Rick Just
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Author
  • Speaker
  • Contact

Freight Wagons (Tap to read)

3/13/2022

Comments

 
My great grandfather, Nels Just, was a wagon freighter in his younger days, hauling cargo between Corrine, Utah and the Montana mines, with occasional runs from Corrine to Boise. Without giving it much thought my mental picture of that operation was of Nels hauling a wagonload of supplies covered by tarps. The wagon I pictured was just a standard wagon, the kind you’d use for farming or for trekking across the Oregon Trail, pulled by a team of oxen.
 
I still don’t know what Nels’ outfit looked like, but most freighters who ran those routes did so with gigantic wagons, constructed with 14-foot-tall sides to haul as much cargo as possible. Often there might be three or more of these creaking monstrosities hooked together and pulled by ten horses or five to seven yoke of oxen. The wheels could be seven feet tall and four inches wide. They only made about 15 miles a day in rugged country, or maybe 25 miles on flatlands.
 
For a time in the history of Idaho Territory just about everyone who could put together some teams was a freighter. It was a lucrative business, far more certain than prospecting for gold or silver. When there were no railroads to carry goods, freight wagons brought everything to communities and mining camps. Even after they laid rails across southern Idaho, freight wagons still lumbered over the dirt roads to outlying communities. During the winter, pack trains were often the only way into mining districts.
 
Another thing I likely had wrong about Nels’ operation was where he sat while driving his teams. He probably rarely sat at all. Many of the big wagons had no seat. It wasn’t necessary because the teamster walked alongside the teams the whole way. That explains another minor mystery for me. Nels often walked into Shelley from his homestead on the Blackfoot River. He never had a shortage of horses, but he often chose to walk. It was nothing compared to walking between Corrine and the mines.
 
If you want to see what freight wagons looked like, watch for news about Wagon Days, held each year on Labor Day Weekend in Ketchum. They typically parade six enormous ore wagons through town.
 

Picture
Wagon Days in Ketchum.
Speaking of Idaho history posts are copyright © 2020 by Rick Just. Sharing is encouraged. If you don’t find a button that lets you do that, find the post on Speaking of Idaho. If you’re missing my daily posts, select the RSS button, or select See it First under the Facebook Following tab.
Comments
    Like and follow Speaking of Idaho on Facebook and Twitter.

    Subscribe to the Speaking of Idaho newsletter

    * indicates required
    Email Format
    Picture
    The first book in the Speaking of Idaho series is out. Ask for it at your local Idaho bookstore, find it on Amazon, or, if you want a signed copy, click the button.
    Picture
    Rick's book about Fearless Farris is available on Amazon! Click the picture above to be taken to Amazon. If you'd like an autographed copy, click the button below.

    Author, Speaker

    Rick Just has been writing about Idaho history since 1989 when he wrote and recorded scripts for the Idaho Centennial Commission’s daily radio program, Idaho Snapshots. His latest book on Idaho history is Images of America, Idaho State Parks. Rick also writes a regular column for the Idaho Press.

    Rick does public presentations on Idaho's state park history and the history of the Morrisite war for the Idaho Humanities Council's Speakers Bureau.
    ​


    Check out Rick's history of Idaho State Parks.

    The audio link below is to Rick's Story Story Night set called "Someplace Not Firth"

    RSS Feed

Speaking of Idaho history posts are copyright © 2023 by Rick Just. Sharing is encouraged. If you’re missing my daily posts, select the RSS button, or select See it First under the Facebook Following tab.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. That means if you follow a link (generally to a book) from my page to an Amazon page, I get a tiny percentage of any purchase you may make.