[TexKan]

Why would you think a covered wagon, crossing mountains, fighting indians would be quicker than a ship? Now that don't make good sense to me.

IMO - if I were traveling - not sure if I would survive the trip and I had lots of money - I would take the passage where I could have some luxery and I would put my money in an Eastern bank and have a letter of credit. It was easier to carry and actually it's often what they did.

The farmers and explorers took the wagon trains. Granted some had money but only a fool would take his money in gold or silver, it wieghed down the wagon - If I wanted extra weight in a wagon I think I woulda been lookin at water and food - all the gold bars in the world won't take care of me on a hot summer trail! I just think most of the travelers in wagon trains were the working class folks lookin for a better life. Lots of them traveled that way but honestly why would you travel like that if you didn't have to? If it was adventure you were lookin for - you wouldn't need to pack millions with you for that adventure.

I'm not disagreeing cause truth is I'm not sure any of us know for sure just who was on the wagon trains. Folks changed thier names so often back then - hell some probably weren't sure exactly what thier name really was. - just what they were told it was. If you had committed a crime and needed to start over - ya moved and changed your name - folks often times were married many times simply cause they picked up and left, never came back and started over elsewhere................. so who can really ever really be sure? Just cause the manifest said jane doe was there don't mean it was the jane doe you are thinkin of.