Summary
In 1840, California and New Mexico remained basically untouched by American
settlers. Only a few hundred Americans lived in either territory, and most were
scattered among the Mexican settlers. However, due to the constant stream of
favorable reports sent back east, the 1840s saw a dramatic increase in white
American settlers in the Far West. Most California settlers headed for the
Sacramento Valley, where they lived apart from the Mexicans. Oregon drew many
settlers from the Mississippi Valley with the promise of fertile farmland.
During the 1830s missionaries had moved into Oregon's Willamette Valley, and by
1840, there were about 500 Americans there. To some, Oregon was even more
attractive a destination than California and New Mexico, and the 1840s saw rapid
settlement there as well.
Settlers of the Far West faced a four-month journey across little-known
territory in harsh conditions. They prepared for the rigors of travel in jump-
off towns like St. Joseph and Independence, Missouri, which prospered from the
growth of the outfitting industry. There, settlers purchased Conestoga wagons
for the journey and stocked up on supplies like food, weapons, and ammunition.
Due to fictional stories about the savage Indians that travelers would face
along their way, travelers on the overland trails often overstocked guns and
ammunition at the expense of other more necessary items. Once they embarked,
settlers faced numerous challenges: oxen dying of thirst, overloaded wagons, and
dysentery, among others. Trails were poorly marked and hard to follow, and
travelers often lost their way. Guidebooks attempted to advise travelers, but
they were often unreliable. In 1846, the Donner Party set out from
Illinois armed with one such guidebook, which gave them such poor advice that
the party found itself snowbound in the High Sierra. The group finally reached
its destination in California only after turning to cannibalism in order to
survive.
There were many trails leading to the Far West. Southwestern travelers more
often than not used the Santa Fe Trail to move westward. Routes to the
Northwest varied, but the Oregon Trail became the best known and most often
followed pathway to the northwest. Though it was commonly traveled, settlers
still faced difficult journeys westward. Travelers along these overland trails
survived by cooperating with each other in wagon trains. Though many brought a
liberal spirit to the West, firmly entrenched traditions dictated the operations
of the wagon trains. Women packed and unpacked the wagons, cooked, milked cows,
tended to children, and aided in childbirth. Men were responsible for yoking
and unyoking the oxen, driving the wagons, and making up hunting parties.
Between 1840 and 1848, an estimated 11,500 followed the overland trails to
Oregon, and nearly 3,000 reached California.
Settlers flocked to the Far West for many reasons. They sought adventure,
farmland, an escape from the constraints of civilization, and new starts.
California was attractive because of its climate and the fact that the Spanish
and Mexicans had begun to organize the territory through the mission system.
However, Oregon proved far more attractive to many settlers. Discovered and
explored by the British, Oregon was jointly occupied by the British and
Americans, who, though they had not yet settled the territory, had set the stage
for settlement by sending white missionaries and drawing maps. Oregon seemed
more likely than California to be annexed by the United States, thus settlers
who desired stability and wanted to maintain a close link with their home
country chose Oregon over California, leading to its more rapid development.
The Willamette Valley offered fertile farmland and the assured company of other
American settlers, whereas the Sacramento Valley was less well known and put the
white settlers in geographic proximity to the Mexican settlers, who many
Americans found distasteful.
It was not purely the uncertain promise of fertile land that provoked Americans
to make the long journey from the Midwest across the Rocky Mountains. Constant
news sent east fueled the fire of expansion to a great extent. Many of these
reports simply stated the facts, that there was a vast amount of unclaimed land
in the far west, and that with a lot of hard work and a little luck, an American
settler could be successful in farming. However, the effect on the American
psyche of elaborate fictions about the West cannot be underestimated. During
the 1840s the legend of the West began to unfold itself in earnest. One story
told of a 250 year-old man who lived in California who had to leave the
bounteous region when he wanted to die. Other stories told of feats of great
daring and bravery on the part of western settlers, and advanced notions of
geographical wonders and trees that grew higher than the eye could see. These
stories produced the desired effect of stimulating interest in the West, and on
top of the factual promise of open land and a new beginning, convinced many to
undertake the perilous journey. Throughout the long process of settling the
American West, the legend of the West would grow and become a symbol of the
rugged adventurousness of western settlers.
Despite the many reasons to migrate westward, the numbers that amassed in Oregon
and California were modest, and migration was concentrated between 1844 and
1848. Even so, small numbers had a large effect on the Pacific coast. The
British were unable to settle Oregon, and thus the concentration of Americans in
the Willamette Valley boded well for the prospect of American annexation. In
California, the Mexican population was small and scattered. They had gradually
lost their allegiance to the Mexican government as it had gradually lost touch
with them. This created a situation in which American settlers carried great
clout in the development of the settled regions, and in effect the American
government many fiercely loyal agents throughout the Southwest.
