Into the Western Winds : Pioneer Boys Traveling the Overland Trails

by Mary Barmeyer O'Brien

• ISBN13: 9780762710201
• ISBN10: 0762710209
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2002-12-01
• Publisher: TwoDot

Summary

This book chronicles the overland journeys of nine pioneer boys who went west by covered wagon in the mid-1800s. Taken from their letters, diaries, and later memoirs, these remarkable stories describe what it was like to be hungry enough to eat woodpeckers, brave enough to winter alone in the snowbound Sierra Nevada, cold enough to huddle beneath a sister's petticoat at night, and tough enough to push onward despite astounding odds. Trudging barefoot across hundreds of miles of harsh land, each of the boys selected for this collection found the resourcefulness to rise above the unusual circumstances of his overland journey. Whether traveling alone through the vast wilderness to bring food to his starving family like fourteen-year-old Octavius Pringle, struggling for days across Death Valley like six-year-old John Wells Brier, or boating the treacherous rapids of the Columbia River like young Jesse Applegate, each summoned the courage to help his family complete a remarkable trip west.

Author Biography

Mary Barmeyer O'Brien wrote Toward the Setting Sun: Pioneer Girls Traveling the Overland Trails; Heart of the Trail: The Stories of Eight Wagon Train Women; Jeannette Rankin: Bright Star in the Big Sky, and many national magazine articles. She lives in Polson, Montana, with her husband Dan, two daughters, and son.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction	p. xiii
A Raven Overhead: The Story of Jesse A. Applegate	p. 1
Wintering Alone in the Mountains: The Story of Moses Schallenberger	p. 13
Woodpecker Soup for Supper: The Story of Henry and John Ferguson	p. 23
Provisions to the Rescue: The Story of Octavius M. Pringle	p. 31
Above and Beyond the Call of Duty: The Story of Welborn Beeson	p. 41
If I Should Die Before I Wake: The Story of Elisha Brooks	p. 51
Barefoot Toward Zion: The Story of Brigham H. Roberts	p. 61
To the Land of Golden Shores: The Story of Charles Frederick True	p. 73
Trouble in Death Valley: The Story of John Wells Brier	p. 85
Bibliography	p. 95
Index	p. 101
About the Author	p. 107
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

From Woodpecker Soup for Supper: The Story of Henry and John Ferguson

It was pitch black when eleven-year-old Henry Ferguson opened his eyes. No moonlight silhouetted the dark forest that cold November night, and heavy clouds hid the stars. He strained his eyes in the utter darkness inside the covered wagon, and listened intently. Something was prowling around outside, but he couldn't tell what. Stiffening with fear, he nudged his thirteen-year-old brother, John, and together the terrified boys listened to the soft rustling and snuffling on the ground below. Henry wished desperately for his father's solid, sleeping bulk beside him or his mother's reassuring soft breathing, but they were gone. Here in this wild land of northern California, he and John were alone. They buried their heads under the quilts and lay shivering until the prowler moved off into the dark woods.
The next morning they found the tracks of a large grizzly around the wagon.

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Excerpted from Into the Western Winds: Pioneer Boys Traveling the Overland Trails by Mary Barmeyer O'Brien
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.