History That Doesn't Suck

30: The Oregon Trail (“You Have Died of Dysentery”)

07 Jan 2019

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Description

“You damn Yankees will do anything you like.” This is the story of the Oregon Trail, including the reasons pioneers crossed it and the trail’s development. As President Andrew Jackson leaves us and we fly through presidents in rapid succession (RIP President William Harrison), the US is going through the worst economic slump it’ll see until the Great Depression. A mixture of financial urgency and a sense of destiny--Manifest Destiny--now convinces tens of thousands of Americans to trek over 2,000 miles from Missouri’s western edge to Oregon Country. But how can families cross the desert? Or the Rocky Mountains?! Or descend the deadly Columbia River?!! And what about the British HBC’s hold on Oregon Country? We’ll hear all about the fur traders, missionaries, explorers, and early wagon trains that dared to blaze this trail before its heyday of the 1840s-1860s. It’s a dangerous trek. Are you ready to die of dysentery? Good. Because it’s about to get as real as a 1990s middle school computer lab. Let’s hit the Oregon Trail. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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History That Doesn't Suck

30: The Oregon Trail (“You Have Died of Dysentery”)

This episode hasn't been transcribed yet

Other episodes from History That Doesn't Suck

202: Holocaust Prologue with US Holocaust Memorial Museum Director, Sara J. Bloomfield

201: A Soft Underbelly: The Allied Invasion of Sicily & the Fall of Il Duce

200: The North African Campaign: Desert Rats, the Desert Fox, & Operation Torch

199: Building the Anglo-American Alliance: The US Enters the European Theater

Introducing Free Range with Von Miller

198: The Pacific Tide Turns at Coral Sea & Midway

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