Lesson 7.05: Go West Young Man

• Introduction
• Learn
• Try It
• Task

Introduction

Analyze the photograph. What stands out to you in the photo? Notice the ruts in the ground. These ruts were made over 150 years before the picture was taken. What do you think could have caused the ruts in the ground? What does this tell us about the number of settlers who must have traveled the Oregon Trail?

“Go west young man, go west, and grow up with the country” is a phrase that was attributed to newspaperman Horace Greeley for a hundred and fifty years. Although research hasn’t found the definite source of who “first” said it, some researchers claim even Greeley denied it. Nevertheless, it became a popular mantra for all the adventurers that set out to cross the continent.

Rollover the image to learn to see another image that shows just how deep the ruts were in certain places.

The tourists in these Oregon Trail ruts reveal how deep the ruts are. Think how many wagons must have passed this way to create ruts this deep. Roll your cursor over the image to see the tourists.