Best of Covered Wagon Women: Emigrant Girls on the Overland Trails

Emigrant Girls on the Overland Trails

Nonfiction, History, Americas, United States, 19th Century, Biography & Memoir
Cover of the book Best of Covered Wagon Women: Emigrant Girls on the Overland Trails by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto, University of Oklahoma Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto ISBN: 9780806183046
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press Publication: November 28, 2011
Imprint: University of Oklahoma Press Language: English
Author: Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
ISBN: 9780806183046
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
Publication: November 28, 2011
Imprint: University of Oklahoma Press
Language: English

The diaries and letters of women on the overland trails in the mid- to late nineteenth century are treasured documents. These eleven selections drawn from the multivolume Covered Wagon Women series present the best first-person trail accounts penned by women in their teens who traveled west between 1846 and 1898. Ranging in age from eleven to nineteen, unmarried and without children of their own, these diarists had experiences different from those of older women who carried heavier responsibilities with them on the trail.

These letters and diaries reflect both the unique perspective of youthful optimism and the experiences common among all female emigrants. The young women write of friendship and family, trail hardships, and explorations such as visits to Indian gravesites. Some like Sallie Hester even write of enjoying the company of men, and many speculate about marriage prospects. Domestic roles did not define the girls’ trail experience; only the four oldest in this collection recorded helping with chores. As they journey through Indian lands, these writers show that even their youth did not prevent them from holding notions of white racial superiority.

Two of the selections are newly published, having appeared only in limited-distribution collector’s editions of the original series. For all readers captivated by the first Best of Covered Wagon Women collection, this new volume’s focus on youthful travelers adds a fresh perspective to life on the trail.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The diaries and letters of women on the overland trails in the mid- to late nineteenth century are treasured documents. These eleven selections drawn from the multivolume Covered Wagon Women series present the best first-person trail accounts penned by women in their teens who traveled west between 1846 and 1898. Ranging in age from eleven to nineteen, unmarried and without children of their own, these diarists had experiences different from those of older women who carried heavier responsibilities with them on the trail.

These letters and diaries reflect both the unique perspective of youthful optimism and the experiences common among all female emigrants. The young women write of friendship and family, trail hardships, and explorations such as visits to Indian gravesites. Some like Sallie Hester even write of enjoying the company of men, and many speculate about marriage prospects. Domestic roles did not define the girls’ trail experience; only the four oldest in this collection recorded helping with chores. As they journey through Indian lands, these writers show that even their youth did not prevent them from holding notions of white racial superiority.

Two of the selections are newly published, having appeared only in limited-distribution collector’s editions of the original series. For all readers captivated by the first Best of Covered Wagon Women collection, this new volume’s focus on youthful travelers adds a fresh perspective to life on the trail.

More books from University of Oklahoma Press

Cover of the book Moroni and the Swastika by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Women in the Peninsular War by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Maya Caciques in Early National Yucatán by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book The Man Who Captured Washington by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Transforming Ethnohistories by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Last of the Old-Time Outlaws by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Life in a Corner by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book The Indian Tipi: Its History, Construction, and Use by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Over the Santa Fe Trail to Mexico by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book The Sioux by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book At Sword's Point, Part 2 by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Slaughter at the Chapel by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Mapping Woody Guthrie by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Techniques of the Selling Writer by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
Cover of the book Colonial Intimacies by Kenneth L. Holmes, Melody M. Miyamoto
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy