Pioneers

The word pioneer in Latin means "foot." Pioneers were usually traveling to a new place. Pioneers were thousands of ordinary people that pushed to make new life in the Western Plains of the United States . They were people who were the first to move into the new land by foot or wagon trains.

Pioneers had many reasons for traveling to the Western Plains. Many were hungry or looking for better hunting grounds and better places to farm. Some came west to find gold or make a new start. The freedom to worship as they liked caused many pioneers to find a new life in the West.

Pioneers traveled to the West in a variety of ways. They came by boat, on foot, or by wagon. The very earliest pioneers, those here at the same time as the Native Americans came to this country across the Land Bridge that connected the European continent and the North America continent.

When the pioneers arrived they lived in many types of homes. Sod houses and log cabins were the most common.

During the mid 1840`s, pioneers were moving along 2 main trails, the Santa Fe Trail and the Oregon Trail.

OREGON TRAIL - Explorers & fur traders & The Army first traced the Oregon Trail in 1805. 900 settlers used the trail in 1841. In 1848, the northern border was set. They traveled by covered wagon, horse back, and even walked.

SANTA FE TRAIL - One of the longest commercial routes here in the U.S.A. was the Santa Fe Trail. It started in Montana and ended in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was 780 miles in distance. The travelers would transport there goods by pack horses.