Wagon Travel

Two hundred years ago, “By land” meant walking. You walked or your animal walked as you sat on their back or in a buggy or wagon pulled by an animal. Animal drawn wagons carried freight, produce, your household goods and family from one place to another. The roads traveled were raw, dirt trails. At times, they were choked with mud or clogged by fallen trees, rock slides or drifting snow. A few roads were toll roads and might have sections of “corduroy” road which were paved with logs. What a jarring experience that must have been! Rivers and streams had to be crossed. Maybe a toll bridge was available and the traveler paid a fee to keep their feet dry. In other places, a large raft might be available to take your animals, wagon and family across a river. This was called a “ferry” and might be a family business. A family member would float you across the river by pulling on a rope tied to a tree on each shore or push the raft across with a long pole. There was a fee for this service. In more rural areas, you might swim your livestock and float your wagon across a river. You had no other choices. Sometimes animals and people drowned during these swims. As there was no highway system, the road signs were probably few and far apart. Large groups of people hired a guide to show the way. Others relied on crude maps, landmarks they were told about or asked folks they might see along the way.