Creative Enrichment Packing a Farmer’s Wagon in 1858

A family’s decision to move to Minnesota was important. As they prepared for their trip, they had many questions. How would they travel there? What time of year was best for traveling? What would they bring?

For answers, they turned to immigrant guidebooks. They also read letters from friends or family who had already emigrated. In the end, though, settlers had to rely on their own judgment about what to bring.

Poor packing decisions could lead to serious problems in the first year, especially for farmers in remote areas. An overpacked wagon was costly and difficult to transport. Forgetting to pack an important item could also be disastrous.

Make a list.

Imagine you are part of an immigrant family moving to Minnesota in 1858.

Read through the list of possible items to pack in your wagon. Note how many points each item is worth. A higher number means an item is difficult to move or very valuable.

On a separate sheet of paper, list the items you choose to bring and describe why. Remember the following when packing for your move:

1. Your total points may not be more than 60.

2. You must give at least one reason for every item you bring.

3. You will be farming, so you will not be able to visit the town frequently. Your first trip to town will happen one month after you arrive.

4. You may bring more than one of each item, but you must add up all the points (for example, 1 pillow = 1 point; 2 pillows = 2 points).

why

Explanation:

a direct vote in which an entire electorate is invited to vote on a particular proposal. this may result in the adoption of a new law.  

the correct answer is "pioneers carried all of their possessions on long and dangerous trails".

the first wave of pioneers travelled in 1842. they were merely 100 people. the next year that sum climbed to 1000 men, women, and children. these people travelled around 2,000 miles to oregon in the hopes of a better life. although the first part of the trip didn't present many obstacles, as time and miles went by they learnt that threat came from simple things, like becoming ill due to unclean water or bad food.

the weather didn't much, as wagons couldn't protect them from storms. as they travelled through the desert, the intense heat caused wood to shrink. their own lips abscessed and split because of the dry air. the only cure for this was to rub axle grease on their lips.

even crossing rivers was dangerous. sometimes wheels were damaged by unseen rocks on shallow water. mud didn't much either. pioneers were afraid of indian attacks, but there aren't many records of fights between pioneers and native americans. accidents happened because of negligence, exhaustion, guns, and bad weather.

history says that 1 of 10 pioneers who travelled to oregon didn't survive the journey. diseases spread fastly because they didn't have doctors and medical care was ofently improvised. one of the most deadly diseases they came upon was cholera, which became a worldwide pandemia.