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Pioneers and prospectors traveled west during this time period because of the innumerable possibilities and opportunities that lay ahead:

  • Land was cheap and available in huge tracts
  • Gold was in abundance
  • The option to improve one's life was present (meaning they had the chance to start over or "strike it rich")
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Q: Why did people like the Donner Party go west?
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How did the story of The donner Party help to strike down the myth of frontier idealism?

The Donner Party revealed what could happen, if things went wrong. Previous stories were always about the wonderful things that could happen when settlers went west, such as adventure and the possibility of finding one's destiny. The story of the Donner Party showed the dark side. The tale of cannibalism, and the loss of nearly half the party, took much of the glamour away from going west.


How does the donner party apply to westward expansion?

The Donner Party was a group of western settlers who left for the west too late in the summer and got stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the winter. They became snowbound and most of the group died. The conditions they suffered under are legendary.


When did the donner party get to California?

The Donner Party took place between May of 1846 and February of 1847.


How are the Donner party and the Lewis and Clark expedition similar?

Similarities: -Both were huge expeditions across the continent. -Both could be considered "risky" - the Lewis and Clark for the fact this was completely uncharted territory, the Donner Party for the fact they had never traveled the "shortcut" route before. -Both taught a valuable lesson - Lewis and Clark Expedition, mapped the country, the Donner Party for the risks of moving west. That's all I have, hope it helped!


What was the snowshoe expedition of the donner party?

It was an expedition within an expedition (sometimes referred to as an inception) that involved a number of the group trying to find help by snow-shoeing west into California. The party was massively split and faced death, and only around 7 of the 15-20 members reached California for help.

Related questions

What mountains did the donner party have to cross?

There was only one major mountain range that the Donner Party had to cross through. The Rocky Mountain. The Rockys caused a lot of trouble for the people going out to west. The Donner Party took off late from Independence, MO, so the Donner Party got stuck in the Rockys. That's what caused the Donner Party to become so famous and the number of people going to the west decreased dramatically. Then the Gold Rush started and the numbers went way up.


Why only 45 of 81 people in the Donner Party survived on their journey west?

becauce it was rare


How was the donner party an American nightmare?

The Donner party proved how dangerous moving west in the United States could be, and how many things could go wrong.


How did the story of The donner Party help to strike down the myth of frontier idealism?

The Donner Party revealed what could happen, if things went wrong. Previous stories were always about the wonderful things that could happen when settlers went west, such as adventure and the possibility of finding one's destiny. The story of the Donner Party showed the dark side. The tale of cannibalism, and the loss of nearly half the party, took much of the glamour away from going west.


What group was traped in the snow and had 87 members die when traveling west?

That was the Donner Party. A group of pioneers who resorted to cannibalism to survive.


How does the donner party apply to westward expansion?

The Donner Party was a group of western settlers who left for the west too late in the summer and got stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the winter. They became snowbound and most of the group died. The conditions they suffered under are legendary.


When did the donner party get to California?

The Donner Party took place between May of 1846 and February of 1847.


How are the Donner party and the Lewis and Clark expedition similar?

Similarities: -Both were huge expeditions across the continent. -Both could be considered "risky" - the Lewis and Clark for the fact this was completely uncharted territory, the Donner Party for the fact they had never traveled the "shortcut" route before. -Both taught a valuable lesson - Lewis and Clark Expedition, mapped the country, the Donner Party for the risks of moving west. That's all I have, hope it helped!


What is the donner party about?

The Donner Party is the name of a wagon train that set out for California in the spring of 1846. They experienced many difficulties along the way and were belated. When they reached the Sierra Nevada, they were trapped by an early snowfall and had to spend the winter in the Rocky Mountains. They ran out of food and several starved to death. Some of the emigrants ate their dead companions to stay alive. Between February and April 1847 rescue parties from California brought the survivors out. The story of the Donner party spread back to east so the the number of people going out to west dropped incredibly. But in 1849, James Marshall found gold in a mountain in California. The news spread very quickly to east and the number of people going out to west increased dramatically. The people who went to California to find gold were called the 49ers and the event was called the California Gold Rush.


Who wrote the immigrants guide to the west?

Lansford W. Hastings wrote the immigrants guide to the west. But the problem was Hastings never had actually been to california, which is where the donner party was headed. He said there was a shortcut, but he lied, he has never been there, he only did it for money.


The Donner Pass is located where?

Donner Pass (el. 7085 ft. / 2160 m.) is a high mountain pass in the northern Sierra Nevada, located above Donner Lake about nine miles west of Truckee, CA. It is traversed by US Route 40 (Donner Pass Road). I-80 crosses the crest about 2 miles north of Donner Pass.


Why Were the murderers of Joseph Smith traveling with the Donner Party?

There has never been any definitive proof that any of those who participated in the assassination of Joseph Smith found their way into the doomed Donner Party. The men who participated in the prophet's martyrdom called themselves the Carthage Grays. It may never be known who actually fired the shots that killed Joseph and his brother, Hyrum; the shots were fired both from the stairway immediately outside the room where they were staying, and from the grounds below the window of that room. There have been stories over the years that some members of the Grays made their way west, but no documentation exists that any of the Donner Party were members of that mob.