Google Maps Articles
The Mystery of Hungery Creek
Which way did Lewis and Clark go?
Archived: 2026
The spelling of Hungery Creek is not the mystery. That comes from William Clark’s journal entry of 18 September 1805: Encamped on a bold running Creek passing to the left which I call Hungery Creek as at that place we had nothing to eate. The route that Clark’s advanced party—and later Lewis’s main party—descended from […]
1866 Gold Trails to Montana
Montana Road and Bozeman Trail
Archived: 2026
The Bozeman Trail was one of the gold trails to Montana connecting the Oregon Trail near Fort Laramie to the gold-rich lands of Montana. Established in 1863 by John Bozeman and John Jacobs, the trail quickly became a favored shortcut for miners, settlers, and traders eager to reach the booming gold fields. However, its passage […]
1834 Wyeth “Oregon Trail” Route
Archived: 2026
During the 1830s, Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth (1802–1856) played a significant role in the development of what would become known as the Oregon Trail. In Independence, Missouri, he joined forces with William Sublette, and they traveled to the 1832 Pierre’s Hole Rendezvous via the Platte River, South Pass, and the upper Green River. Guided by Milton […]
1864 Bridger Trail
Archived: 2026
Also known as Bridger Road and Bridger Immigrant Road, the Bridger Trail connected the Oregon Trail to the 1864 gold fields in Montana. The route intentionally avoided the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho by running west of the Bighorn Mountains in the lands of the Crow and Shoshone People. The trail was not well-defined except at […]
1858 Lander Cutoff
Archived: 2026
The Lander Road, also known as the Lander Trail or Lander Cutoff, was the first US government-sponsored road for emigrants heading to Oregon and California. The Lander Road gave travelers on the Oregon Trail and the California Trail a straight path through the mountain ranges in southwestern Wyoming and southeastern Idaho. Prior to its completion […]
1852 Nobles Road
Archived: 2026
The road pioneered by William Nobles between Rye Patch Reservoir and Shasta, California was advertised as the being shorter and more practical than any other roads to the northern gold fields. From a topographical perspective, it seems to have lived up to that reputation being shorter than either the route of Donner Pass or the […]
1852 Ham’s Fork Cutoff (Meeker)
Archived: 2026
The history and date of the Ham’s Fork Cutoff has not been established but it is shown on the 1852 Ezra Meeker map. Some segments are also shown on the GLO survey plat maps of the area. the cutoff avoided the Fort Bridger loop. Its highest elevation, just west of Kemmerer, Wyoming, was 7277 feet, […]
1850 Daggett-Georgetown Trail
Archived: 2026
The Daggett Pass-Georgetown Pack Trail was opened in 1850 providing access to mines in present Placer and Nevada counties. It left the Carson Valley, climbed present Daggett Pass (better-known as Kingsbury Grade), and continued west across the Sierra Mountains to Georgetown. By 1857, it was improved for wagons. Map file: KML | KMZ Static Map
1850 Child’s Cutoff
Archived: 2026
Wyoming History starts an article about Emigrant Hill on the Child’s Cutoff with: The Child’s Cutoff of the Oregon Trail was opened in 1850. This new route allowed emigrants who had been following the Council Bluffs Road along the north bank of the Platte River to remain on the north side and so avoid having […]
1849 Henness Pass Trail
Archived: 2026
The Henness Pass Trail/Road connected Virginia City, Nevada (and Carson City) with Marysville, California. West of Hoke Valley, California in 1849, it was just a trail. East of Hoke Valley, the 1852 road route is intermingled with some of the earlier routes, but its route west of Reno to Carson City was distinct. Its highest […]