Conestoga wagon history

The Conestoga wagon, also called the “ship of inland commerce” and the “Dutch wagon,” was a heavy horse-drawn vehicle that, prior to the extension of the RAILROADS across the Allegheny Mountains in the 1850s, became the primary method of transporting freight to the interior regions of the United States.

In the early 18th century, German and Swiss immigrants in the Conestoga Creek region of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, developed the wagon, which was used to haul furs to Philadelphia. Following the Revolutionary War, farmers depended on Conestogas to transport produce to market, and manufacturers on the East Coast used the wagons to carry finished goods to frontier regions of the Ohio Valley west of the Allegheny Mountains. Conestoga wagons, usually drawn by six horses, could carry loads of up to six tons.

The floor of the wagon was lower in the middle than at the front and rear so that freight would be less likely to shift while traveling over rough terrain. The white covering, supported by eight bows and made of homespun hemp and later of canvas, was curved to conform to the wagon bed. At the front and back, the top of the covering extended farther than the bottom, thus offering protection from sun and rain. The wagon’s wheels were especially broad in order to navigate the ruts and mud of primitive dirt roads. The Conestoga wagon anticipated the development of the prairie schooner, so called because from a distance this white canvas-covered wagon resembled a sailing ship. Compared to the Conestoga, the schooner was lighter, simpler, and less expensive and had lower sides and a flat floor. It usually required no more than four horses, mules, or oxen. The wagon had an oval opening at each end to allow for ventilation and to let light into the interior. The prairie schooner was a major mode of transportation for pioneers traveling to Oregon, Utah, and California. It is estimated that during the 1849 California gold rush more than 12,000 schooners headed west.

Further reading

• Shumway, George. The Conestoga Wagon, 1750–1850: Freight Carrier for 100 Years of America’s Westward Expansion. Williamsburg, Va.: Early American Industries Association, 1964. 

Glenn H. Utter