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Very few people dared to journey west before the 1800's.
However, there were a small number who did. Among these early pioneers were a
group of men called mountain men who would trap fur out west and bring it back
to sell through the rendezvous system. The mountain men were considered rugged
loners, but they were actually quite important to events later in history. For
example, they discovered the best trails through the Rocky Mountains, which
were used by pioneers later, and they provided America with in depth knowledge
of the far west. Without them the citizens of
Eventually when people began to consider the west as a possible new home, they
found a huge lure. For one, there was no one occupying the area except Native
Americans and they could easily be pushed out of the land. The west was also
seen as an opportunity for money. Land speculators began to buy vast areas of
land and when the value went up they sold sections of the land to pioneers
coming to open businesses, own farms, trade fur, find jobs, and even to hide
from the law. Most people came west on the
Not everyone who ventured west ended up in |
