THE COVERED WAGON AND OTHER ADVENTURES

Asked by his granddaughter to describe ""what things were really like back then,"" Scott recorded the events of his family's two westward journeys in 1906 and 1908. Scott's father, plagued by asthma and worried about an older son's arthritis, packed up the family's belongings in two covered wagons and set out from Nebraska to Thermopolis, Wyoming, in 1906. Even in the early 1900's, western travel offered lots of trials--hailstorms, rattlesnakes, and only a horse doctor for Ma, sick with Rocky Mountain Fever. Along the way, the family met hungry Indians, struggling ranchers, and three would-be horse thieves. Once settled in Wyoming, Pa didn't think the local mineral baths were helping his or son Don's ailments, so he packed up the family and returned to the Nebraska farm. The second part of the book recounts the family's new life on a ranch in Oregon, where Pa resettled the Scotts in 1908. Scott's story reads like oral history, aided by his very rough sketches of guns, tools, and gadgets. Sometimes the reader gets lost in uneven transitions, or wants Scott to clarify or add more information. But Scott's story is full of family spirit and awesome details for today's kids--a real treat for kids in 1906 was 10¢ worth of raisins. This is a useful resource for teachers looking for ways to bring American history alive.