Donner party Concepts

California

by Sara Benson · 15 Oct 2010

, Americans began arriving in the trading post of Los Angeles via the Santa Fe Trail. The northern passes through the Sierras were trickier, as the Donner Party (Click here) tragically discovered in 1846 – stranded in a desolate mountain pass, they resorted to cannibalism. The US saw potential in California, but when US

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to buy Northern California, but Mexico testily refuses, and tries to sell California as a package deal to England. 1846 Sierra Nevada blizzards cause the Donner Party of settlers to eat their own, but thanks to five women and two men who snowshoe 100 miles for help, just over half the party

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; 9am-5pm Mon-Fri) houses, among other gems, the papers of Mark Twain, a copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio and the records of the Donner Party (see the boxed text,). Its small public exhibits of historical Californiana include the surprisingly small gold nugget that sparked the 1849 Gold Rush. You must

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and its proximity to Lake Tahoe and world-class ski resorts. West of Truckee, 3-mile-long Donner Lake is a busy recreational hub. The Donner Party (see boxed text, opposite) camped nearby during the fateful winter of 1846. Donner Summit, further west, has six downhill and cross-country ski resorts. Orientation

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with relics from the wild days of yore, and George ‘Machine Gun’ Kelly was reportedly once held here for shoplifting at a local store. * * * THE DONNER PARTY In the 19th century, tens of thousands of people migrated west along the Overland Trail with dreams of a better life in California. Among them

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was the ill-fated Donner Party. When the families of George and Jacob Donner and their friend James Reed departed Springfield, Illinois, in April 1846 with six wagons and a herd

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fresh meat. He spent the rest of his life trying to clear his name. In the end, only 47 of the 89 members of the Donner Party survived. They settled in California, their lives forever changed by the harrowing winter at Donner Lake. * * * DONNER LAKE Warmer than Lake Tahoe, tree-lined Donner

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lake’s eastern end, Donner Memorial State Park ( 530-582-7892; www.parks.ca.gov; vehicle fee $6) occupies one of three sites where the Donner Party got trapped (see boxed text, above). Though its history is gruesome, the park is lovely and has a nice campground Click here, a sandy beach

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Trail Museum ( 530-582-7892; admission $6; 9am-4pm, longer hr possible Jun-Aug), which has exhibits and a 25-minute film re-enacting the Donner Party’s horrific plight, and is slated for a major revamping soon. Outside, the Pioneer Monument has a 22ft pedestal – the exact depth of the snow

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Brewing Co. ( 530-587-2337; 11197 Brockway Rd) Inhale the aroma of toasting grains at this brand-new brewpub near Hwy 267. Try the popular Donner Party Porter with some upscale pub grub or just a huge plate of nachos. Getting There & Around Greyhound has daily buses to Reno ($14.50, one

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general José Maria Castro, who led a successful revolt against an unpopular governor, and in 1848 was bought by the Breen family, survivors of the Donner Party disaster (see the boxed text,). Eleven miles south of town, Fremont Peak State Park ( 831-623-4255; San Juan Canyon Rd; per vehicle $4; 8am

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a larger emigrant group along the Old Spanish Trail, taking a sensible southern route to avoid crossing the Sierra Nevada in winter and repeating the Donner party disaster of 1846–47 (see the boxed text,). Taking what they hoped would be a shortcut to the California goldfields, the small party struggled across

Northern California Travel Guide

by Lonely Planet

; ZDowntown Berkeley)F The Bancroft houses, among other gems, the papers of Mark Twain, a copy of Shakespeare’s folios and a diary from the Donner Party. Its small public exhibits of historical Californiana include the surprisingly small gold nugget that sparked the 1849 gold rush. Rotating temporary exhibits spotlight history and

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, the Castro-Breen Adobe once belonged to Mexican general and governor José Castro. In 1848 it was bought by the Breen family, survivors of the Donner Party disaster. 4Sleeping & Eating San Juan Bautista features a few B&Bs but is conveniently visited as a day trip from Santa Cruz or Monterey. Fremont

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; per car $8; h10am-5pm; pc) At the eastern end of Donner Lake, this state-run park occupies one of the sites where the doomed Donner Party got trapped during the fateful winter of 1846. Though its history is gruesome, the park is gorgeous and has a sandy beach, picnic tables, hiking

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and snowshoeing. The entry fee includes admission to the visitor center, which has fascinating, if macabre, historical exhibits and a 25-minute film reenacting the Donner Party’s horrific plight. There are also displays about the Chinese workers who turned from gold mining to building California's railways. Outside, the Pioneer Monument

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once held here for shoplifting at a local variety store, and ‘Baby Face’ Nelson and ‘Ma’ Spinelli and her gang did time too. THE DOOMED DONNER PARTY In the 19th century, tens of thousands of people migrated west along the Overland Trail with dreams of a better life in California. Among them

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was the ill-fated Donner Party. When the families of George and Jacob Donner and their friend James Reed departed Springfield, IL, in April 1846 with six wagons and a herd

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fresh meat. He spent the rest of his life trying to clear his name. In the end, only 47 of the 89 members of the Donner Party survived. They settled in California, their lives forever changed by the harrowing winter at Donner Lake. 2Activities Northstar Mountain Bike ParkMOUNTAIN BIKING ( MAP GOOGLE MAP

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, to 9:30pm Fri & Sat) Inhale the aroma of toasting grains at this brewpub south of downtown, near the Hwy 267 intersection. Sip the popular Donner Party Porter or Eclipse barrel-aged imperial stout while noshing a huge plate of nachos or other pub grub. 8Information Truckee Donner Chamber of Commerce ( GOOGLE

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, but this necessitated crossing the Sierra Nevada, which you had to time just right, lest you get trapped by snow – as happened to the infamous Donner Party, tragically stranded at the summit, near Truckee, and forced into cannibalism to survive. Despite distance and terrain, the US saw potential in California, but when

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inherits 21 missions in various states of disrepair, along with unruly Californio cowboys and a decimated Native American population. 1846 Sierra Nevada blizzards strand the Donner Party of settlers, some of whom avoid starvation by eating their dead companions. Five women and two men snowshoe 100 miles for help. 1848 Treaty of

Fodor's California 2014

by Fodor's · 5 Nov 2013 · 1,540pp · 400,759 words

., near Spring St. | 96161 | 530/587–8808 | www.truckee.com. Exploring Donner Memorial State Park and Emigrant Trail Museum. The park and museum commemorate the Donner Party, westward-bound pioneers—about 90; historians debate the exact number—who became trapped in the Sierra in the winter of 1846–47 in snow 22

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feet deep. Barely more than half the pioneers survived, some by resorting to cannibalism. The Emigrant Trail Museum details the Donner Party’s plight, and other displays explain railroad development through the Sierra. In the park, you can picnic, hike, camp, and go boating, fishing, and waterskiing

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brings cross-country skiing and snowshoeing on groomed trails. Slated for a 2014 debut, a new High Sierra Crossing Museum will contain exhibits about the Donner Party, regional Native Americans, and railroad and transportation development through Donner Pass. | 12593 Donner Pass Rd., off I–80, 2 miles west of Truckee | 96161 | 530

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| 530/587–0557 | www.dragonflycuisine.com. FiftyFifty Brewing Company. AMERICAN | In this Truckee brewpub, warm red tones and comfy booths, plus a pint of the Donner Party Porter, will take the nip out of a cold day on the slopes. The lunch-into-dinner menu includes salads, burgers, and the house specialty

Moon Oregon Trail Road Trip: Historic Sites, Small Towns, and Scenic Landscapes Along the Legendary Westward Route

by Katrina Emery and Moon Travel Guides · 27 Jul 2020 · 608pp · 184,703 words

pioneer era at the Arabia Steamboat Museum (click here). S See pioneer names carved into stone at Alcove Springs, a beautiful natural haven where the Donner Party once rested (click here). Oregon Fever! The obsession gripped the nation as economic failures rippled through farms and banks in the East in the late

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one of the earliest guidebooks of the trail, which later become notorious for promoting a spurious shortcut to California, the Hastings Cutoff, which led the Donner Party to tragedy. Getting There From the Rice-Tremonti Home, continue just a few minutes south on Blue Ridge Boulevard, for 0.6 mile (1 km

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known to Native Americans and then fur trappers of the region, the spring was given its name by Edwin Bryant, a member of the notorious Donner Party; they stopped to rest here in 1846 while waiting to ford the Big Blue River. Party member George McKinstry carved the new name, Alcove Springs

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, into the rocks, and J. R. Reed carved his signature; these and other carvings can still be seen today. A Pioneer Story: The Donner Party The Donner Party, or Donner-Reed Party, is notorious today for resorting to cannibalism to survive the deadly cold of the Sierra Nevadas. The party struck out from

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River once flowed. You’ll continue on to the Emigrant Camp, where there’s a headstone for Sarah Keyes—one of the members of the Donner Party, who died here at age 70 from consumption. Deep swales still exist in the prairie; the tracks head straight down the hill, where pioneers forded

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to 250 of the 1,000 members died, and many others lost limbs or extremities to frostbite. It’s a tragedy that dramatically outstrips the Donner Party—which lost 42 members—yet remains relatively little known in U.S. history. Today, the Mormon Church leases the land near Devil’s Gate and

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Pass and through the arid high desert. In the early days of the trail, this was also where some California-bound emigrants, such as the Donner Party in 1846, took the ill-fated Hastings Cutoff. Advertised and encouraged by the spurious guide Lansford Hastings, the route went southwest from Fort Bridger toward

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down to the Bay of St. Francisco.” He neatly forgot to mention the desert and subsequent rugged peaks of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where the Donner Party would be trapped by early snowstorms and reduced to cannibalism to survive. Mormon emigrants split from the Oregon and California Trails at Fort Bridger, heading

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new trail, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. The most famous shortcut mistake was the Hastings Cutoff, which left the trail in Wyoming and resulted in the Donner Party tragedy. Leaving Soda Springs, the main Oregon-California Trail for years went northwest in a direct attempt to reach Fort Hall, navigating between mountain peaks

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on the trail. 1846: Sam Barlow builds his road around Mount Hood so that emigrants don’t need to raft the wild Columbia River. The Donner Party travels the trail to California but is tragically trapped by heavy snows in the Sierra Nevadas. 1847: Marcus and Narcissa Whitman are killed in the

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): 213 Devil’s Gate (Massacre Rocks): 269 Devil’s Washbowl: 291 disabilities, access for travelers with: 426 disc golf: 270 Discovery Center of Idaho: 303 Donner Party: 103 Dorion, Marie: 312 Double Mountain Brewery: 368 Doug Fir Lounge: 37, 401 Douglas: 27, 35, 196-200 Douglas Railroad Interpretive Museum & Visitor Center: 196

The Men Who United the States: America's Explorers, Inventors, Eccentrics and Mavericks, and the Creation of One Nation, Indivisible

by Simon Winchester · 14 Oct 2013 · 501pp · 145,097 words

the local livery stable and secured a pair of strong horses. They then started up the trail—unmarked, except for some relic scars of the Donner party and their rescuers of fourteen years before. It took some hours as they hacked their way through the sweet-smelling pines and over small creeks

A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains

by Isabella Lucy Bird and Daniel J. Boorstin · 1 Jan 1873 · 536pp · 79,887 words

.: 112, 118, 124, 186, 204 Digger Indians: see Indians Divide: see Continental Divide Divide of the Arkansas: see Arkansas Divide Donner Lake, Calif.: 19-21 Donner party: 20-21 E Edwards, "Griff": 110, 111, 118, 186, 200, 201, 213, 233, 238 Mrs. Edwards, 84, 134, 186 English: women's reputation in America

Parks Directory of the United States

by Darren L. Smith and Kay Gill · 1 Jan 2004

American River, a Wild and Scenic river; three forks of the Yuba River; excellent fishing at Jackson Meadows and Stampede reservoirs; historic sites from the Donner Party, the Gold Rush era, and prehistoric Native Americans. 3. National Forests and Grasslands PARKS DIRECTORY OF THE UNITED STATES—5th EDITION Size: Almost 1,000

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ramp access, visitor center, museum, exhibits (uu). Activities: Camping, fishing, boating, sailing, hiking, swimming, windsurfing, water-skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing. Special Features: The illfated Donner Party, halted by heavy snows, camped here during the winter of 1846. Park’s Emigrant Trail Museum features exhibits on the

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Donner Party and area history. Near the museum is the Pioneer Monument and the Donner Party’s Murphy family cabin site. Activities: Camping, hiking, bicycling, fishing, swimming, surfing, guided tours. Special Features: Terrain includes a

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, hiking, horseback riding, wildlife observation. Special Features: Park sits among rust-colored sand dunes which change shape and position with the prevailing winds. history. The Donner Party passed through in 1846; a year later Mormon pioneers, including Brigham Young, passed this way. ★4406★ EDGE OF THE CEDARS STATE PARK MUSEUM 660 West

USA Travel Guide

by Lonely, Planet

Gorge ( 530-426-3871; www.royalgorge.com; off I-80) , paradise for cross-country skiers. West of Hwy 89, Donner Summit is where the infamous Donner Party became trapped during the fierce winter of 1846–47. Led astray by their guidebook, less than half survived – by cannibalizing their dead friends. The grisly

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St; dinner mains $18-40; 11:30am-9:30pm Sun-Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat) sources locally ranched meats and seasonal produce. Down pints of ‘Donner Party Porter’ at Fifty Fifty Brewing Co (www.fiftyfiftybrewing.com; 11197 Brockway Rd) across the tracks. Getting There & Around South Tahoe Express ( 866-898-2463; www

Frommer's California 2007

by Harry Basch, Mark Hiss, Erika Lenkert and Matthew Richard Poole · 6 Dec 2006 · 769pp · 397,677 words

. Settled in 1849, it offers fine dining and shopping and a stock of the multigabled Victorian frame houses of the Old West. Relics of the Donner Party are on display at the 1861 Firehouse No. 1. See “The Gold Country” in chapter 10. • Pacific Grove: Escape beach crowds just 2 miles west

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, including the Firehouse Number 1 Museum, 214 Main St. (& 530/265-5468), with bell tower, gingerbread decoration, a small museum that displays mementos from the Donner Party, a Maidu Indian basket collection, and an altar from a temple originally located in the Chinese section of Grass Valley. Admission is free. It’s

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; the Plaza Hall, its adjoining stables and blacksmith shop; and the Castro House, where the Breen family lived after traveling here with the ill-fated Donner Party in 1846. Allow 11⁄2 to 2 hours to see the entire plaza. Admission to the park buildings is $2 for adults, $1 for children

Western USA

by Lonely Planet

Gorge ( 530-426-3871; www.royalgorge.com; off I-80), paradise for cross-country skiers. West of Hwy 89, Donner Summit is where the infamous Donner Party became trapped during the fierce winter of 1846–47. Led astray by their guidebook, less than half survived – by cannibalizing their dead friends. The grisly

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St; dinner mains $18-40; 11:30am-9:30pm Sun-Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat) sources locally ranched meats and seasonal produce. Down pints of ‘Donner Party Porter’ at Fifty Fifty Brewing Co (www.fiftyfiftybrewing.com; 11197 Brockway Rd) across the tracks. Getting There & Around South Tahoe Express ( 866-898-2463; www