Children Of The Covered Wagon

by Mary Jane Carr

Young children will love to read this historically-accurate, personal account of pioneers heading west on the Oregon Trail during the mid-1800s. Great illustrations, large print and helpful maps wi

Genres: History, Childrens

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1934

About the author

MARY JANE CARR has lived in the Pacific Northwest all her life. She was born and grew up with four sisters and four brothers in Portland, Oregon. She attended both high school and Marylhurst College there.
After college Miss Carr joined The Catholic Sentinel, a weekly newspaper. She began as a proofreader and eventually worked her way up to the job of associate editor. Her feature articles also appeared in the daily papers. Her interest in the obscure history of the Old Oregon Trail led to a series of stories in the Sunday magazine section of The Portland Oregonian. These stories became Children of the Covered Wagon when their enthusiastic reception encouraged Miss Carr to have them published in book form.
Children of the Covered Wagon was first published in 1934. It has since become a children's classic.
(from the back of Children of the Covered Wagon)

Reviews

[Heather Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for homeschoolers! Such a great story and I especially appreciated the Christian themes throughout.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good adventure story about children walking the Oregon Trail. It is written for children with great illustrations. I couldn't put it down. Adventures with indians, fur-trappers, indians, animals, indians.... I think you get the picture.

I learned a lot about the pioneers and about myself!

By the way, this edition shows the wrong illustrator, it should be Esther Brann.

[Stephanie A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, Oregon Trail! What fascinates me is that when she wrote this, she got praise for describing a "little-told" chapter of American history. And it's true. Everyone I know has grown up thoroughly versed in the Oregon Trail games, but this was even before Little House on the Prairie. Book version.

Basically, if you loved playing that game and want to read it in novel form, this is your ticket.

[Lexi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this with my 4th graders in our study of Westward expansion. They absolutely loved it. It was a great way for us to become more acquainted with life on the Oregon Trail; however, as a piece of Literature, it is nothing spectacular. The characters are not very well developed and it's a bit overly moralizing.

[Dawn Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very detailed account of a fictional wagon train crossing the plains to Oregon in the 1840's. A bit of moralizing and overly poetic language, but still engaging.

[Wayne Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is 1844, and seven year old orphaned Jerry is out on the prairie. He has left his home in Osage, MO, to travel with a covered wagon train captained by his uncle Jim Stephen. Also along are his Aunt Beth who is his late mother’s sister, his eleven year old cousin Jim, and many others. They are all heading over the Oregon Trail toward the Willamette Valley of Oregon. However, with hostile Indians all around, quicksand in the river fords, sudden storms, the threat of buffalo stampedes, and alkali deserts, will they make it? How many precious things will have to be left behind on the trail? And what happens when young Jim is captured by Blackfoot Indians?

While the story is fictional, the portrayal of the trials and hardships which the pioneers faced moving across the country is historically accurate, and several real individuals are mentioned along the way, such as Marcus Whitman, Jedediah Smith, John McLoughlin, Jim Bridger, and John (“Uncle Jack”) Robinson. There are a couple of common euphemisms (gosh, golly) and a few references to pipe smoking. Children (and adults) will love to read this adventuresome account of pioneers heading west on the Oregon Trail during the mid-1800s. It is a great story from a kid’s perspective and makes the wagon train experience come alive. An American classic, the book makes a wonderful complement to a study of the westward expansion period in United States history. Also, it served as the basis for Westward Ho, The Wagons!, a 1956 live-action Disney western film.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars solid. Highly recommended. I'm really pleased to have read this book - which wouldn't have happened if I hadn't read her "Young Mac of Fort Vancouver". I have to remind myself that this was written in 1934 because the author did a fantastic job balancing the clash of cultures, white and native. There are no heathens and savages in this book, just people who were worried what the relentless waves of whites would mean for them. And the emigrants (I love she used this term) knew they were invading/crossing lands that weren't theirs. There was misunderstanding, but Carr didn't resort to belittling the First Peoples' customs, but explained what the conflict was. If Carr has a prejudice it's in favor of the trappers and voyageurs who lived mostly harmoniously with the land and the native peoples. I recognized some of the landmarks mentioned here from having read Buck's "The Oregon Trail". It would be interesting to the two: Buck's which re-created the journey of these wagons with a 3 mule team with Carr's whose wagons used oxen and for whom the trail ended with a float down the Columbia. There is a section of trail that Buck describes as extremely difficult in which he had the brakes on constantly. Likewise Carr describes a section where the boys' job was to keep the wagons' wheels 'locked', braking the descent. What continuously surprises me reading these historical novels is the barefootedness of the children (Little House books and here) in all but winter (20th century privilege and wealth, I suppose). I read this for my 2019 Reading Challenge.

[Jimmy Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book because it's the basis for a 1956 Disney movie "Westward Ho, the Wagons!" starring Fess Parker, Sebastian Cabot and several members of the original Mickey Mouse club (Doreen, Karen, Cubby, and Tommy). With a cast like that, the book has got to be something. And it was.

From the very beginning, we travel with seven-year old Jerry, older stepbrother Jim, and their five-year old friend Myra, who are making their way across the plains to Oregon with their families. Jerry has lost his parents to disease, and must leave behind his loving aunt, who is too old to make this dangerous journey. He's been adopted by his younger aunt and uncle, and now must travel with them to the unknown country. Stepbrother Jerry is older and a bit more adventurous, and we spend time with him when Native Americans kidnap him, while Myra focuses on her doll and her immediate surroundings.

The book looks at the trip through the eyes of the children, and describes things that are important to them, making this an ideal story for children to learn more about the trip west. Originally published in 1934, the book is generally inoffensive regarding Native Americans - which is remarkably rare for a book written during that time. We hear of death in another wagon train, but no one falls prey to accidental death or disease here, so any suffering described has relief in store (must have been record-setting for wagon train health). My copy was 267 pages.

[Chelsea Rapp · Rating 3 out of 5]

So this book was a pain in the butt to find. I managed to find a copy of it through Archive.org, but I had to renew the ebook every hour. Luckily no one else really seemed interested in reading the book. The only reason I read it was so I could watch the movie Disney made based off of it. It wasn’t a bad book. I actually found it to be pretty educational. The Oregon trail was pretty deadly and this helps show kids some of the perils that people went through to help expand our nation. I did enjoy the story that was told and the conflict between the pioneers and the Native Americans was explored. Was it common for the Native Americans to try and steal children from pioneers? I honestly had never heard that before.

One of my favorite things about the book was the addition of all of the pictures. I thought that it added to the story and allowed us to see the characters.

MVP: Dr. Dean

[Mikayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wonderful tale of the those that braved the dangers of the unknown to settle to unknown frontier of the West and beyond. Parts are heart racing, heartwarming and a fascinating look at the courage and resolve of our American and foreign ancestors who were determined to make a name and life for themselves and their families. Also seems like a good book for somebody in grade school or even older who wants to learn more about the lives and journeys of the western expansionists.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

An engaging way to learn about those who traveled on the Oregon Trail. It feels very well researched. The characters are pretty flat, and overall it’s nowhere near as well written and gripping as the Little House or Caddie Woodlawn books, but I appreciated learning about a different part of the westward expansion.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that this book was a pretty good book. One thing I would change would make the really important parts of the text needed to stand out more. But the rest of the book was not really the best, but it still had a few good parts. I did like the older type of English that they used in the 1850ś than the English that we use now in books. I also liked how the author is teaching the readers about the Oregon trails history, and the things you could encounter.

[Carrie Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book. I thought it was good that it explained not only the excitement and thrill of traveling in a covered wagon to a new land, but also explained and detailed some of the dangers and hardships. It was a good read.

[Aja · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really recommend this one if you are at all into the American West. I didn't really like the West until I read this book. It moves pretty fast so you won't get bored.

[Abigail Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Well written. Not my absolute favorite though:)

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great point of view from the children on the trail, i liked the details and characters very much.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

A solid read with a great look at the time - from both the pioneer and native perspectives. Great chapter book for jr high readers (or older, obviously). :-)

[Raymond Bial · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historically accurate and beautifully written, this book is an American classic that will appeal to both children and adults.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still a good book. The boys really enjoyed it!

[Lifeisgreyt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice story! Learned so much!

[Christa R · Rating 5 out of 5]

The boys read this for their history program. It was their favorite so far of the books that had been assigned.

[Leia-Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like it because the boy has a lot of exciting things that happened!

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED this book as a child. Would love to get a copy and read to my own kids.