They took preserved foods such as hard tack, coffee, bacon, rice, beans, and flour. They also took a few basic cooking utensils such as a coffee pot, some buckets, and an iron skillet. The pioneers didn’t have room for a lot of fancy items. They only had room to pack two or three sets of tough clothing.
Contents
What items did Pioneers Bring on the Oregon Trail?
Generally, the following minimum rations were recommended for each adult person:
- 120-200 pounds of flour in canvas sacks.
- 30 pounds of hardtack or crackers.
- 25-75 pounds of bacon.
- 15 pounds ground corn.
- ½ bushel cornmeal.
- 10-50 pounds of rice.
- 2 pounds of saleratus (an early form of baking soda)
- 10 pounds of salt.
What was the main item brought on the Oregon Trail?
Two hundred pounds of flour, thirty pounds of pilot bread, seventy-five pounds of bacon, ten pounds of rice, five pounds of coffee, two pounds of tea, twenty-five pounds of sugar, half a bushel of dried beans, one bushel of dried fruit, two pounds of saleratus, ten pounds of salt, half a bushel of corn meal; and it is
What did settlers use on the Oregon Trail?
The Oregon Trail was laid by fur traders and trappers from about 1811 to 1840, and was only passable on foot or by horseback.
What did settlers do once they arrived in Oregon?
Emigrants could corral and graze their animals at the Farm while, for 50 cents, they dined on large portions of beef, potatoes, slaw, and biscuits. At Oregon City, after six months of grueling travel over 2000 miles, newcomers might rest a bit and resupply in town at establishments such as Abernethy’s Store.
What did settlers eat on the Oregon Trail?
A guide written by Joel Palmer, who traveled to Oregon in 1845, advised people to pack 10 pounds of rice per adult for the journey. They could eat it with meat, like dried beef. Travelers also enjoyed rice with water, milk, butter, sugar, molasses, and our favorite, cornmeal mush.
How much food did they bring on the Oregon Trail?
Those wagons carried not only passengers and a few personal belongings, but over 1000 pounds of food!
What possessions did pioneers have?
The pioneers would take with them as many supplies as possible. They took cornmeal, bacon, eggs, potatoes, rice, beans, yeast, dried fruit, crackers, dried meat, and a large barrel of water that was tied to the side of the wagon.
What tools did pioneers use?
The basic tools required by every pioneer were a gun, ammunition, powder, fish hooks and line, traps, an ax, a spade and a hoe. With these tools, he and his neighbors could build, hunt, plant crops and gather food.
What was the most important piece of equipment needed for the journey?
Emigrants had to sell land, businesses, and property while gathering the supplies they would need on the journey. A wagon built to withstand 2200 miles across plains, mountains, and desert was the most important piece of equipment. Wagons were 6 feet wide and about 12 feet long with a 3 feet high interior.
What did a typical family carry in their wagon?
Research suggests that a typical family of four carried 800 pounds of flour, 200 pounds of lard, 700 pounds of bacon, 200 pounds of beans, 100 pounds of fruit, 75 pounds of coffee and 25 pounds of salt. The wagon also had to carry a shovel and cooking utensils.The wagon train would travel at around two miles an hour.
What routes did settlers use to reach the West in the early 1800s?
In the early decades of the 1800s, that all began to change as very well-traveled routes were followed by many thousands of settlers.
- The Wilderness Road. George Caleb Bingham / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain.
- The National Road.
- The Erie Canal.
- The Oregon Trail.
- Fort Laramie.
- The South Pass.
What was the main vehicle used to carry belongings by pioneers on the Oregon Trail?
Covered Wagons The main vehicle used to carry the pioneer’s belongings was the covered wagon. Sometimes these wagons were called “Prairie Schooners”, because they were like boats going over the vast prairies of the west. The wagons were made of wood with iron around the wheels like tires.
What happened when settlers get to the end of the Oregon Trail?
The End of the Oregon Trail
Still, as towns were established along the Oregon Trail, the route continued to serve thousands of emigrants with “gold fever” on their way to California.
Why did settlers on the Oregon Trail travel in groups?
While wagon trains frequently traveled together by choice, factors such as weather and trail conditions often resulted in unintended “bunching” along the route. One of the main reasons for this phenomenon was that groups generally had to embark at approximately the same time each year.
Why did early settlers go to Oregon?
Some Americans went to Oregon in the very early 1800s because they wanted to participate in the fur trade.People went to Oregon hoping to claim land and to settle in the fertile Willamette Valley. These people hoped to farm in this region. Other people went to Oregon for the adventure of going to new places.
How did the settlers eat?
Bread was always the settlers’ main food stuff. Breakfast might consist of bread with butter or cheese. In the middle of the day, as part of their main meal, settlers might enjoy smoked or salted meat, or perhaps a bowl of stew, with their bread. The evening meal was likely porridge—with bread, of course.
What did pioneers eat and drink?
Food for the trip had to be compact, lightweight, and nonperishable. Each family brought along such staples as flour, sugar, cornmeal, coffee, dried beans, rice, bacon, and salt port. Some also brought dried fruit.
What did pioneers drink out of?
They just knew that water made them ill. So instead of drinking water, many people drank fermented and brewed beverages like beer, ale, cider, and wine. Children drank something called small beer. One of the first steps in brewing beer is to boil the water, which kills the germs and bacteria and makes it safe to drink.
What did the pioneers eat for dessert?
As for desserts — they were simple, but many and varied. There were apple dump- lings, rice and bread puddings, soft molasses cookies, sugar jumbles, and mincemeat, pumpkin, dried apple, or custard pies. On special occasions we might have lemon pie. It was not necessary to skimp on eggs or milk.
How did pioneers get sugar?
Sugar was made from beets, corn stalks and watermelon. It was also made from maple sap, a process that settlers learned from the Indians. Apples were a popular crop for farmers in the 1800s. They were eaten in many ways for all meals and as drinks.
