#virtualoregontrail Saying Goodbye

How do you say goodbye to your family knowing that, by leaving, you may never see them again? In 1845, communicating across the country was difficult. One could mail cards or letters, and at the time, that was really the only option. Think about how spoiled we are today. A family member can decide to move hundreds of miles away, but it's so easy to pick up the phone and hear their voice, or video chat to see their face. Even a visit hundreds of miles away is pretty easy. Imagine if those options weren't available. Goodbye was GOODBYE.

James Allen left his entire family to make the trip to Oregon with his wife, young son, and her family. His parents surely adored baby Cyrus, not yet two years old. Now they had to say goodbye to the toddler and his parents. James would be far away from the trusted counsel of his father and the camaraderie of his brothers, especially William and Andrew, who flanked him in birth order. And he wouldn't just be far away, but far away in a rugged, untamed, dangerous new territory.

James' family in Missouri consisted of his parents, Isaac Allen (1794-1846) and Margaret Boyd Miller Allen (1794-1884), and the following siblings at the time James was preparing to leave:

• William Thomas Allen (1819-1902), his wife Albina and a year old son
• Andrew J Allen (1822-1908) and his fiance Charity.
• Elizabeth C. Allen Jones (1823-1907), her husband Nathaniel and two little boys
• John Ceton Allen (1825-1889)
• Thomas Gartner Allen (1827-1897)
• Rebecca Allen (1829-1906
• Mary Jane Allen (1831-1873)
• Josiah Allen (1833-1896)
• Melissa Ann Allen (1836-1916)

In between the busy times of planning and packing, the Allen family was gathering to spend as much time together as possible before saying their goodbyes. Plans were being made for many of them to make the journey the following year, so there was some hope that they would eventually reunite. Even so, goodbyes are never easy. Though they tried to make the occasions lively and happy, there was a deep sadness in the air. Those were not the only goodbyes to be said. They would also leave neighbors, members of the church congregation, and close friends behind. 

While the farewells would have been painful, there was an undercurrent of excitement as the time to leave drew nearer. A journey across the plains and the mountains, sleeping under the stars, and the prospect of settling the new territory all seemed surreal. There was also much to fear. Raids by Indians and treacherous river crossings were dangers they could face. James and Hannah, at the end of each day, probably had long conversations about their future. This, they knew, was a once in a lifetime opportunity and they must be brave. 

Hannah's father, James B Riggs, was an industrious, prosperous man, and his preparations to move to Oregon with his family were made with meticulous attention to detail.  It’s reported that his wife, Nancy, with eight of their children ranging in age from 20 to 3 were accommodated in 5 wagons – along with household goods, food, tools necessary for building a new home, farming supplies and more.  (Hannah, and her husband James M Allen, with their toddler, would follow in their own separate wagon.)  A wagon needed four to six oxen to pull it, so the task of managing six wagons included attending to a large number of cattle and horses as well as keeping the wagons in good repair.  Last, but not least, each wagon needed a driver.  Although James would have depended on his oldest sons Milton, Rufus, and Marion to assist him in driving the wagons, it was necessary for him to hire a fifth driver.  A teamster by the name of James Field, who was an educated and burly 210-pound young man of twenty-two, was James Riggs’ choice.

Oregon Trail pioneers pass through the sand hills,
painting by William Henry Jackson.
https://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-crossingplains/

A place to sleep and meals with the Riggs family would have been James Field’s pay for the journey - a standard currency during the migration West.  When his duties around the camp were completed at the end of each day, he kept a detailed daily journal.  Today James’ diary is one of the most informative accounts available describing the 1845 journey of the Military Immigrant wagon train which later became known as the “Blue Bucket Gold Train”,  “Meeks Cutoff Train” or “Lost Immigrant Train". 

The mutual respect and friendship that developed between James Riggs and James Field endured long after their arrival in Oregon.  In fact, Field recorded visiting the Riggs family as well as leaving his diary in the care of “Capt. J. B. Riggs” on two separate occasions. It's this diary that we'll follow to recreate the journey these brave pioneers began so many years ago.

(Rene Rodgers contributed content to this post.)

#virtualoregontrail Captain James B. Riggs and his Family

James Miller Allen, was born on October 2, 1821 in Cole, Missouri to Isaac Allen and Margaret Boyd (Miller) Allen. He was the second of eleven children. The Allen family had moved to Platte County, Missouri by 1840. James was farming there with his father when he met and fell in love with Hannah Jane Riggs. They were married after the harvest on November 18th, 1841 and welcomed a son, Cyrus Albert Allen, on September 19th, 1843. The young couple was right in the midst of "Oregon Fever", living near a popular jump off spot for the wagon trains heading west. They probably knew neighbors whose family members had already made the trip and they would have seen newspaper articles and/or posters exalting the virtues of the Oregon Territory. Before their son's first birthday, they made the difficult decision to join Hannah's family on the Oregon Trail. Preparations would be made to leave in early 1845.

Hannah's parents were James Berry Riggs, a Kentucky-born farmer, and his wife Nancy Clarinda (Anderson) Riggs from South Carolina. Soon after James and Nancy were married in Illinois, Hannah and her twin brother, Milton, were born there on January 18th, 1825. By 1844, when the plans were being made to leave for Oregon, there were four more sons and two more daughters who would also be making the trip.

James and Nancy Riggs
http://www.oregonpioneers.com/photor.htm

The following family members were preparing for the journey to Oregon:

James Berry Riggs, head of the family

Nancy Riggs, his wife

Milton Riggs, b. January 1825, son

Rufus Riggs, b. November 1827, son
Marion L. Riggs, b. May 1830, son
Washington L. Riggs, b. August 1833, son

Silas T. Riggs, b. April 1836, son

Louisa M. Riggs, b. Feb 1839, daughter

Silbey Ann Riggs, b. March 1842, daughter

and

Hannah Allen, b. January 1825, daughter

James Miller Allen, b. October 1821, son-in-law

Cyrus Allen, b. September 1843, grandson

Since the Allen and Riggs families were farmers, they were undoubtedly excited at the possibility of acquiring land that would be plentiful, as well as fertile. With the talk that there was an opportunity for free land,  it's easy to understand why men were so eager to make the 2500 mile overland journey. James would be leaving his parents and siblings behind when he left with his wife and in-laws. He surely had many conversations with his own father about the prospects Oregon offered, and they likely formed a plan that, if Oregon proved to be the land of milk & honey as described, that James would send word back to his parents in Missouri to join him out West. One can only imagine how torn James must have felt. While he was eager for adventure and new opportunities, he would also have been dreading the goodbyes.

(Rene Rodgers contributed content to this post)