Supplies
In 1850, it cost roughly $800 to $1,200 to obtain a proper outfit and get by for a whole year without harvesting a crop. In today's dollars, this would be equivalent to $32,000 to $48,000. The Emigrant's Guide, published in 1849 in St. Louis, suggested the following supplies for three people headed west on the Oregon Trail:
Food: Flour (1,080 lbs), bacon (600 lbs), coffee (100 lbs), tea (5 lbs), sugar (150 lbs), rice (75 lbs), dried fruit (50 lbs), salt and pepper (50 lbs), saleratus (baking soda) (10 lbs), and lard (50 lbs). Also corn meal, hard-tack, dried beef, molasses, vinegar, eggs, and beans.
Tools and equipment: Plow, shovel, rake, hoe, carpentry tools, saw, mallet, ax, plane, spade, whetstone, axles, kingbolt (joins the body of a wagon to its front axle), ox or mule shoes, spokes, ropes and chains.
Cooking utensils: Oven, skillet, kettle, coffee grinder, teapot, knife, ladle, tin tableware, water keg, and matches.
Seeds: Corn, wheat and other crops.
Weapons: Rifle, shotgun, pistols, knife, hatchet, powder, lead, bullet mold, powder horn, bullet pouch, and holster.
Clothing: Wool coats, rubber coats, cotton dresses, buckskin pants, duck trousers, cotton shirts, woolen undershirts, cotton drawers, flannel shirts, cotton socks, boots, shoes, ponchos, felt hats and sunbonnets.
Bedding and tents: Blankets, ground cloths, pillows, tent, poles, stakes, ropes.
Luxuries: Canned goods, plant cuttings, books, musical instruments, dolls and toys, family albums, jewelry, China, silverware, fine linens, iron stoves and furniture.
Miscellaneous items: Surgical instruments, liniments, bandages, camp stool, chamber pot, washbowl, lanterns, candle molds, tallow, spyglasses, scissors, needles, pins, thread, toothbrushes, soap, comb, brush, and towels.
Resupply
No matter how prepared the emigrants were at the start of their journey, they were always in need of new supplies. A lot of these supplies came from frontier forts along the trail. Forts and trading posts were set up to help supply wagon trains and to help protect them along their journey. The forts would supply the emigrants, often at a high price; with wagon parts, tools, food, clothes, and other essential supplies. The forts were also a good place for the emigrants to sell any excess supplies. However, if the fort traders were not buying, many supplies had to be discarded. The forts also provided a safe place to relax.
