The purpose of this investigation is to understand the question: What were the determining factors in making the Oregon Trail a success or a failure? The focus of the paper is the 1840s, a period during the expansion of the US. The journey of several pioneers and the events that impacted them will be analyzed and categorized into the determining factors. Francis Parkman’s The Oregon Trail: Sketches of Prairie and Rocky-Mountain Life originated as a book and was published in 1849 with the purpose of examining the life of Native Americans in the west and the Oregon Trail. The book contained descriptions of pioneers, native american people, wildlife and landscapes during his travels that originated in Independence, Missouri and ended in Fort
