Research Catalog
Excavation of the Donner-Reed wagons : historic archaeology along the Hastings Cutoff
- Title
- Excavation of the Donner-Reed wagons : historic archaeology along the Hastings Cutoff / by Bruce R. Hawkins and David B. Madsen, with contributions by Ann Hanniball [and others] ; illustrations by Bruce R. Hawkins.
- Author
- Hawkins, Bruce R.
- Publication
- Salt Lake City : University of Utah Press, 1999.
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| Status | Format | Access | Call Number | Item Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Text | Request in advance | F832.G7 H38 1999g | Off-site |
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Details
- Additional Authors
- Madsen, David B.
- Description
- xiv, 172 pages : illustrations; 23 cm
- Summary
- In 1846, the ill-fated Donner-Reed party of emigrants chose an alternate route to California - the largely untested Hastings Cutoff - and became bogged down in the mud and playa of the Great Salt Lake Desert. Losing at least four wagons and numerous oxen, the delay contributed to their late-season attempt to cross the Sierra Nevada and the famous efforts by party members to endure deep winter snows, exposure, and starvation.
- Excavation of the Donner-Reed Wagons presents the results of work undertaken in 1986 to salvage the remnants of the abandoned wagons in the face of rising water from the Great Salt Lake. Not only was a fascinating variety of artifacts recovered, but evidence of subsequent exploring parties, such as the one led by Stansbury around the Great Salt Lake in 1849-50, was also identified.
- Well illustrated with maps and site plans, drawings and photographs of such items as tools, weapon fragments, china, and the wagons themselves, this is a must-read for anyone interested in trail history and the Donner party.
- Subject
- Bibliography (note)
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-165) and index.
- Contents
- Ch. 1. Introduction -- Ch. 2. Overland Emigration, the California Trail, and the Hastings Cutoff / Gary Topping -- Ch. 3. Howard Stansbury's Expedition to the Great Salt Lake, 1849-50 / Brigham D. Madsen -- Ch. 4. Previous Expeditions to the Abandoned Wagon Sites -- Ch. 5. Excavation Procedures -- Ch. 6. Archaeological Context -- Ch. 7. Artifacts -- Ch. 8. Isolated Finds and Previously Collected Artifacts -- Ch. 9. Interpretation -- App. I. Textile and Brush Analysis / Ann Hanniball -- App. II. Faunal Analysis / M. Elizabeth Manion.
- ISBN
- 0874806054
- LCCN
- 89020129
- OCLC
- 41961522
- ocm41961522
- Owning Institutions
- Columbia University Libraries