The Donner Party left on their journey westward in April 1846. The group was lead by Jacob and George Donner and their pan was to follow the California trail towards west Fort Bridger. Before they left though the brothers talked to Lansford Hastings and decided to follow his group on a new trail. AS they were in the middle of their journey they noticed a note that Lansford had left them. The note said that the trail from here got a lot harder and that he would soon return with a new path to take. So they stayed and waited but Lansford never showed up. The group sent someone to Lansford and when he got back he carried the news from Lansford to try a new trail that he thought out. The new trail actually turned out to be worse than the trail they were on. On October 28 snowfall blocked the mountain passes. Leaving the group trapped. The group was out of food and freezing cold. With no other way to survive they resorted to cannibalism (or so legend has it). 45 out of 89 emigrants reached California the next year.
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Why did they migrate?
The Donner Party migrated because of the theory of manifest destiny. They wanted to discover the west land. Hopefully when they got there they would make this their new home. What was the impact? the impact of the Donner party was that they helped in gaining westward land. They also proved to future travelers that were planning to go west that there was not a faster route through the mountains to get California. TLH (Cause and Effect)- One must consider that there were multiple causes that caused the Donner Party to travel westward. The group wanted to get land for themselves so they could start and grow businesses and families. Another reason the group decided to move westward was to take party in the theory of manifest destiny. The immediate effects included tragedy, freezing temperatures, and no food. The long term effects included many of the left over people getting land and starting new businesses. The effects on the travelers in the Donner Part weren't good right away but as time went on the effects became more positive. |