Traveling the Trail

April 22nd, 1847

Westpoint, Missouri

Hello. My name’s Ada, and I’m so excited. We’re about to start the journey of a lifetime and I can hardly wait. Right now, I’m sitting in our covered wagon writing. Father and Jonathan are off somewhere and Mother is tending to baby Clarence. Everyone is nervous, I can tell but it’s a nervous excitement at the same time. We’re traveling to Oregon because Father wants a new life there. He says there’ll be ‘better opportunities’ which I think means better hunting grounds and better business selling things. It should take us about five months to get to Oregon, and that’s with traveling a lot each day. I don’t mind though. Oh, I’m so excited! I wonder what it’ll be like in Oregon. I do hope it’s as wonderful as we hope it’s going to be.

May 1st, 1847

1st Leg of the Oregon Trail

We’re a week and a half into our journey! I can’t believe that we’re actually doing this. I’ve heard so many people talk about ‘Traveling the Trail’, and I’ve always wondered what it would be like. When Father told us we would be doing it ourselves, I was so excited. And now we’re actually on it! Out in the middle of nowhere with everything we need in one single floorboard on wheels. Speaking of which, it’s incredibly cramped in our wagon. Don’t get me wrong, it’s comfortable, but between the five of us, there’s not much room to move about. At the very back of the wagon, there’s a bench that unfolds into a double bed. That’s where Mother and Father sleep. Then, Jonathan and I get two quilts and put them on the floor to sleep on. Normally, I would object to sleeping with a boy, but since he’s my older brother, I don’t mind so much. Of course Clarence gets her own crib since she’s only two, but I envy her not having to sleep on the floor. Along with all our bedding we have all of Father’s tools and tons of food. Mother says we have around 1,000 pounds! That’s a lot, but Father does have to have his coffee. ‘Bugle Call’ is at 6:00 every morning, where we start out. At lunchtime, we stop and have lunch, and then after riding for a couple more hours we stop and camp for the night and have dinner. So far, the weather’s been lovely, I hope it stays like this for a little while longer.

May 18th, 1847

1st Leg of the Journey

I’ve made some new friends! Danny and Julia. They’re so nice. Julia is my age, and Danny is just one year younger. They’re brother and sister and sometimes they squabble a bit, but I can tell they love each other very much. It was funny, our parents actually met first ,and they introduced us to each other. At first, we just stared at one another for a minute, but then all of a sudden we were best friends. Danny showed me all his marbles and Julia let me play with her doll. I didn’t really have anything fun to show them, so I introduced them to our replacement baby horse called Butter. She’s very sweet and gentle, and I think Danny and Julia liked her. Tomorrow night, we’re having the McBrides (Danny and Julia’s family) over for dinner and I’m excited. Father’s going to play his fiddle and the rest of us will dance. I love dancing. Mother says I’m good at it and sometimes I practice with Jonathan. Hopefully Danny and Julia like dancing too because then we could all dance together. Clarence is crying now, I need to go quiet her. Goodbye!

June 4th, 1847

2nd Leg of the Journey

Entering into Indian Territory now, so we should see a few Native Americans.

June 7th, 1847

2nd Leg of the Journey

Our first encounter with American Indians! It was terrifying, but also very interesting. I’ve never seen any people of color before. We were riding through a small ravine when there was a shout and we all looked up to see hundreds of them surrounding us from up above. Father immediately told us to get back inside the wagon and Mother, Clarence and I huddled together in a corner, listening to the shouts from outside. I’m not quite sure what they were saying, or trying to say anyway, but eventually we started moving again. I was scared, but Jonathon nodded to us that it was all right, so I trusted him and Father with it. Once we made it out of the ravine, we stopped again, and suddenly, there were American Indians everywhere! One poked its head in our wagon and Mother screamed. He left quickly after that. I wasn’t sure whether or not I was allowed to get out, but nobody was telling me otherwise, so I assumed it was safe. Mother said she wanted to stay inside with all the things and Baby Clarence to make sure that we weren’t robbed. I didn’t think anything bad like that would happen, but I left her to it. It turns out the American Indians were rather nice actually, even if I couldn’t understand a word they were saying. We traded quite a few things. Father gave a spare pair of boots to someone in return for a beautiful clip for Mother and a bushel of grain. Jonathon handed over a shirt and a pocket knife for a set of tools. I wanted to trade something, but I didn’t know what. I didn’t have a lot of things, only my Bible, a few marbles, and my clothes. Finally, I settled on one of my bows. It was blue and one of two (the other is red). I felt the blue would be a symbol of peace, so I took it out to a man in a big funny looking hat with feathers sticking out of it. Julia was looking for me and she had a pretty clip so we went to him together. He hardly had any clothes on, just a skirt or something and when he turned around, I felt very afraid. But we bravely held out our items and he examined them closely before reaching into his bag and pulling out two necklaces. They were wooden, but they had patterns all over them and they were painted in different colors. Then, he also took out some sort of candy that was sweet but also sort of tangy. When we gave him the bow and the clip, he thanked us and pointed out his wife who he would give it to. I was so excited about the candy and the necklaces I didn’t know what to do. Unfortunately, Mrs. Parson’s daughter came over and demanded we give her a piece of candy. Her name’s Adelaide and I don’t think very much of her, but we gave her one anyway. Then she called us snobs for not giving her more than one piece and ran off. I can’t be completely sure, but I think that was her way of thanking us. It was amazing to see people so different from us yet so similar. Mr. Parson seemed very stuck on the fact that American Indians were ‘less intelligent’, which I think is silly. Just because people have a different color of skin, doesn’t mean they’re any less smart. I tried to tell him so but he just waved me off. I hope he realizes his foolish thinking. Anyway, even if we never see him again, I’ll never forget the kind American Indian who gave us candy and necklaces as a welcome present into their territory.

June 29th, 1847

2nd Leg of the Journey

Our wagon wheel is broken. There was some sort of rut in the road and we went over it by accident. Now, there’s a big crack on one of the wheels and our male horse (Stallion) hurt his leg badly. I’m not quite sure what we’re going to do about him. Father says we’ll try to help his leg heal, but if it won’t heal fast enough, we might not be able to use him. I really don’t want to butcher him, but if it comes to that, I suppose we might have to. For now, we’re stopping early to give Father time to fix the wheel. I’m actually glad, since I was starting to feel a little sick from all the bumps and potholes in the road.

July 4th, 1847

3rd Leg of the Journey

It’s the Fourth of July and our nation’s 71 years old! Today we’re celebrating it by having a whole day off from traveling. Mrs. McBride and another family are going to make cakes and Mother’s going to make her strawberry pie. I can’t wait. Mrs. Parson made flags for all of us children (which was nice for once) as well and Danny says we’re going to have all sorts of games and competitions. Later in the evening, Father will play his fiddle and we’ll all dance to it. It’s going to be a wonderful day! Jonathan has gotten all dressed up, and it’s so funny. I think he’s smitten with one of the Brown girls, but he doesn’t say anything so I can’t be sure. Happy 4th of July!

Ps. Stallion is doing much better, and we didn’t have to butcher him after all (thank goodness!)

July 18th, 1847

4th Leg of the Journey

Rats! No, literally, there’s rats in our food. Mother found two dead ones in the corn and Mrs. Parson found a drowned one in a bucket of water. You should have heard her screams! She nearly fainted and came out shrieking, “Walter! Walter!”. Danny, Julia, and I laughed so hard, our sides hurt! I do hope nobody gets sick. There’ve been mentions of cholera in other groups, but so far, nobody’s sick in our camp…yet. By the way, Jonathan is definitely in love with Mary Brown. Mary has long, blond hair and blue eyes, and I like her, but I don’t think she likes Jonathan much. Her father’s very rich and she’s a little stuck up (along with her sisters, Martha and Anna). Oh well.

July 24th, 1847

4th Leg of the Journey

Cholera has officially struck our camp. Mr. McBride has it and so does Adelaide and the Brown family. Jonathan is nearly sick with worry (no pun intended) about Mary, but there’s nothing much we can do except keep going. The doctor’s been busy and he says there’s not really much of a chance of them dying, just so long as they stay warm and have lots of healthy food. Mother says I can’t play with Danny and Julia until Mr. McBride is feeling better, because she doesn’t want me to get it too. I’m a little scared, because I don’t really want to get sick. Lots of people have died from cholera and I shouldn’t want that to happen to me or anyone else.

July 31st, 1847

4th Leg of the Journey

Mother thinks Jonathan and I have cholera. I woke up this morning feeling awfully cold (even though I had lots of blankets on) and needing to go to the bathroom. Some of the common symptoms of cholera are diarrhea, vomiting, and muscle aches. I haven’t been sick yet, but I’ve had the other two so I’m probably sick. Jonathan has all three (our wagon stinks now), and Danny and Julia are sick as well. Mr. and Mrs. Parson haven’t gotten it yet, but I expect they will soon. I really hope nobody dies, it would be so awful.

August 6th, 1847

5th Leg of the Journey

I’m on the recovering side of cholera, but I’m very weak. Jonathan is still frightfully sick -he’s been in and out of a fever for a couple of days now- and Mother isn’t feeling well either. I haven’t had the heart to tell him that Anna Brown died, Mary Brown’s little sister. It’s so sad, nobody’s said a word about it, but each night, I can hear Mrs. Brown sobbing. I would hate it if that happened to Jonathan, Mother, Father, or even Baby Clarence. Now that Anna Brown’s gone, it’s making me realize how much family and friends mean to me. I mean, what if all of that was stripped away? They could all be gone in an instant, and I might not even be able to say goodbye. These dark thoughts have been haunting me for the past couple of days, and I can’t get them out of my head. I suppose I’m being taught a lesson -a very harsh lesson at that- on the importance of those around us. I’ll do my best from now on to be thankful for everyone (even if they are tricky like the Parson’s).

August 19th, 1847

5th Leg of the Journey

I think nearly all of us are safe from cholera now. Mostly everybody got it in the camp, and a couple of other people (who I didn’t know) died. It was very sad. Jonathan is heartbroken as well. He tried to offer his condolences to Mary, but she seems to think it’s his fault and wouldn’t speak to him. I didn’t end up thinking much of her anyway, so in a way I’m glad that she’s not speaking to Jonathan. He deserves better than her, and I think he’s beginning to realize that. On a different note, we should be arriving in Oregon in a couple of weeks. I’m excited! I do hope that Father can find what he’s looking for. Me? I don’t really mind. As long as we can find a good school and have a decent amount of nice neighbors, I’ll be happy. Although I’ve been learning in my school books these past couple of months, it’s not the same as school, and I miss the classroom with the other students and the teacher. Jonathan doesn’t think he needs to go to school anymore, but Mother says he has to at least graduate and then he can decide if he wants to go to college or not. I personally would love to go to college, but I don’t think Jonathan would do very well. He’s a farmer's son and loves working out in the field.

September 30th, 1847

5th Leg of the Journey

Well, we’ve made it to Portland, Oregon. I can hardly believe it! It’s so amazing that we survived the trail and have a whole new state in front of us. Father is so excited, he’s been jittery all day. I think Mother is a little sad that she’s going to be leaving the McBrides. She was very good friends with Mrs. McBride, and Father is very good friends with Mr. McBride. Likewise with Danny, Julia, and I. I’ll miss them, and I hope they do well in life. We were talking about what we want to be when we grow up, and Danny says he wants to be rich and famous. I said I thought that suited him, but Julia couldn’t help laughing. Julia says she would like to open up an orphanage or something to care for those less fortunate, and I think that would fit her very well. I’m not sure about what I would like to be. Will I run for president? Or become a public speaker? Or will I just stay at home for the rest of my life and raise a family? I think I’d like to do a bit of both. In years to come, I think people will forget about the Oregon Trail, and I want to share my story with them to make sure nobody forgets. At the same time, I want to raise a family and have lots of children. So, I don’t really know yet. Tomorrow, we’ll go our separate ways, but Danny, Julia, and I have promised to write to each other. I don’t know what lies ahead, but I do know that I’m ready for it.

*In later years, the letters between Ada and Danny turned into love letters and they soon got married. According to Ada’s wish, they settled down and had lots of children. They opened up a boarding school and Danny became principal. Ada became the first female teacher in the school, and traveled all over telling everyone about her experience on the Oregon Trail. Julia found a passion for acting and became a famous actress. Sadly, she died of cancer at about fifty and left an enormous fortune to the ‘McBride Academy’. Ironically, the Parson’s became very good friends with the two families and Jonathan and Adelaide married as well. The three families always kept in touch and until their final days, continued to tell everyone about the Oregon Trail.*