What kind of food did the pioneers eat on the Oregon Trail?

The mainstays of a pioneer diet were simple fare like potatoes, beans and rice, hardtack (which is simply flour, water, 1 teaspoon each of salt and sugar, then baked), soda biscuits (flour, milk, one t. each of carbonate of soda and salt), Johnny cakes, cornbread, cornmeal mush, and bread.

What did the pioneers take with them?

The pioneers would take with them as many supplies as possible. They took cornmeal, bacon, eggs, potatoes, rice, beans, yeast, dried fruit, crackers, dried meat, and a large barrel of water that was tied to the side of the wagon. If the pioneers could take a cow, they would.

What killed most pioneers?

Diseases and serious illnesses caused the deaths of nine out of ten pioneers. Such diseases as cholera, small pox, flu, measles, mumps, tuberculosis could spread quickly through an entire wagon camp. Cholera was the main scourge of the trail.

What did the pioneers bring on the Oregon Trail?

The pioneers brought food on the Oregon Trail that had to last for months. But many people hunted or traded for fresh meat, too.

What kind of diseases were found on the Oregon Trail?

Three deadly diseases featured in The Oregon Trail – typhoid fever, cholera and dysentery– were caused by poor sanitation.

What weapons were brought on the Oregon Trail?

Weapons such as rifles, pistols, powder, lead, and shot were recommended for various acts. These acts include fighting off raiders or just for hunting different game along the trail. As for clothing, people brought at least three worm cotton and linean pieces of clothing that would last the whole journey.

What kind of sugar did they carry on the Oregon Trail?

Travelers mostly carried brown sugar, which went through fewer processes than white sugar, so it was cheaper. However, it still contained molasses, which could make the sugar run in the hot sun. Consequently, they sometimes added crushed sugar to get them through the latter part of the journey.

What did the pioneers eat on the Oregon Trail?

Meat from the hunt would be dried, used in stews or cooked over the fire. Many families packed fishing gear in their wagons so they could catch fish during the journey. While pioneers enjoyed freshly caught fish, they also traded Native Americans for fish and supplies.

How much food was allowed on the Oregon Trail?

The recommended weight limit for the wagons was 2,000 pounds. Just the food for one family could weigh from 1,300 to 1,800 pounds leaving very little room anything else. 2 Since there was no refrigeration, food had to be nonperishable or preserved by salting or pickling.

What kind of flour was used on the Oregon Trail?

Another type of flour available, middlings, contained much of the gluten that is just beneath the bran layer and was obtained when the mills first began using hard wheat. In the early years when the mills ground wheat, the gluten would stick to the bran.