Abstract:
"Whatever the viewpoint, the study of America's western migration remains fascinating and controversial because it attempts to define the very essence of American nationality. For that reason, among others, a close examination of how settlers themselves saw their journey and new homes illuminates the debate by documenting, day by day, how people lived in the West. With that in mind, the following excerpts from the diaries of two brothers who went west to live in Washington Territory in 1853, offer a glimpse of how their experiences were a pilgrimage of faith to a promising land." -- page 3
