I have several ancestors who lived in SCKY and migrated to MO, etc. mostly in the mid 1800's. I've often wondered about their process of relocation. How did they know what was available, and where to go? Were opportunities widely advertised in newspapers or at the local town hall? Most were farmers and would require farmland wherever they went. Were people in MO advertising farmland in SCKY? Or, did the Kentuckians just sell out and head west with their fingers crossed for good luck? Maybe they just stopped and asked people along the way about what was available? I know that most did not go where relatives were. Did they generally take their stock with them? Maybe it was customary that one go ahead and explore then come back for the family? I've seen no evidence to support that. I'm also a bit doubtful about what time of year was best for a farmer to move. Did they carry seed with them? There's a lot I seem to have missed about this western migration and settlement of the central U.S. I can readily understand people wanting to seek better opportunities and more favorable circumstances. But, were the moves all sort of by guess and luck? I suppose it might be easier for shoemakers and preachers. But farmers??

Your questions are interesting, Dan; just as the topic you mention holds much interest. While researching a novel I set along the Oregon Trail in the midst of westward migration, it was apparent that the early movers and shakers had several means of learning about an area. Often the initial interest in say, Oklahoma or Wyoming was provided by someone who had been there and happy to relate what they knew of it. I was surprised by the number of times a migrant might set out for Idaho, and find Kansas or Wyoming so attractive that they just stopped and unloaded the wagons. (The novel, not yet finished, ends at Fort Laramie because the hero has found not only a wife and work, but an area that called to him.) Newspapers were plentiful in the 1880s and often carried land enticements. They carried ads from 'land agents,' not all of whom were trustworthy. Sometimes, when Kentuckians became interested in migrating, they might pool some expense money and send one of their own to report on conditions and prospects. Others learned of the broad mesas of northern Wyoming or lumbering potential of Idaho from family members or friends who had migrated there (from about 1841, when the first large movements began), I once had a copy of the old Columbia (KY) Spectator, devoted to letters from Adair County,KY settlers in South Texas. The letters extolled the climate, the abundance of rain and the fertility of the soil.and the most outrageous descriptions of crop production. Those who know only a little about South Texas will recognize immediately that these were not to be found there. But one may forgive the writers for this transgression, if they take into account that the settlers no doubt wanted those at home to join them. Probably all of the ways of learning about new territory that you mention were used at one time or another. The movies have pretty nearly convinced us that the settlers were desperately poor people looking for a better life. Actually, the stories were so trumped-up that most made the trip expecting to find a way to get rich. Some did, including a former society matron who ran a laundry service for gold miners, washing those first Levy's made of canvas like a tarpaulin for $10 per wash. Whether she offered any other services is not clear, but she returned East to live a long, comfortable life in high society. Considering that it cost about $1,500 to outfit one wagon and buy six months of supplies, it was almost entirely an adventure for the middle and upper class. One could get to Missouri or Oklahoma or even Texas for less money, if he already owned a wagon and team and had put away meat, canned goods, etc. But to go to the far west was expensive, since $1,500 would buy a large farm with a nice house in Kentucky. From 1868 onward, there was rail service along a single east-west route. While some might live another 50 miles from the railroad, it was possible to get seed, farm equipment and all other non-perishable goods across the entire northern and central tier of the US. Many did take seed with them. The orchards in Washington state are said to date from a trip a New York man made with a second wagon loaded with young apple trees. A couple of Boston old maids went to California with little other than a pump organ and two liquor stills. Kentucky and Tennessee supplied most of the settlers in north Texas, a good many in Arkansas and Adair County, Oklahoma was named by settlers from that county in Kentucky (though the Chamber of Commerce has now concocted a more interesting version of how it was named). Adair County, Iowa was settled by those from around Columbia; and Kentucky supplied the wagons in a train headed for the area around Durango, Colorado. Life was hard everywhere, so settlers had little to lose by migrating to any spot that appeared, even from a distance, to be better than their own. Hermit in the Woods Columbia,KY ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dan Page" <depage@ipa.net> To: <SOUTH-CENTRAL-KENTUCKY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, March 29, 2006 6:52 PM Subject: [SCKY] Relocation > I have several ancestors who lived in SCKY and migrated to MO, etc. > mostly in the mid 1800's. I've often wondered about their process of > relocation. How did they know what was available, and where to > go? Were opportunities widely advertised in newspapers or at the > local town hall? Most were farmers and would require farmland > wherever they went. Were people in MO advertising farmland in > SCKY? Or, did the Kentuckians just sell out and head west with their > fingers crossed for good luck? Maybe they just stopped and asked > people along the way about what was available? I know that most did > not go where relatives were. Did they generally take their stock > with them? Maybe it was customary that one go ahead and explore then > come back for the family? I've seen no evidence to support that. I'm > also a bit doubtful about what time of year was best for a farmer to > move. Did they carry seed with them? > > There's a lot I seem to have missed about this western migration and > settlement of the central U.S. I can readily understand people > wanting to seek better opportunities and more favorable > circumstances. But, were the moves all sort of by guess and luck? I > suppose it might be easier for shoemakers and preachers. But farmers?? > > > > ==== SOUTH-CENTRAL-KENTUCKY Mailing List ==== > >