Who idea was it to make the Mormon trail?

Answer 1

There were reasons why the Latter-day Saints (sometimes called "Mormons") chose to blaze their own trail, rather than rely exclusively on the active portions of the Oregon Trail. As Brigham Young and the other apostles of the church met to discuss their route west, they had to be mindful of many different factors.

Some who had traveled to Oregon had reported many obstacles along the way, including (but certainly not limited to) hostile tribes, lack of fresh water or game at certain points, and limited availability of trading posts or forts between St. Louis, Missouri (the jumping-off point for many Oregon-bound travellers) and the Oregon territory.

Also, the church leaders never intended to reach any destination but the Great Basin of the Salt Lake valley. Hence a new path would need to be forged to accommodate the large numbers of emmigrants that would be making the journey.

One other consideration for keeping to their own trail was the potential hostility of those travelling to Oregon from states where the Saints were considered enemies, such as Illinois and Missouri. Primarily for this reason, they tended to travel along opposite shores when, for example, they followed a river such as the Platte.