USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -In addition, most people walked, both because it allowed their wagons to carry more weight and because riding in the wagons-which had no suspension-they would have endured constant jolting and lurching on the rough trails and roads.

Detailed explanation-2: -Free land in Oregon and the possibility of finding gold in California lured them westward. At the same time, eastern churches wanted to teach American Indians of the Oregon Country their European ideas of “civilization.” Many simply hoped for a chance to start a new life.

Detailed explanation-3: -From the early to mid-1830s (and particularly through the years 1846–1869) the Oregon Trail and its many offshoots were used by about 400, 000 settlers, farmers, miners, ranchers, and business owners and their families.

Detailed explanation-4: -prairie schooner, 19th-century covered wagon popularly used by emigrants traveling to the American West. In particular, it was the vehicle of choice on the Oregon Trail.

Detailed explanation-5: -Between 1841 and 1884, when a network of railroads connected the east coast to the Pacific Northwest, an estimated 300, 000 to 500, 000 people traveled overland. Some were born along the way, some were buried.