dried meat and flour to eat. We had a small feast with the new food that we traded. It was the most food that I have had in a long time, and it was delicious. I will also sleep in peace tonight knowing that the Indians are not violent.

July 27, 1843

July 28, 1843

This is a picture of the Indians camp not far from where we traded our clothes for food. Their houses, even though they don’t look like they could withstand anything, are quite strong. The Indians were also very friendly, and let us pass without harm.

August 5, 1843

This is a picture of Fort Hall, a trading post along the trail. We stopped to trade for shoes, a few clothes, and some more food.

Today Nancy and Ann's father Bill became ill. We are not sure what he has but mother told me to stay away from their family just in case it is contagious. Mother went over there to try to help but there was nothing that she could do for him. He is delirious, has a fever and is dehydrated. We gave up some of our fresh water for him to try to help. The sunrises continue to give me new hope each morning and I pray almost every minuet of the day for their father. It is bedtime and we can only hope that he will be better come morning.

August 11, 1843

Bill died today. It was horrible. We woke up to Nancy and Ann screaming for their father. We rushed over to where their wagon was parked in the circle and rushed up to it. Their mother told us that they woke up and Bill was dead. I cried for my friends because what will they do without a father? What will they do without someone to protect the family? Without someone to provide food? Without someone to tend to crops and plant crops once they arrive in Oregon? Their mother seems determined, however, to make the best out of the rest of her and the kids lives. She also said that she will continue with us to Oregon and find land to grow crops on. I wish the best for them- especially for Nancy and Ann.

August 12, 1843

September 7, 1843

Here is a sketch of Fort Boise- another supply stop along the trail. We stopped here for clothes and some more dried meat. Our old clothes were full of dust, dirt, and holes. It feels good to have new clothes on, even if I am still covered in dust from the trail.

October 11, 1843

Here is a map of the route we took from our old home in Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon. The journey has been hard but we have almost arrived and I can’t wait.

We are finally here in Oregon City! I haven't written in a while because there hasn’t been much to talk about. Just the endless dust, dirt and trail. Near the end of our journey, the oxen seemed to be getting tired but we are here. We found a cheap piece of land that we will settle on that has lots of room for farming. Father wants to grow corn and strawberries and wants to begin building a cabin as soon as possible. We have met our soon to be neighbors and they said that they would help father build our new house. Mother is very excited as well. When we arrived, she nearly jumped for joy, as did I! The soil here, as many people have told us, will be excellent for farming and the weather is very pleasant. We have also heard that the winters here are fairly cold, but that they are not too bad. I cannot wait till we have our new house built and our crops planted! Our new life begins!

October 13, 1843

October 14, 1843

This is our new land that father wants to build a cabin on and farm the land. We also have some cattle that survived the hard journey. Home sweet home!

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Bibliography