Why People Mirgrated West to Oregon Essay - 1513 Words

Why did people migrate west – especially to Oregon? Can you imagine how hard and dangerous it would be to take your family and move to an unknown territory, where only a handful of people have visited? Why would people even go to this new land? Well people had different motivations for traveling west, but the common cause was simple. Travelling west was an opportunity for people to start new lives. The chance for a fresh start, a better life, and the chance to make your own fortune motivated hundreds of thousands. Exploring a new territory and expanding our new nation took courage, curiosity and the opportunity to make a fortune. The idea of spreading our country from coast to coast is called Manifest Destiny. Manifest Destiny is the†¦show more content†¦The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutters Mill in Coloma, California. The Oregon trail bisected two major Native American tribes the Cheyenne to the North and the Pawnee to the South. The majority of Americans who made the trip to Oregon never had encountered a Native American tribe and most believed they were hostile and vicious people which was far from the truth. Most encounters with Native Americans were just business encounters. The emigrants offered clothes tobacco or rifles and the Natives offered food and horses. Some violent encounters between these two groups of people were the Bear River Massacre and the Grattan Massacre. According to(2) the Grattan Massacre happened over a cow that had roamed off and was eaten by a Sioux village in Nebraska and men from fort Laramie went to the village and the tribe offered them any of the tribes 60 horses. The men denied and asked for 25$ instead and then attacked the village. They fatally wounded Bear(chief) and then Lieutenant Grattan was annihilated. These were bloody encounters where both sides likely suffered significant losses. Other factors that affected emigrants moving west was mother nature. Whether it was the brutal cold of the Rocky Mountains and Northern Plains or the wild river rapids danger was everywhere. Its and extremely dangerous trip and in