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'''Footpath to wagon road.''' The route of the Oregon Trail was first discovered by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_men fur trappers] about 1811. Several expeditions of government men explored and mapped parts of the trail in 1832, 1834, 1846, and 1848. It was originally a footpath or mule pack train trail. In 1830 the first fur trade [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountain_Rendezvous rendezvous] wagons reached the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_River_%28Utah%29 Green River] in [[Wyoming Genealogy|Wyoming]]. By 1836 when the first pioneer wagon train was organized in [[Independence, Missouri|Independence, Missouri]], the wagon trail went as far as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Hall Fort Hall]. By 1843 the wagon road reached [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dalles,_Oregon the Dalles (Oregon)] where pioneers could raft down the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_River Columbia River]. In 1846 the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barlow_Road Barlow Road] around Mt. Hood finally reached Oregon City.<ref name="OrTr" /> | '''Footpath to wagon road.''' The route of the Oregon Trail was first discovered by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_men fur trappers] about 1811. Several expeditions of government men explored and mapped parts of the trail in 1832, 1834, 1846, and 1848. It was originally a footpath or mule pack train trail. In 1830 the first fur trade [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountain_Rendezvous rendezvous] wagons reached the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_River_%28Utah%29 Green River] in [[Wyoming Genealogy|Wyoming]]. By 1836 when the first pioneer wagon train was organized in [[Independence, Missouri|Independence, Missouri]], the wagon trail went as far as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Hall Fort Hall]. By 1843 the wagon road reached [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dalles,_Oregon the Dalles (Oregon)] where pioneers could raft down the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_River Columbia River]. In 1846 the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barlow_Road Barlow Road] around Mt. Hood finally reached Oregon City.<ref name="OrTr" /> | ||
'''Oregon boundary dispute.''' [[Washington Genealogy|Washington State]] and [[British Columbia Genealogy|British Columbia]] were at first disputed and jointly occupied by Britain ([[Canada Genealogy|Canada]]) and the [[United States Genealogy|United States]]. The British and their [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson%27s_Bay_Company Hudson's Bay Company] controlled Washington northwest of the Columbia River. But pressure was being exerted against Canada. In 1836 American pioneer groups began migrating over the Oregon Trail into Oregon. Thousands came over the next decade, far more than from Canada. Slogans of the 1844 American presidential campaign clamored for war to take Washington and British Columbia by force. The Oregon Treaty of 1846 gave Washington to the United States and British Columbia to Canada.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Oregon boundary dispute" in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_boundary_dispute (accessed 12 July 2012).</ref> | '''Oregon boundary dispute.''' [[Washington, United States Genealogy|Washington State]] and [[British Columbia Genealogy|British Columbia]] were at first disputed and jointly occupied by Britain ([[Canada Genealogy|Canada]]) and the [[United States Genealogy|United States]]. The British and their [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson%27s_Bay_Company Hudson's Bay Company] controlled Washington northwest of the Columbia River. But pressure was being exerted against Canada. In 1836 American pioneer groups began migrating over the Oregon Trail into Oregon. Thousands came over the next decade, far more than from Canada. Slogans of the 1844 American presidential campaign clamored for war to take Washington and British Columbia by force. The Oregon Treaty of 1846 gave Washington to the United States and British Columbia to Canada.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Oregon boundary dispute" in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_boundary_dispute (accessed 12 July 2012).</ref> | ||
'''Reasons for migrating.''' [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_men Mountain men fur trappers] were the earliest to use the Oregon Trail. A few early missionaries came in the 1830s. Larger groups of American settlers began arriving in 1843. The [[California Trail]], [[Mormon Trail]], and [[Bozeman Trail]] overlapped much of the Oregon Trail and branched off it starting in 1846. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Gold_Rush California Gold Rush] of 1849 contributed significantly to west coast migration. Western gold and silver strikes, free farm land, lumber, and ranching all increased traffic on the Oregon Trail. An estimated 80,000 pioneers used the Oregon Trail to Oregon, and 20,000 to Washington by 1869, and about 320,000 more followed part of the Oregon trail to take one of its three main branches.<ref name="OrTr" /> | '''Reasons for migrating.''' [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_men Mountain men fur trappers] were the earliest to use the Oregon Trail. A few early missionaries came in the 1830s. Larger groups of American settlers began arriving in 1843. The [[California Trail]], [[Mormon Trail]], and [[Bozeman Trail]] overlapped much of the Oregon Trail and branched off it starting in 1846. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Gold_Rush California Gold Rush] of 1849 contributed significantly to west coast migration. Western gold and silver strikes, free farm land, lumber, and ranching all increased traffic on the Oregon Trail. An estimated 80,000 pioneers used the Oregon Trail to Oregon, and 20,000 to Washington by 1869, and about 320,000 more followed part of the Oregon trail to take one of its three main branches.<ref name="OrTr" /> | ||