Note From the Author

Thank you for your interest in learning more about my writing process for Oregon Trail. To say writing historical fiction is easy would be a lie—but it’s every bit worth the hard work when readers like yourself enjoy the world I’ve created. Research for this Oregon Trail series took twice as long as actually writing it! I wanted to make sure I got even the tiniest details right in order to help you remain submersed in the story.

Beth, Caleb, Simon, Lucy and their families are all fictional, and not based on any real individuals. However, their experiences were unfortunately all-too common while traveling the Oregon Trail. Many travelers (mostly children) were lost under the large churning wheels of the wagons, in waters too big or too rushing to cross, from diseases such as Influenza and Typhoid—and of course Dysentery. Violence among wagon trains and with bandits and some Native American tribes took others, still. The forts and landmarks I mention, such as Independence Rock, are real. In fact, the etchings of pioneers can be seen on its surface today. The rock was called such because wagon trains hoped to reach it by Independence Day, because that would signal they were keeping good time.

I could go on with more historical details and events that I learned during my research, but instead I will provide you with some of my resources so you can explore them yourself. Also it’s important to note that I focused on a white, Midwestern farming family, and there are many resources that focus on Native Americans, freed and un-freed slaves, travelers from the East Coast, and immigrant families, such as the Irish or Italians, who experienced the Trail very differently from Beth and her ilk.

I found the Oregon-California Trails Association website very informative: www.octa-trails.org

For interesting, albeit minor, details, I looked to a few internet pages—Note, this are not necessarily accurate, but were at least interesting reads: angelfire.com/me/reenact/terms.html and https://www.bioprepper.com/2016/03/28/20-lost-recipes-from-the-pioneers-what-they-cooked-in-their-journey-westward/. I also consulted with The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the 1800s by MarcMcCutcheon.

With all the historical details out of the way, I was looking for experiences I could shape my narrative with. I found first-hand accounts incredibly useful. Some books were: Life on the Oregon Trail by GaryL. Blackwood, Women and Indians on the Frontier by Glenda Riley, and The Plains Across: theOverland Emigrants and the Trans-Mississippi West by John David Unruh.

This list, though not complete, might offer some additional insight into the world Beth and her family lived in. Thanks again for your interest!

Best, Michelle Kudelka