OREGON HISTORY

Medorem Crawford

 

Medorem Crawford wrote notes on the Oregon Trail. Most of the notes would look like this:

 

 June 5, We saw eight buffalo, we killed five of them. That day we traveled 18 miles.

A few notes of his diary could give you an idea of what it was like on the Oregon Trail.

Jesse Applegate

 

Jesse was one of the people to lead a train of wagons across the Oregon Trail. Years later when he is an old man he puts down the memories of his trip. The day down with the cow column. 

A pioneer from Kentucky named Sam Barlow made it to The Dalles, Oregon. He thought there must be an easier way through the Cascade Mountains than down the Columbia River. People who had settled there told him there wasn't an easier way to his destination. Sam and 12 other wagons set out to find a better route. The bunch of people went all around to find a way. They found some paths, but there were fallen trees over the path. Time passed by quickly and winter was almost there, and their food was starting to run out. Some of the pioneers went back to The Dalles because they lost hope and it was almost winter. Sam wouldn't give up searching for the passage. He and another pioneer (William Rector) went to Oregon City to get some supplies (on foot.) Behind them wagons waited for them to bring back supplies. Days went on without any word from Sam or William. The hope of finding the trail started to shrink with them gone. Then Sam and William where heard through the forests. They had returned with many things. They had bought food for everybody and other useful supplies. All hope of the trail being found was gone for that winter and the group walked out. The group reached Oregon City on foot on December 25th, 1845. Then the path was widened and they were able to bring wagons through in July and August of the next year. This path was named after Sam Barlow and is now called The Barlow Road. This path was much safer than the Columbia.

Before pioneers could live in the Oregon Country, a way to the west would have to be found. It had to be a pass that many wagons could pass through. An American named John C. Fre`mont did lead a group of pioneers in the year 1842. His job on the trail (which wasn't a trail yet) was to map out all the mountains, rivers, lakes, valleys, and other things they had to go through. His wife, Jesse Benton, helped him with his job. She wrote down where some trading posts would be good, and the conditions of the weather for where they were. John Fre`mont's job made the path to Oregon. He made his name as the "pathfinder" of the far west. This path he made became what is now called The Oregon Trail. In the next years about 10,000 pioneers traveled on The Oregon Trail.

Jackson wanted to put an American colony in Oregon. He described the country like it's heaven on earth. That is part of the reason people went west, and some people just wanted to make a new start. He hoped people would start businesses in lumber, fish, and furs.