In the early 1900s, the United States had an increase of settlers leaving their hometowns to the west in the faith of being able to live in a more catholic freedom world, others also joined by the inspiration of Manifest Destiny, a thought in which the Americans thought that everything between the Atlantic and the Pacific ocean is theirs and should therefore settled by them. A group, that was on the way to the western U.S., for those reasons in 1846, had a tragic loss of 34 settlers due to many tragic events. This group was led by George Donner, which was elected the leader of this group on 19 July 1846, this group inherited his name, called the Donner Party. The Donner Party consisted of the families of George Donner, his brother Jacob and James F. Reed of Springfield, Illinois, and a few hired workers, a total of 87 persons. Most groups usually followed the Oregon Trail, which brought them from East to West within 4 to 6 months. But then a guide called 'The Emigrants' Guide to Oregon and California' was released by Lansword Hasting, a lawyer who thought he has to remigrate Americans to California, this guide would lead them through a shorter way to the west, but was never traveled by anyone for this purpose, not even by himself. In the following, the diaries of the Donner Party will be cited and combined with the information known about the situations.
While the group was still in Springfield in preparation, it was extremely hard for many to move once more to the West, but it should be the last time. Virginia Reed, the 13 year old adopted daughter of James F. Reed, wrote in her diary: “My father, with tears in his eyes, tried to smile as one friend after another grasped his hand in a last farewell.” The hardness of letting go ...
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...lected as the main point of what caused all this tragedy. Taking a shortcut does not mean, that the quickest and safest way is chosen by any individual. It should be always considered that the common way of doing it can be the safest, and the shortcut, must not necessarily be the shortest.
Works Cited
"The Donner Party - Diaries." The Donner Party. Web. 02 May 2011. – Taken from the Original Diaries of The Donner Party .
"The Donner Party - Transcript." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Web. 03 May 2011. .
"Donner Party." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 01 May 2011. .
"Hastings Cutoff." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 02 May 2011. .
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Kelley, Mary. Introduction. The Power of Her Sympathy. By Catharine Maria Sedgwick. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society, 1993.
University of California, Harvard. "Immigration, Railroads, and the West." Open Collections Program: Immigration to the US,. Harvard University, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
Although the 1930 census, which was carried out in Oklahoma, suggests that there was a decrease in population, there is no evidence of migration from the region. Some historians also suggest that the Dust Bowl crisis was not the only cause of migration into California; some people moved to the place to look for financial boost for their farms. Historians must always remain truthful to the historical records despite the difficulty in their reconstructions. Historians normally analyze the past in ways ...
...ut to leaver her children who desperately pleaded for her. The saddened case was not an isolated but a common reality for many of the freed people who wished to reunite their dislocated families.
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