Mysterious Pacific Northwest

Bonus: The Long Road to Oregon- The version we played

For this episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re looking at a version of the trail many of us remember a little differently. Before the research, before the real stories—for a lot of us, it started with The Oregon Trail. Decisions, supplies, river crossings… and the message we all remember. This episode looks at what the game got right, what it left out, and how that version compares to the reality behind it. Now streaming on all major podcast apps. #thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #historypodcast #pnwhistory #nostalgia #edutainment #pnwpodcast Sources:  https://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/oregon-trail/ [https://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/oregon-trail/] https://www.oregontrail.com/history/ [https://www.oregontrail.com/history/] https://www.mnhs.org/education/resources/the-oregon-trail-game [https://www.mnhs.org/education/resources/the-oregon-trail-game] https://www.pbs.org/video/oregon-trail-game-history/ [https://www.pbs.org/video/oregon-trail-game-history/] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-oregon-trail-game-became-classroom-staple-180962833/ [https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-oregon-trail-game-became-classroom-staple-180962833/] https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/14/15291674/oregon-trail-game-history-education-minnesota [https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/14/15291674/oregon-trail-game-history-education-minnesota] https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Oregon-Trail-computer-game [https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Oregon-Trail-computer-game] https://www.died-of-dysentery.com/stories/history-of-the-game.html [https://www.died-of-dysentery.com/stories/history-of-the-game.html] https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/science/03trail.html [https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/science/03trail.html] https://www.gamehistory.org/oregon-trail/ [https://www.gamehistory.org/oregon-trail/] https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/71204/brief-history-oregon-trail-game [https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/71204/brief-history-oregon-trail-game] https://www.wired.com/2014/07/oregon-trail/ [https://www.wired.com/2014/07/oregon-trail/]

The Long Road to Oregon: The Donner Party

For this episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we follow one of the most infamous stories of the overland journey—the Donner Party. What began as a hopeful crossing turned into a fight for survival in the Sierra Nevada, where early snow, starvation, and impossible choices reshaped every life in the camp. This episode traces the full story—from the decision to take the Hastings Cutoff to the winter that held them in the mountains, told through firsthand accounts and historical record. Now streaming on all major podcast apps. #thelongroadtooregon #donnerparty #oregontrail #pnwhistory #historypodcast #westwardexpansion #americanhistory #truehistory Sources: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-history/ [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-history/] https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-primary-sources/ [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-primary-sources/] https://www.nps.gov/places/donner-memorial-state-park.htm [https://www.nps.gov/places/donner-memorial-state-park.htm] https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/the-donner-party.htm [https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/the-donner-party.htm] https://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion/donner-party [https://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion/donner-party] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Donner-Party [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Donner-Party] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/donner_party/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/donner_party/] https://www.legendsofamerica.com/ca-donnerparty/ [https://www.legendsofamerica.com/ca-donnerparty/] https://www.utahhumanities.org/stories/items/show/96 [https://www.utahhumanities.org/stories/items/show/96] https://www.truckeehistory.org/donner-party [https://www.truckeehistory.org/donner-party] https://www.sierranevadageotourism.org/entries/donner-party/ [https://www.sierranevadageotourism.org/entries/donner-party/] https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-reed-diary/ [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-reed-diary/] https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-breen-diary/ [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-breen-diary/] https://www.library.ucdavis.edu/special-collections/donner-party/ [https://www.library.ucdavis.edu/special-collections/donner-party/] https://digitalcollections.library.unlv.edu/donner-party [https://digitalcollections.library.unlv.edu/donner-party]

The Long Road to Oregon: The Whitman Mission

For the next episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we follow the story of the Whitman Mission—a place many emigrants passed through at the end of the trail, and where rising tension, disease, and cultural misunderstanding came to a breaking point in 1847. This episode looks beyond a single version of the story, tracing what led to that moment and what followed—through firsthand accounts, historical context, and the realities of a region already deeply lived in. Now streaming on all major podcast apps. #thelongroadtooregon #pnwhistory #oregontrail #historypodcast #americanhistory #nativehistory #pnwpodcast Sources: https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/index.htm [https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/index.htm] https://www.nps.gov/articles/whitman-mission.htm [https://www.nps.gov/articles/whitman-mission.htm] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/whitman_massacre/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/whitman_massacre/] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/cayuse_war/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/cayuse_war/] https://www.historylink.org/file/5296 [https://www.historylink.org/file/5296] https://www.historylink.org/file/5297 [https://www.historylink.org/file/5297] https://www.britannica.com/event/Whitman-Massacre [https://www.britannica.com/event/Whitman-Massacre] https://www.loc.gov/item/2006679053/ [https://www.loc.gov/item/2006679053/] https://www.loc.gov/collections/oregon-trail-miscellany/articles-and-essays/whitman-mission/ [https://www.loc.gov/collections/oregon-trail-miscellany/articles-and-essays/whitman-mission/] https://www.whitman.edu/whitman-mission-history [https://www.whitman.edu/whitman-mission-history] https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/cayuse.htm [https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/cayuse.htm] https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/measles.htm [https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/measles.htm] https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/whitman-massacre/ [https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/whitman-massacre/] https://www.wsna.org/whitman-mission-history [https://www.wsna.org/whitman-mission-history] https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/whitman-massacre [https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/whitman-massacre] https://www.historylink.org/File/5192 [https://www.historylink.org/File/5192]

The Long Road to Oregon: Sovereign Lands- The Native Peoples of the Oregon Trail

This episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re tracing the trail through the homelands of the sovereign nations who lived along its length—Otoe-Missouria, Pawnee, Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Shoshone, Nez Perce, Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Chinookan peoples, and many more. This episode honors their history, their endurance, and the world emigrants entered long before the trail had a name. Sovereign Lands: The Native Peoples of the Oregon Trail, is out now everywhere you listen to Podcasts! #thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #pnwhistory #historypodcast #indigenoushistory #nativehistory #oregonhistory #pnwpodcast Sources: https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians [https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians] https://historicoregoncity.org/2019/04/02/disrupting-the-natives/ [https://historicoregoncity.org/2019/04/02/disrupting-the-natives/] https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7794169 [https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7794169] https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/death-on-trails.htm [https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/death-on-trails.htm] https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7636236 [https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7636236] https://www.historylink.org/file/10365 [https://www.historylink.org/file/10365] https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm [https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/] https://www.human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/History/State_and_Local_History/Oregons_History%3A_People_of_the_Northwest_in_the_Land_of_Eden/01%3A_Chapters/1.04%3A_Native_Americans_in_the_Land_of_Eden-_An_Elegy_of_Early_Statehood [https://www.human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/History/State_and_Local_History/Oregons_History%3A_People_of_the_Northwest_in_the_Land_of_Eden/01%3A_Chapters/1.04%3A_Native_Americans_in_the_Land_of_Eden-_An_Elegy_of_Early_Statehood] https://oregontrail101.com/native.html [https://oregontrail101.com/native.html] https://www.legendsofamerica.com/indians-emigrants/ [https://www.legendsofamerica.com/indians-emigrants/] https://ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/ [https://ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/] https://www.obbg.org/blog/2023/08/the-oregon-trail-and-indigenous-people-heritage/ [https://www.obbg.org/blog/2023/08/the-oregon-trail-and-indigenous-people-heritage/] https://ctuir.org/about/brief-history-of-ctuir/ [https://ctuir.org/about/brief-history-of-ctuir/] https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians [https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/] https://www.oregontrail101.com/native.html [https://www.oregontrail101.com/native.html] https://www.historyonthenet.com/american-old-west-in-depth [https://www.historyonthenet.com/american-old-west-in-depth] https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/narratives/this-land-oregon/the-first-peoples/the-first-peoples/ [https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/narratives/this-land-oregon/the-first-peoples/the-first-peoples/] https://online.ucpress.edu/ch/article/99/3/53/189887/Retracing-The-Oregon-Trail [https://online.ucpress.edu/ch/article/99/3/53/189887/Retracing-The-Oregon-Trail] https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm [https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm] https://www.ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/ [https://www.ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/] https://www.eugenecascadescoast.org/blog/post/native-peoples/ [https://www.eugenecascadescoast.org/blog/post/native-peoples/] https://www.history.com/articles/oregon-trail [https://www.history.com/articles/oregon-trail]

The Long Road to Oregon: Women of the Oregon Trail- Hands that carried the West

For this of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re following the women who walked the trail long before it became history. The women who delivered children between river crossings, drove wagons when tragedy struck, held families together through sickness, storms, loss, and miles of dust. Their stories, woven through diaries and memories, shaped the trail just as deeply as any wagon wheel. Women of the Oregon Trail: The Hands That Carried the West is out nowhere everywhere you stream Podcasts! #thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #pnwpodcast #historypodcast #pnwhistory #oregonhistory #womenofthetrail #americanhistory Sources: The Oregon Trail Was Filled with Hardship and Surprises, these 16 Facts Prove It - History Collection [https://historycollection.com/the-oregon-trail-was-filled-with-hardship-and-surprises-these-16-facts-prove-it/] Matilda and Elizabeth Sager, the Oregon Trail (U.S. National Park Service) [https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/matilda-and-elizabeth-sager-the-oregon-trail.htm] Portland Center Stage | Portland Center Stage [https://www.pcs.org/features/resource-guide-for-educators-womens-voices-on-the-oregon-trail] https://www.nps.gov/oreg/learn/historyculture/womenonthetrail.htm [https://www.nps.gov/oreg/learn/historyculture/womenonthetrail.htm] https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/women_in_oregon_history/ [https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/women_in_oregon_history/] https://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/women.htm [https://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/women.htm] https://www.loc.gov/item/2007664658/ [https://www.loc.gov/item/2007664658/] https://www.fwhistory.com/portfolio/women-on-the-oregon-trail/ [https://www.fwhistory.com/portfolio/women-on-the-oregon-trail/] https://www.jstor.org/stable/4308423 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4308423] https://content.wisconsinhistory.org/digital/collection/owh/id/47577 [https://content.wisconsinhistory.org/digital/collection/owh/id/47577] https://www.octa-trails.org/women-of-the-trail [https://www.octa-trails.org/women-of-the-trail] https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Oregon_Trail:_Women_on_the_Trail [https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Oregon_Trail:_Women_on_the_Trail] https://www.historynet.com/oregon-trail/ [https://www.historynet.com/oregon-trail/] https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6dj8fx6 [https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6dj8fx6] https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/abigail-scott-duniway/#.XxpfcyhKiUk [https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/abigail-scott-duniway/#.XxpfcyhKiUk] https://www.sos.oregon.gov/archives/exhibits/duniway [https://www.sos.oregon.gov/archives/exhibits/duniway] https://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/sager.htm [https://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/sager.htm]