Friends of the Frontier Army Museum Vice President Amanda Siegner, Garrison Command Sgt. Maj. Erika Rhine-Russell and Garrison Commander Col. John Misenheimer Jr. congratulate Charlotte Hammond, junior at Platte County (Mo.) High School, on her first-place essay in the FFAM annual essay contest during the Fort Leavenworth Community Update May 25 at the Unified School District 207 office. Hammond received $1,000 for her winning essay. (Screenshot)
Winning FFAM essay: “Making memories in the Frontier Days — How Did They Do It Without iPhones?”
Charlotte Hammond/Junior at Platte County High School
Something I still can’t wrap my head around is the fact that iPhones are relatively new inventions, so new that my parents didn’t grow up with them.
Having access to a device similar to an iPhone is what I’ve always known. With how far technology has come in just a few years it’s difficult to think that things haven’t always been this way. The way we record moments in time is vastly different from how we did it 20 years to 100 years ago. Our iPhones are so convenient to pull out and snap a video or recording, but during the Frontier Days memories were saved in a completely opposite way.
I feel very fortunate to grow up with generations who had nothing similar to what I have. My grandparents have shown me how we cherish memories differently. Really, making memories isn’t something that is consciously done, it just happens. What is done with these memories is what’s truly important, whether that is forgetting about the memories or holding them close to learn from and love. In the Frontier Days, memories were recorded and cherished through forms of art, such as journaling and quilts, and made through games and toys. Journals are key ways that we can learn about the past. But what makes journals so important is that they are unique to the individual who wrote them. Instead of learning about a community or large group as a whole, we learn about one person’s experiences and thoughts during a certain event or time period.
There are still many people that use journals today, as a way to write down their thoughts and process feelings. For pioneers, they didn’t have the option between phones or journals, they only had journals. When traveling on the Oregon Trail many women kept records of their travels through their journals. From these diaries, we are able to learn how women felt about traversing the Oregon Trail. Multiple women were upset with their husbands who wanted to travel but were unable to say no, but many of these women took the opportunity to record their journey for their descendants. According to the senior thesis “Diaries and Journals of Pioneer Women and Their Significance” by Haley Fury, “The women who wrote for the sake of their descendants were correct in thinking that someday someone would want to know their story. These diaries and journals that pioneer women left behind are of great value to all of their posterity, including those who are alive now.” Instead of falling into anger about their circumstances, many women chose to write about their experiences and now many descendants cherish these journals and the memories of their ancestors.
These journals aren’t the only ones that are cherished. Multiple entries from John Hunton’s diaries were published over a few years. According to wyohistory.org, “the publications vividly preserved day-to-day life on the frontier and presented profiles as well as true exploits not only of people living in that era who have been all but forgotten, but also of such well-known Western folk characters”. Hunton’s diaries have allowed historians another view and perspective into the lives of pioneers during the frontier days. Letting them know about everyday people, not just already well-known pioneers. Now his journals are permanently housed at the University of Wyoming’s American Heritage Center. These pioneers recorded their memories, instead of letting them get lost in time, and as a result, generations upon generations will have a glimpse into the frontier days.
Many people today still journal, but many more record memories through pictures and videos, and even less record their memories through quilts. Recording memories used to be a form of art, but over the years it’s become second nature due to iPhones. During the frontier days, every woman knew how to sew out of necessity and women used this to record their family’s memories in quilts. According to a blog post from Frontier Quilts, “In frontier America, quilts were a way for women to gain immortality. Quilters often called their quilts ‘diaries’ or ‘albums’ because they told stories and were tangible evidence of how a woman had lived her life, cared for her family, built a home and took pride in her work.” One of the most notable aspects of quilts was how women would make friendship quilts for their friends, especially on the trail West. Sometimes families would start to travel the trail with their friends before they had to split up to head their separate ways. For the first 1,000 miles of the trip, women could pass the time making a friendship quilt for their friends. This was the last time many friends would see each other, as one headed to California and the other to Oregon. Having friendship quilts, some of which were signed, helped women remember each other and cherish the memories they had before separating.
However, through most of the journey women were too occupied with worrying about the ever-present dangers to pass the time quilting. But they did have quilts from their previous homes that they had sewn or had been gifted by friends and family. These quilts were used to protect precious china and other belongings and sometimes they had to be abandoned if the trail got too difficult. If the quilts survived the journey, after being used to protect from Native American attacks, repair the wagon and shield from weather, they would be displayed in the house. According to womenfolk.com, “Pioneer Quilts: A Comfort Through Hardship,” “Sometimes they were used to partition off a room in an otherwise one-room structure. There was a need for emotional sustenance as well. Putting a favorite quilt on the bed gave a woman a sense of connection with her former way of life. Something of beauty was very much needed in her barren home.” These quilts were records of fond memories and women all across the frontier cherished these quilts. Pioneers used art and creativity to record their memories for countless generations; however, quilts and journals are just two examples of how creative pioneers were. Pioneers were very creative because they didn’t have access to easy entertainment as we do now, which resulted in drawing in journals and sewing different patterns for quilts. Games and toys were much more preferable to children than quilts or journals, so they dedicated their creativity to making new games and toys. Playing games with friends and family is a great way to make memories that can be cherished forever, and during the frontier days, it was no different. But these games and toys were also used to educate children in entertaining ways. According to an article from ndstudies.gov, “Hide-and-Seek, baseball, jump rope, tag and string games are just a few. Word games were played both at home and at school, because these games helped the children to learn language skills.” These games helped children learn but also strengthened their relationships with their parents, creating memories that they could cherish and then create with their future children. Parents during the frontier days were experts at teaching their children life skills through activities, as many girls would use their sewing skills to make dolls. According to the Job Carr Cabin Museum, “For fun, children would make rag dolls and corn husk dolls to play with, wrap rocks in yarn to make balls, and even use vines or seaweed strips for jump ropes.” These toys required young pioneer children to use their imagination, they didn’t have the ability to look on YouTube for tutorials on how to make dolls or jump ropes. Instead, they used what they had and pieced it together. This made the toys memorable to the children because they had created them from scratch, they had given the toys life. If teens or children today sewed and made their own toys, they would cherish them more than their store-bought toys. The creation of these toys wasn’t the only thing that took creativity, playing with the dolls required imagination of what they would do or say, what they liked and disliked, and even what their names were. All of these toys and games taught children life skills while simultaneously creating wonderful memories for children and parents,
Through the journals, quilts and old toys from pioneers we are able to learn what their lives were like. The lives of pioneers were hard, no doubt about it, but the diaries and hand-sewn quilts, and hand-crafted toys have shown us the ways pioneers loved their lives and families. The ways they cherished their memories with loved ones, through friendship quilts, and the ways they loved their future family members, by journaling for their descendants. Having iPhones today has drastically changed the way we live our lives. I believe that technology has improved the lives of many, but I also believe that iPhones have prevented us from living in the moment and appreciating our memories and those surrounding us, the way pioneers were able to.
It’s difficult to imagine a world without technology. So much of our modern life is based around technology and the world would look completely different without it. With an iPhone alone you can easily capture any moment in picture or video, you can communicate with people across the globe, you can Google search for virtually anything you could want to know, and much more.
Electronic technology undoubtedly makes life more convenient and provides us with infinite information at our fingertips. Almost all of the technology that we nowadays take for granted, however, was not around or even imagined in the frontier days. Pioneers in the frontier days used comparatively primitive tech in order to get around, track and share information, and just to have fun.
Lewis and Clark were frontier explorers tasked with charting unfamiliar territory of the U.S. They did this without all of the convenient navigational tech that is now available to almost anybody. Although the early explorers and pioneers didn’t have access to the modern technology that we do now, they still managed to navigate the dangerous frontier without it. The expedition of Lewis and Clark began in 1803. President Thomas Jefferson requested funds from Congress to send an expedition from the Missouri River to the Pacific Northwest. When the funds were approved, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were appointed to lead the expedition. The journey began on August 31, 1803, and after almost a year of exploration on May 14, 1804, they began their ascent up the Missouri River. With St. Louis as their starting point, they eventually reached Kansas on June 26, 1804 (Kansas Historical Society, 1).
They used many kinds of technology in order to navigate and map out the unfamiliar terrain. In today’s world, a GPS instantly provides a location on the globe and can create directions to reach any desired address. Nowadays it is almost impossible to get lost if you have a mobile phone with a GPS on it. Lewis and Clark, however, did not have this luxury during their expedition. The area they were exploring was completely uncharted and had no records of the terrain. In order to position themselves as they traveled they used an instrument known as a sextant to calculate their latitude, longitude and altitude. Lewis and Clark used the sextant to measure the angular distance between the moon and sun for longitude. To find latitude, they used it when the sun’s noon altitude was less than 60 degrees (MTU, 1). Although a sextant is typically used by sailors at sea, Lewis and Clark found it very useful to chart specific positions and places.
Another important navigational tool utilized by Lewis and Clark was the theodolite. The theodolite was a mathematical tool used to measure vertical and horizontal angles (U.S. National Park Service, 1). Thomas Jefferson volunteered his personal theodolite that could accurately measure distances of over 70 miles for the expedition. To tell time, a chronometer was used. In the 19th century, clocks (known at that time as chronometers) were extremely rare and expensive (U.S. National Park Service, 1). Even so, one was essential to Lewis and Clark’s arsenal of tools. They used it to record the time of certain events during their expedition.
The prime objective of the expedition was to chart and create maps of the unconquered territory. While Lewis was the commander of the expedition and was expected to lead the team on the journey, Clark’s assignment was to create maps of all the places they traversed. While today’s smartphones, even our watches, can tell us how far we’ve traveled, how fast we are going, and how long a certain distance will take, Clark had to calculate all this information in his head. Clark would calculate his position using tools such as the sextant, the chronometer and the theodolite daily. As they traveled (mainly by boat), he would use his last known point, his rate of speed, and the duration of travel to calculate distance (National Park Service, 1). He was a master cartographer and was extremely accurate. He was off by only 40 miles when he calculated the distance traveled from Camp River Dubois to the Pacific Ocean. Clark would take notes and measurements, and would compare them with Lewis’s notes to create maps of the rivers and plains they traveled across. His masterful cartography skills greatly contributed to the success of the expedition.
In this day and age of technology, there are virtually unlimited options for past times. An iPhone alone has capabilities to play mobile games, video call, browse social media, watch movies, listen to music, and even transform into a virtual reality headset. There are almost too many options which create somewhat of a stimulus overload. Children in the frontier days had to find other means of entertaining themselves and making memories. They did not have access to anything electronic and most often made most of their toys themselves. Children would play with homemade rag dolls made of various materials such as corn husks, yarn, and buttons (Eliel, 1). Outside they would play hopscotch, marbles, or play with wooden spinning tops. Children of the frontier era had a comparatively simpler childhood than children do now because of the absence of electronic entertainment.
As the children played, adults would be found playing or enjoying music, telling stories and dancing (West Harvard Historical Society). Much of a settler’s life was work focused but they still made time for some leisurely fun. Technology, specifically electronic technology, has become a vital part of modern life. Almost all of our schools, businesses, medical care and transportation is reliant on electronics. Although most of it is extremely useful, it is interesting to stop and think about the simpler time of the frontier without it all. Lewis and Clark, as well as the pioneers of the frontier era are prime examples of human resourcefulness. They used the limited technology of the time to trailblaze uncharted territory for future generations and have left a lasting impact on the modern world. They are a testament to the amazing human mind, creating maps of vast terrain and persevering through the dangerous frontier without electronic aid. Almost all of the expensive/complex technology used in the 19th century can now be found in a free app, available for anyone to download, which shows just how far humans have come. Technology will continue to grow more advanced and become more accessible to more people. As we branch out to new frontiers and expand our horizons to the deep oceans of our world and out into space, we must look back and appreciate the sacrifices and intuitiveness of early explorers such as Lewis and Clark and the pioneers.
In today’s society anything and everything is at our fingertips with a touch of a button. Everyone has iPhones, Macbook Pros, and Google Maps. We take advantage of the technology the world has to offer and don’t take the time to grasp how easy we have it now. Technology has allowed for people to cut corners and cheat their way through hardships that the pioneers had to endure.
Although technology has benefited society in many ways, it has also made us forget what our ancestors had to face in times like the frontier days. While today we can call someone with the click of a button, take pictures to capture those important and fun memories, and get directions to our favorite restaurants, Lewis and Clark did it differently. Keeping records, preserving moments in time, and mapping out new land as a pioneer was difficult but accomplished. First, discoveries were kept by writing in journals, note-taking and diary entries.
A lot of the time, specifically during Lewis and Clark’s expeditions, a person’s job would be to record every finding as a group, and then report back to President Jefferson at the end of the journey. Their journal entries had a variety of content. Not only did they log daily activities, but they also recorded their observations of weather, terrain, plants and animals. Some records are said to be lost because there are gaps in their findings from certain areas of discovery. Today, we don’t have to worry about losing important information because our world revolves around keeping a digital record of everything. Nowadays, almost everything is digital. Even in education all assignments and learning are online. All records of almost everything are kept in an online database. Scientists record their research using computers.
Second, preservation of moments is different today than the beginning of the 19th century. The box-type camera obscura was the basis for the earliest photographic cameras when photography was developed in the early 19th century. The box contained materials and chemicals that would momentarily record the image through the lens. Albumen prints were used as well and was the most commonly used photographic process. Unlike today where we can snap a picture with a touch of a button, the process of taking pictures of historic moments or important events and people took a lot longer. The camera obscura is a dark box or room that allows very little light inside. Instead of being straight up and down the image would appear upside down on the opposite surface. They used this technique to make their pictures more appealing and life-like. Today, we have the ability to edit pictures, use filters, and experience live photos. As far as taking pictures and capturing those special and important moments, technology has evolved tremendously.
Museums are a great example of how we preserve history because of all of the work our predecessors accomplished, we are able to learn about our historic buildings and homes with rich history and an information overload. We are very fortunate to have documents and even journal entries from important events and people. The National Archives contain many documents that have historical significance. It is amazing and comforting to know you are seeing the actual document! They are great resources when wanting to educate yourself or brush up on your facts.
Finally, creating and using maps have changed the way we navigate. For example, during Lewis and Clark’s expeditions, most maps were created by William Clark. Even though Clark had minor formal education, he contained an almost instinctive ability for map making. Clark learned his skills from the Virginia frontier and the Army. During the Louisiana Purchase expedition, Clark created four different trail maps. These were large-scale compass traverse maps, small page-size maps sketched in his journals, copies of maps prepared by traders and Indians, and composite maps of the West. During each trip, Clark logged the distance and direction of each segment of the trip in the form of a table named “course and distance.” Along with distance, William Clark drew a series of maps that were remarkably detailed, noting and naming rivers and creeks, significant points in the landscape, the shape of river shore, and spots where the Corps spent each night or camped or portaged for longer periods of time. They often followed along rivers and some maps are very detailed and show features that affected river travel, such as falls, narrows, and rapids.
The captains also drew small-scale page-size maps. As they set off on their epic journey of many purposes, Lewis and Clark took along a wide variety of mathematical instruments to help them chart and survey the land. The further west that they traveled the more they relied upon Indian maps for geographical information. These maps were generally sketched on the ground or on animal skin and then copied in their journals or on map paper.
iPhones have made it convenient and easier for us to get to our destinations quickly and efficiently. We rely on our phones for directions so much that a larger majority of our generation would not be able to use a paper map. I can even say personally that I cannot get to a place I have been a thousand times without my phone because I don’t pay enough attention to my surroundings. Road signs, landmarks and mile markers are great resources that we don’t use anymore because we are so heavily reliant on our phones and even GPSs.
In conclusion, without technology our society today would not be able to even function. I have so much respect for those who lived in the frontier days for their determination to survive and create tools to record historic moments, preserve history, and navigate their way through dangerous terrain. Even though technology is more efficient and makes our lives easier, we now lack basic knowledge and couldn’t imagine enduring the hardships during the 19th century. I admire Lewis and Clark for their discoveries and knowledge that made history.