Prairie Schooner - End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center - Oregon City, Oregon
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 45° 21.869 W 122° 35.726
10T E 531683 N 5023520
Covered wagon at the End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center in Oregon City, Oregon.
Waymark Code: WM6565
Location: Oregon, United States
Date Posted: 04/05/2009
Views: 11
"Prairie Schooners"
While wagons specifically built for overland trails where known as Prairie Schooners, this name soon became a generic expression for wagons on the Oregon and California Trails. Early on, many emigrants were struck by the vast, open spaces of theGret Plains, and when the wind blew, the tall prairie grasses undulated like waves on an ocean. The overlanders took this metaphor to its natural conclusing, comparing the white bonnets of their wagons to the sails that powered the ships of that era, and thus the phrase "Prairie schooner" came into common use. - text of information sign