Donner Party – DBQ

Donner Party – DBQ Name: _____________________________________________________ Date: __________ Period: _________ Criminal Investigation into the actions of Lansford W. Hastings for Negligent Homocide in the Deaths of Members of the Donner Party Read the below historical background information about The Donner Party. This information will help you complete the below task. The Donner party left Springfield, Illinois, in April 1846. Led by two wealthy brothers, Jacob and George Donner, the emigrants initially followed the regular California Trail westward to Fort Bridger, Wyoming. From there, however, the emigrants decided to leave the established trail and take a new and supposedly shorter route to California laid out by an unscrupulous trail guide named Lansford Hastings. Hastings was not at Fort Bridger at the time–he was leading an earlier wagon train along his new route. He left word for the Donner party to follow, promising that he would mark the trail for them. Reassured, the group of 89 emigrants left Fort Bridger with their 20 wagons and headed for Weber Canyon, where Hastings claimed there was an easy passage through the rugged Wasatch Mountains. When they reached the head of the canyon,they founda note from Hastings attached to a forked stick. Hastings warned the Donner party that the route ahead was more difficult than he had thought. He asked the emigrants to make camp there and wait until he could return to show them a better way. Hastings’ note troubled the emigrants. To return to Fort Bridger to pick up the established route would have meant wasting several days. They decided to wait for Hastings. After eight days, when Hastings had still not arrived, the emigrants sent a messenger up the canyon to find the guide. The messenger returned several days later with instructions from Hastings to follow another trail, and the emigrants complied. The alternate route, however, turned out to be even worse than the Weber Canyon road, and the emigrants had to carve a fresh road through thick trees and boulder-strewn ground. The Donner party finally made it through the Wasatch Mountains and arrived at the Great Salt Lake. Hastings’ route had cost them 18 valuable days. Unfortunately, their difficulties were only beginning. The “shortcut” to California had cost them many wasted days, and the Donner party crossed the Sierra Nevada Mountains late in the season. On October 1 Donner Party – DBQ 28, a heavy snowfall blocked the high mountain passes, trapping the emigrants in a frozen wilderness. Eventually reduced to cannibalism to survive–at least according to legend–only 45 of the original 89 emigrants reached California the following year. The Task You are to read the documents below and answer the accompanying questions regarding the information about the tragedy that occurred in 1846 – 1847. After reading the material you must write a ½ page statement declaring whether or not you feel Lansford W. Hasting is guilty of negligent homicide. The question you should answer is whether he is guilty of causing the death of 41 members of the Donner Party by advocating the use of a shortcut, subsequently known as the Hastings Hastings Cutoff , which had not been tried by emigrant. In your paragraph, you must lay out the 3 strongest pieces of evidence you have supporting your opinion.. Document A Definition of Negligent Homicide wagons. Criminal homicide constitutes negligent homicide if the actor, acting with criminal negligence, causes the death of another. 2 Donner Party – DBQ Document B Excerpts from ‘Emigrants’ Guide to Oregon and California’ by Lansford W. Hastings. Document #1 – Westward Routes We are necessarily driven to this conclusion, when we consider the vast extent of this infant country’s plains and valleys, of unequalled fertility and exuberance; the extraordinary variety and abundance, of its productions, its unheard of uniformity, and salubrity of climate; its unexhausted and inexhaustible resources, as well as its increasing emigration, which is annually swelling its population from hundreds to thousands, and which is destined, at no distant time to revolutionalize the whole commercial, political, and moral aspect of all that highly important and delightful country… From Lansford W. Hastings, Emigrants’ Guide to Oregon and California. Cincinnati: G Concklin, 1945. Facsimile reprint, Bedford, MA: Applewood Books, 1994, pg. 134. What were Hastings’ objectives in publishing his Emigrants’ Guide? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ Document #2 – Number of Overland Emigrants Year Oregon California 1840 13 0 1841 24 34 1842 125 0 1843 875 38 1844 1475 53 1845 2500 260 1846 1200 1500 1847 4000 450 1848 1300 400 1849 450 25000 1850 6000 44000 Source: End of the Trail Museum, Oregon City, Oregon 3 Donner Party – DBQ What observations can you make about the number of emigrants traveling west during the 1840’s? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ Document #3 – “The Hastings Cutoff” By recent explorations, however, a very good, and much more direct wagon way has been found, about one hundred miles, southward from the great southern pass, which, it will be observed, lies principally through the northern part of California. The California route, from Fort Hall to the Sacramento River, lies through alternate plains, prairies, and valleys, and over hills, amid lofty mountains; thence down the great valley of the Sacramento, to the bay of St. Francisco… The Indians are, in many places, very numerous; yet they are extremely timid, and entirely inoffensive. Wagons can be as readily taken from Fort Hall to the bay of St. Francisco. From Lansford W. Hastings, Emigrants’ Guide to Oregon and California. Cincinnati: G Concklin, 1945. Facsimile reprint, Bedford, MA: Applewood Books, 1994, pg. 134. 4 Donner Party – DBQ Document #4 – 1853 Travel Brochure Calabro, Marian. The Perilous Journey of the Donner Party. Houghton Mifflin Co. New York, N.Y. 1999. How would a brochure like this tempt people to “go west, young man”? Describe it in detail. ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 5 Donner Party – DBQ Document #5 - Letter My Dear Cousin, I take this opportunity to write to you to let you know that we are all Well at present and hope this letter may find you all well to. I am going to write to you about our trubels getting to California. We had good luck we come to by Sand thare we lost our best yoak of oexens we come to Brigers Fort & we lost another ox…We had to walk all the time we was a travling up the truckee river…it was raining then in the vallies and snowing the mountains so we went on that way 3 or 4 days till we come to the big mountain or the california Mountain the snow then was about 3 feet deep thare was some wagons thare they said thay had attempted to croos and cound not. Well we thought we’d try it so we started with those wagons the snow was then up to the mules side the farther we went up the deeper the snow got so the wagons could not go…We stoped there in November and staid till March and what we had to eat I cant hardly tell you...we had nothing to eat but ox hides…we had to kill little cash the dog and eat him…you don’t kno what trouble is. (Excerpts from a letter by Virginia Reed, May 16, 1847, as found in George R. Stewart’s, Ordeal by Hunger. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1986. Original spelling and grammar have not been corrected!) What were some of the issues that the Reed family experienced as they embarked on their journey west? (Ignore grammatical issues) _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 6 Donner Party – DBQ Document #6: Diary of Patrick Breen during the Winter of 1846-1847. January 13 – Snowing fast. Snow higher than the shanty. Must be 13 feet deep. It is dreadful to look at. Don’t know how to get wood this morning. January 15 – Mrs. Murphy is blind. Hoping for some account from the mountaineers soon. January 17 – Landrum Murphy crazy last night. Provisions scarce. January 21 – Denton came this morning with Eliza. She won’t eat hides. Mrs. Reed sent her back to live or die on them January 27 – Mrs. Keseberg here this morning. Son died three days ago. Mr. Keseberg is sick. They don’t have fire enough to cook their hides. Bill and Simon Murphy sick. January 30 – More troubles. Mr. and Mrs. Graves seized Mrs. Reed’s goods and will hold them until they are paid for goods that Mrs. Reed used. Mrs. Reed

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