Oregon Trail

Park Map

During the mass overland emigration by covered wagon that began in 1841, the mountain man's pathway along the North Platte and Sweetwater rivers to South Pass would be known by many names. The pioneers of the 1840s entered “Oregon Country” when they crossed the Continental Divide at South Pass and, thus, the name Oregon Trail was the most common and correct.

In Wyoming, the stretch of the trail from Fort Laramie to South Pass is significant because it is where all the major emigrant trails come together to follow the same route. There are a number of trails leading into Fort Laramie and a number branch off from South Pass, but on this 250 mile stretch everyone "went westering" together.