The Conestoga Wagons

Covered Wagons in Early America

Mar 8, 2009 Darla Sue Dollman

The Conestoga was a popular form of covered wagon in early America used for the transportation of both freight and families.

Beginning in the early 1700s, the lightweight and multi-purpose Conestoga wagon was a vital form of transportation in the eastern United States. These popular covered wagons were used in the Conestoga Valley of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and surrounding frontier areas for nearly one hundred years. They were introduced to the states by German settlers and used to transport military supplies during the war of 1812.

Anatomy of a Covered Wagon

The Conestoga wagon was crafted with hand tools using white oak and poplar woods. It was shaped like a boat with a sloping front and rear construction to keep contents from tumbling to the ground while climbing steep roads in the Appalachian valleys. It was a large, lumbering vehicle weighing close to a ton with a fourteen-foot underbody painted blue, nineteen-foot upper body painted red, and a 16 foot by four foot by four foot bed.

Heavy, wooden ribs stretched from side to side forming a cage for the white cloth canopy that was stretched tight and water-proofed with linseed oil. This canopy was originally made of a hemp fabric and later replaced by canvas. The front and rear of the canopy was tied shut for privacy and there was often a chain gate at the end to secure loads for commercial transport.

There was a toolbox at the front of the wagon for repairs, which included a special jack. There was also a grease bucket tied to the back to grease the axel and wheels. The wagons were often decorated with brass or iron bells. Conestoga’s generally cost around $250 according to the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

Conestoga Horses

Because of its tremendous size and weight, the Conestoga wagon required between four and twelve horses to pull it along. Although oxen could be used, horses were preferred. The horses used to pull these heavy conveyances were a cross between a Flemish draft horse and an English breed chosen for size and endurance. They were most often black, and occasionally a bay or dappled gray, stood five feet tall, were remarkably docile, and cost between $170 and $200. They were decorated with fancy pom poms and other elaborate head and forelock gear and put on quite a show as they marched through towns and villages. They were named Conestogas after the area in Pennsylvania where they were bred and are now considered extinct.

Use and Operation of the Covered Wagon

The Conestoga wagon played an important role in early American commerce, transporting loads of goods as heavy as eight tons across the Alleghenies to merchants on the frontier and returning with equally full loads of frontier products. The driver of a Conestoga generally walked alongside to lead the horses or rode the left wheel horse, but this particular wagon was also designed with a small seat known as a lazy board where the rider could guide the horses when moving at high speeds. Eventually, Conestogas were replaced by the lightweight Prairie Schooner as transportation needs changed when pioneers migrated long distances into the American West.

Sources

"Conestoga wagon." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 7 Mar. 2009.

"The Conestoga Wagon.” The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. 8 Mar. 2009.

The copyright of the article The Conestoga Wagons in American History is owned by Darla Sue Dollman. Permission to republish The Conestoga Wagons in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Conestoga Army Transport Wagon