Varying Rewards
The cities
on the east coast were getting crowded and people longed for more land and
adventure. Rumors spread, telling of a place rich with gold, silver, coal and
fertile land for farming. Hard and dangerous work by fishing and logging was
also another money source. More people started traveling to the northwest
whether it was to get rich, be free, or farm.
But the road wasn’t an easy one. In order to get to the northwest you
had to take a boat all the way around the continent or travel on the long, hard
dangerous Oregon Tail.
There were
many hardships on the Oregon Trail. First off, the trail was very uneven and
made it very difficult to travel on and in the rainy season the trail became
very muddy causing the wheels to constantly get stuck. Also, there were many
time when they had to cross rivers or streams. Sometimes people would get swept
away and drown. Secondly, there were not many towns alongside the trail. Many
people died of diseases and if traveling alone, hunger. The harsh conditions,
such as freezing cold or pouring rain, also made people miserable. Indian
attacks were rare, but occasionally did happen. Bears, cougars and other
dangerous animals were an expected danger though.
Overall, the
dangerous and exhausting trail gained you much reward and freedom is you made
it, but could also lead to misery sickness, and sometimes, death.
Hope you enjoyed!! Lizzy <3
