The Oregon Trail was one of mankind's historic migrations, with all of the wild optimism, heartache and disaster that accompanied it.
It was a migration that helped to unify the country and inspire later generations.
It was also a feat of great endurance.
So it seems a pity that the railroad would take away the spirit of adventure of the 1830s to 60s. But, of course it replaced it with another adventure, as the Gilded Age began.
