200 



GUTDKBOOK 



Humboldt River by the renowned mountaineer, Joe W 



guided 



second was that to Cahfornia in 1S46 during hostilitie 

 United States and Mexico. Bancroft says: 



dker. The 

 between the 



imtry — one 



every ^yay desirable to settle in; that it was thinly peopled and except along the sea- 

 board almost unoccupied; and that now the Nation was roused to arms, engaged in a 



sition of all that teiTitory by the stronger. 



with _ _._ ^ ^ _„ ..„. 



* * * 



The result j^roved as had been 



anticipated; scarcely had the emigrants of 1846 arrived in the valley of California 

 ■when the whole magnificent domain fell a prize into the lap of the United States. 



It was during the second of these migrations that the Donncr 

 tragod}" ^ occurred. 



,000 



the Hastings cut-off. 



grants were gathered at Independence, 

 Mo., wail ing for the grass of the plains to 

 attain sufficient growth for feed for their 

 cattle before commencing the long jour- 

 ney to the Pacific coast. Some of these 

 were bound for Oregon and the rest for 

 California. Among the parties that were 

 finally formed for the journey was one 

 known as the Donner, or Heed and Don- 

 ner party. It consisted of the brothers 

 George and Jacob Donner and their fam- 

 ilies and others, making in all about 88 

 persons; 24 were men, 15 women, and 

 43 children. It was a well-equipped 

 party, and George Donner, a man of some 

 wealth, who was at its head, was carrying 

 a stock of merchandise for sale in Califor- 

 nia. For a time all went well. Most of 

 the emigrants of those days followed the 

 Oregon Trail nortluvard as far as Fort 

 Hall, Idaho, and then, turning south- 

 west, crossed to Humboldt River in Ne- 

 vada and so went west to the Sierra. At ^ay westward across Nevada' 



Both parties left 



Fort Bridger, Wyo., however, the party 

 met a man whose advice was to cause 



Fort Bridger on July 28. 



At the start the Donner party followed 

 approximately the present route of the 

 Union Pacific Railroad and had little difii- 

 culty until they reached Weber Canyon, 

 where the roads seemed impassable for 

 wagons. Making a detour to avoid this 

 canyon, they did not reach Salt Lake 

 until September 1. From September 9 

 to 14 the party were crossing Salt Lake 

 desert, going around the south end of the 

 lake by the route wliich is approximately 

 that of the Western Pacific Railway to- 

 day. Here disaster began to overtake 

 them. Some of the oxen died of thirst, a 

 part of the wagons and goods had to be 

 abandoned, and some of the party were 

 forced to walk. Rations were short and 

 the first snows of the season commenced. 

 The cattle were attacked and stolen l>y 

 Indians and the situation gradually be- 

 came desperate. Slowly they made their 



their ruin. 



Hastingi 



had led a party of emigrants across to 

 Oregon in 1842 and had returned and pub- 

 lished a guide to Oregon and California, 

 now claimed to have discovered a shorter 

 route whirh would save 200 miles over 

 the old route by Fort Hall. After de- 

 days the emigrants 



liberating several 



On October 19 the standing emigrants 

 met a relief party with some provisions at 

 the lower crossing of Truckee River (site of 

 Wadsworth). After resting a few days the 

 party proceeded up by Truckee Meadows 

 (Reno) and finally, on October 31, reached 

 the vicinity of Truckee. Here the winter 

 snows overtook them. On December 16 

 some of the party attempted to escape by 

 crossing the summit on snowshoes. A 



divided 





Fort Hall, reached California in safety 

 but the Donner party, who had elected 

 George Donner captaiir*cid...1 in t^. 



and told of the plight of their companions. 

 \\TiGn the rescue parties reached Donner 



Lake 



•mped at the lake ha 



36 of the 81 who 



