Note: Parents feel free to print this page for home use.
What is a pioneer?
A pioneer is someone who helps open up a new territory for others to discover and settle into. The early pioneers of the United States opened up the western part of the country for people to settle and make homes for themselves.
What kind of work did the pioneers have to do?
Pioneers had much to do. In fact, there was hardly any time to relax at all. In order for people to be able to move ahead, trees had to be axed down to make a path. Much of the early pioneers work was cutting down trees to make places to build homes. Another big part of their time was hunting and scrounging for food. The land was plentiful with resources, but early pioneers did have to face opposition from North American Indians who inhabited the land for many years before they came along.
What equipment did the pioneers use?
- Axes were used to cut down trees. They used the trees to build log cabins.
- Covered wagons held each family's possessions. Everything they had was put into covered wagons.
- Horses and mules were replaced by oxen to pull the covered wagons. Oxen were more easy to manage and stronger.
- Shovels, hoes, rope, and other supplies were used to help with planting fields, building houses, and many other duties. Tools were very important to the pioneers.
- Many pioneers had weapons for protection and for hunting for food.
What did they do for fun?
- Favorite pioneer activities included dancing. All they needed was some open space and a fiddle player to have a good old fashion square dance.
- Ladies would gather to make quilts together. They even held contests.
- Children loved to go on hay rides. They also swam in lakes when the weather was warm and climbed trees.
- Men enjoyed having wrestling matches and racing each other for fun.
Learn More About Pioneers
Book picks include:
A Pioneer Sampler: The Daily Life of a Pioneer Family in 1840, Houghton Mifflin
Oregon Trail Stories: True Accounts of Life in a Covered Wagon, Falcon Press
Words West: Voices of Young Pioneers, Clarion Books
A Pioneer Recipe for You to Try
Hoe Hotcakes
Ingredients:
- Pot of water
- 3 cups cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- Shortening
Directions:
- Boil a pot of water.
- In a large bowl, mix the cornmeal and salt.
- Add the mixture to the boiling water. It should become mushy, but not stiff. Turn off the heat and let this sit for a few minutes.
- Add shortening to cover the bottom of a frying pan. Let the shortening get hot.
- Drop heaping tablespoons of the cornmeal mixture into the frying pan and cook like regular pancakes, flipping once during the cooking time.
Pioneers used to cook these Hoe Hotcakes on the flat part of a hoe, thus getting their name!
