Interesting Events In the 19th Century!

The Oregon Trail

The Oregon Trail was one of the two main emigrant routes used in the 19th century to journey West. It was over 2,000 miles long and crossed some difficult terrain (including Native American territories). The travelers would ride in wagons pulled by horses, mules, or oxen. Once the first wagon pulled through, the path they took became a trail others followed. The many wagons that pulled through created ruts in the dirt and some can still be spotted today. Most think the Oregon Trail was just one path but it actually was a combination of many different trails and pathways and combined with the California Trail. Along the journey, there were many different outposts and lodgings to provide supplies and protection to the travelers. The people there would give advice and tips for the vigorous journey ahead of them. The journey through the Oregon Trail would take an average of 4-5 months to complete. Some might wonder why people would leave the East and seek the West. Most people back in the 19th century believed they were ordained to expand in the West and thought of the East as the past.(Hill)

HardTack

Can last years if properly stored.

Here is a video of 153 year old hardtack eaten!

Each 3×3 inch hardtack biscuit has roughly 258 calories.

Hardtack also made up a large portion of a soldier’s diet.

In the Civil War soldiers ate about ten pieces of hardtack a day.

You can survive on only hardtack for 8-12 weeks.

Homemade HardTack

The Civil War

In the 19th century the US was experiencing abundant growth but there was a conflict between the North (the Union) and the South (the Confederates) (Halleck). The election of Abraham Lincoln, a member of the antislavery republican party, spurred the Civil War. The American Civil war can also be known as, The War Between the States. This war lasted 4 years. Approximately 21 million people lived in the North while only 9 million lived in the South (4 million being slaves). Even though the Confederates had less people than the Union, they were not destined for defeat… Well at first. The Southern armies had the advantage of fighting on interior lines and their army was strong. In the end the Union army won though. This war was tough and it is said that there were 360,000 Union deaths and 260,000 for the Confederates. Roughly 2% of the US population in 1860 died in the Civil War. This war had a big impact on technology, modern weapons, and many modern innovations to come. (“American Civil War - The cost and significance of the Civil War”)

S.T.E.A.M

Braille

Braille had a huge impact on blind people and made it where they are able to read. Louis Braille was born in France in 1809 and at age 3 he accidentally blinded himself in one eye by taking an awl from his father’s workshop. Soon after Sympathetic Ophthalmia and total blindness followed. At age 15 he invented a system for reading and writing for the visually impaired and blind. He published his first Braille book in 1829 at age 20, Method of Writing Words, Music, and Plain Songs by Means of Dots, for Use by the Blind and Arranged for Them. (Roth and Fee) He became a notable musician and after receiving a scholarship, he went to Paris and attended The National Institute for Blind Children in 1819. (“Louis Braille | Biography & Facts | Britannica”)

19th Century Chart

Works Cited

1. “American Civil War - The cost and significance of the Civil War.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 April 2023, https://www.britannica.com/event/American-Civil-War/The-cost-and-significance-of-the-Civil-War. Accessed 7 May 2023.

1. Halleck, Henry W. Civil War - Causes, Dates & Battles | HISTORY, https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/american-civil-war-history. Accessed 7 May 2023.

1. Hill, William E. “Oregon Trail | Definition, History, Map, & Facts.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 March 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Oregon-Trail. Accessed 7 May 2023.

1. “Louis Braille | Biography & Facts | Britannica.” Encyclopedia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louis-Braille. Accessed 6 May 2023.

1. Roth, Ginny A., and Elizabeth Fee. “The Invention of Braille - PMC.” NCBI, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3036681/. Accessed 6 May 2023.