As a child, I distinctly remember reading the Little House books and getting completely wrapped up in the story of Laura Ingalls and her pioneer family as they moved from settlement to settlement in their covered wagon. This photograph of a family in Nebraska finally gave me a real-life image of what that might have looked like.
When this photograph was taken in 1866, the Transcontinental Railroad was not yet complete, and the concept of an automobile hadn’t even been dreamt up. In fact, the ground this family is standing on in Nebraska was not yet considered a state, but rather just a territory. This photo interested me because although it was taken during a time of what is commonly referred to as “rapid” westward expansion, the journey this family was taking in their horse-drawn covered wagon likely took them weeks or months.
This photograph demonstrates the difficulties of transportation before railways were widely common, and before automobiles had even been invented. The wagon appears to be made of wood, with only a cloth covering to protect the family from any harsh weather. The family is also in the middle of an expansive plain, with no sign of even a flat dirt road underneath the wheels of their wagon, indicating that the journey was likely extremely rough, and that for many settlers, transportation did not involve established transportation routes.
I think this photo also shows the impact that advancements in transportation would have on settlers. All of these family’s worldly possessions are shown in this photograph. Whatever they wanted to bring with them on their journey had to fit in their covered wagon, which all five family members also had to live out of for the duration of their journey. Once railroads, and eventually automobiles, became more common, the long and difficult cross-country journeys with minimal supplies became much faster and more manageable. Additionally, this family doesn't seem to be close to any type of town or settlement, and more efficient transportation methods would allow small towns to develop in many of the rural parts of the United States.
Analyzing this photo is crucial to understanding just how revolutionary the automobile would be for personal transportation methods in America, and the impact that it would have not only on individual families, but for the entire country as well.
Photograph Citation:
"Photograph of a Family with Their Covered Wagon During the Great Western Migration."Docs Teach. National Archives. Web. 26 Jan. 2015.
<http://docsteach.org/documents/518267/detail?menu=closed&mode=search&sortBy=relevance&q=covered wagon&commit=Go&era[]=civil-war-and-reconstruction&era[]=the-development-of-the-industrial-united-states>.
When this photograph was taken in 1866, the Transcontinental Railroad was not yet complete, and the concept of an automobile hadn’t even been dreamt up. In fact, the ground this family is standing on in Nebraska was not yet considered a state, but rather just a territory. This photo interested me because although it was taken during a time of what is commonly referred to as “rapid” westward expansion, the journey this family was taking in their horse-drawn covered wagon likely took them weeks or months.
This photograph demonstrates the difficulties of transportation before railways were widely common, and before automobiles had even been invented. The wagon appears to be made of wood, with only a cloth covering to protect the family from any harsh weather. The family is also in the middle of an expansive plain, with no sign of even a flat dirt road underneath the wheels of their wagon, indicating that the journey was likely extremely rough, and that for many settlers, transportation did not involve established transportation routes.
I think this photo also shows the impact that advancements in transportation would have on settlers. All of these family’s worldly possessions are shown in this photograph. Whatever they wanted to bring with them on their journey had to fit in their covered wagon, which all five family members also had to live out of for the duration of their journey. Once railroads, and eventually automobiles, became more common, the long and difficult cross-country journeys with minimal supplies became much faster and more manageable. Additionally, this family doesn't seem to be close to any type of town or settlement, and more efficient transportation methods would allow small towns to develop in many of the rural parts of the United States.
Analyzing this photo is crucial to understanding just how revolutionary the automobile would be for personal transportation methods in America, and the impact that it would have not only on individual families, but for the entire country as well.
Photograph Citation:
"Photograph of a Family with Their Covered Wagon During the Great Western Migration."Docs Teach. National Archives. Web. 26 Jan. 2015.
<http://docsteach.org/documents/518267/detail?menu=closed&mode=search&sortBy=relevance&q=covered wagon&commit=Go&era[]=civil-war-and-reconstruction&era[]=the-development-of-the-industrial-united-states>.