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 The Donner Party summary
The Donner party left Springfield, Illinois, in April 1846. Led by two wealthy brothers,
Jacob and George Donner, the emigrants initially followed the regular California Trail
westward to Fort Bridger, Wyoming. “My father, with tears in his eyes, tried to smile as
one friend after another grasped his hand in a last farewell. Mama was overcome with
grief. At last, we were all in the wagons. The drivers cracked their whips. The oxen
moved slowly forward and the long journey had begun.” — Virginia Reed, daughter of
James Reed

Script Link - Donner Party Script

Discord link - https://discord.gg/HF9TfeKm
 Additional information
Deaths
Name Gender Age Date of death Location of death Cause of death Disposal of remains Family/Group
1* Sarah Keyes F 70 29 May 1846 Kansas Old age and illness Buried Reed family
2 Luke Halloran M 25 25 August 1846 Nr Grantsville, UT Tuberculosis Buried Taken in by Donner family at Little Sandy
3 John Snyder M 25 5 October 1846 Iron Point, NV Stabbed by James Reed Buried Graves teamster
4 Mr. Hardkoop M 60 abt 10 October 1846 Along trail Unknown Left behind Taken in by Keseberg
5 Mr. Wolfinger M 26 abt 25 October 1846 Humboldt Sink Killed by Reinhardt & Spitzer[3] Unknown German immigrant
6 William Pike M 32 30 October 1846 Truckee Canyon Accidentally shot Buried Murphy
7 Baylis Williams M 25 14 December 1846 Reed cabin Fever Buried Reed employee
8 Jacob Donner M 56 Bef 20 December 1846 Alder Creek Starvation Cannibalized later Brother of George
9 Samuel Shoemaker M 25 Bef 20 December 1846 Alder Creek Exposure Cannibalized later With Jacob Donner
10 Joseph Reinhardt M 30 Bef 20 December 1846 Alder Creek Fever Prob. cannibalized later With Wolfinger
11 James Smith M 25 Bef 20 December 1846 Alder Creek Exposure Prob. cannibalized later Reed teamster
12 Charles T. Stanton M 35 Abt 21 December 1846 Summit Valley Starvation, exhaustion, exposure Left behind With Donners
13 Franklin W. Graves M 57 25 December 1846 Camp of Death Hypothermia Cannibalized Graves
14 Antonio M 23 24 or 25 December 1846 Camp of Death Hypothermia Cannibalized With Donners
15 Patrick Dolan M 35 25 December 1846 Camp of Death Hypothermia Cannibalized
16 Lemuel Murphy M 12 26 December 1846 Camp of Death Starvation, exhaustion Cannibalized Murphy
17 Charles Burger M 30 29 December 1846 Keseberg lean-to Starvation Buried Donner teamster
18 Jay Fosdick M 23 abt 6 January 1847 Sierra foothills Starvation, exhaustion Cannibalized Graves
* Luis M 19 abt 8 January 1847 Sierra foothills Shot by William Foster[4] Cannibalized Indian guide
* Salvador M 19 abt 8 January 1847 Sierra foothills Shot by William Foster[5] Cannibalized Indian guide
19 Louis Keseberg Jr. M 1 24 January 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Unknown Keseberg
20 Landrum Murphy M 16 31 January 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Cannibalized later Murphy
21 Harriet McCutchen F 1 2 February 1847 Graves cabin Starvation Buried McCutcheon
22 Margaret Eddy F 1 4 February 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Buried Eddy
23 Eleanor Eddy F 25 7 February 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Buried Eddy
24 Augustus Spitzer M 30 8 February 1847 Breen cabin Starvation Buried Donner teamster
25 Milt Elliot M 28 9 February 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Cannibalized later Reed teamster
26 Catherine Pike F 1 20 February 1847 Murphy cabin Starvation Buried in snow Murphy
27 Ada Keseberg F 3 abt 24 February 1847 Donner Pass Starvation, exhaustion Buried in snow Keseberg
28 John Denton M 30 abt 25 February 1847 Summit Valley Starvation, exhaustion Buried in snow With Donners
29 William Hook M 12 abt 27 February 1847 Foothill camp Refeeding after starvation Buried Jacob Donner
30 George Foster M 4 March 1847 Breen cabin Starvation Cannibalized Murphy
31 James P. Eddy M 3 March 1847 Breen cabin Starvation Cannibalized Eddy
32 Isaac Donner M 5 abt 6 March 1847 Starved Camp Starvation, exhaustion Cannibalized Jacob Donner
33 Franklin Graves, Jr. M 5 abt 8 March 1847 Starved camp Starvation, exhaustion Cannibalized Graves
34 Elizabeth Graves F 45 abt 8 March 1847 Starved camp Starvation, exhaustion Cannibalized Graves
35 Lewis Donner M 3 7 March 1847 Alder Creek Starvation Buried in snow Jacob Donner
36 Elizabeth Donner F 40 March 1847 Alder Creek Starvation Unknown Jacob Donner
37 Samuel Donner M 4 March 1847 Alder Creek Starvation Unknown Jacob Donner
38 Lavina Murphy F 36 March 1847 Breen cabin Starvation Cannibalized Murphy
39 George Donner M 60/62 March 1847 Alder Creek Starvation, infection Cannibalized Captain of Donner Party
40 Tamsen Donner F 44 March or April 1847 Breen cabin Either murder or freezing Cannibalized George Donner
*Luis and Salvador were not among the original 87 emigrants; their deaths bring the total number up to 42. However, as Sarah Keyes died prior to the journeys start, she is
not always included in the death toll, bringing the number of deaths to 41.
Donner Party
 The Beginnings

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 The Warning
of Hastings

Reassured, the group of 89

emigrants left Fort Bridger with their
20 wagons and headed for Weber
Canyon, where Hastings claimed
there was an easy passage through
the rugged Wasatch Mountains,
advertising that it would save 350 -
400 miles on easy terrain. When they
reached the head of the canyon, they
found a note from Hastings attached
to a forked stick. Hastings warned the
Donner party that the route ahead was
more difficult than he had thought. He
asked the emigrants to make camp
there and wait until he could return to
show them a better way.
The Harsh Beginning Of the Trip.
Hastings’ note troubled the emigrants. To return
to Fort Bridger to pick up the established route
would have meant wasting several days. They
decided to wait for Hastings. After eight days, when
Hastings had still not arrived, the emigrants sent a
messenger up the canyon to find the guide.
 The Troubling Trail
The messenger returned several days later with
instructions from Hastings to follow another trail, and the
emigrants complied. The alternate route, however, turned
out to be even worse than the Weber Canyon road, and the
emigrants had to carve a fresh road through thick trees
and boulder-strewn ground.
 The First Week
During their first week in the
Cut-Off, the Donner party made good
progress. Hastings, who had promised
to lead migrants along the trail, left Fort
Bridger with a different company of
wagons, and it fail to Reed to act as
the company’s guide. As they broke a
new trail through the nearly
impassable terrain of the Wasatch
Mountains, they lost about two weeks’
time.
 And Now

A few Scene For The

Class
The next two slides will be background
for scenes… this will not be shown is
presentation.
 The
Dreaded
Dessert

On August 30, after gathering

as much water and grass as they
could carry, they entered the Great

?
Salt Lake Desert. The Donner Party
reaches Redlum Spring, the last
source of water before the dry drive
begins, then sets out to cross the
Great Salt Lake Desert. A note left by
Hastings had assured the party that
they would be able to cross the
desert in just two days, but the
journey took five. The party lost
dozens of cattle in the desert, and
several wagons had to be
abandoned. The pioneers lost
valuable days conducting a fruitless
search for the missing oxen before
beginning a circuitous navigation of
the Ruby Mountains in modern
northeastern Nevada.
 The trouble
of the

X
desert
On the third day in the desert, the
water runs out. That night, the Reeds'
thirsty oxen run off, never to be found. The
Reeds take a few things and set out on foot.

��
The emigrants finish the five-day journey
across the eighty-mile desert. They have
already lost 36 head of cattle, half of them
Reed's, and four wagons have to be
abandoned. They spend the next week at the
foot of Pilot Peak recuperating from their
ordeal, hunting for cattle, and caching their
possessions. The Donner Party sets out
again. After taking an inventory of their
supplies, the emigrants have realized that
they don't have enough food to get them to
California. September 26, 1846: The party
arrives at the Humboldt River, where the
cutoff meets the standard trail, which is
actually 125 miles (201 kilometers) shorter
than Hastings Cutoff. Two Native Americans
join the party for a while and are fed. They
were thought to have stolen one of Mr.
Graves' shirts one night.
 October
While struggling up a sandy hill at Iron Point, Nevada, the Reed and Graves teams become entangled.
A fight breaks out between Milt Elliott, Reed's teamster, and John Snyder, driving the Graves wagon. When
Reed intervenes with his knife to cut the teams, Snyder grows angrier and hits Reed on the head with his
whip handle; the handle breaks into James Reed's skull and causes bleeding. With Snyder about to strike
again, James Reed stabs him in the chest with his hunting knife. Snyder stumbles some feet up the hill and
dies. Louis Keseberg once suggested to hang Reed, but the emigrants decide to banish Reed, who at first
refuses to leave but then agrees. On October 11, 1846, At night, Paiute Indians kill 21 of the Donner Party's
oxen. Shortly thereafter the Indians steal another 18 oxen and wound several others. More than 100 of the
party's cattle are now gone. Since the Indians have killed almost all his cattle, a German emigrant named
Wolfinger stops at the Humboldt Sink to cache his wagon. Two men, Joseph Reinhardt and Augustus Spitzer,
stay behind to help but return without him, saying that he has been killed by Indians. Reinhardt later
confesses to having killed Wolfinger. The Donner Party arrives at the Truckee River, which will lead them
into the Sierra Nevada. John Breen later recalled of this time, "The weather was already very cold and the
heavy clouds hanging over the mountains to the west were strong indications of an approaching winter.
Some wanted to stop and rest their cattle. Others, in fear of the snow, were in favor of pushing ahead as
fast as possible." William Foster accidentally shoots his brother-in-law William Pike, who dies a short time
later. Snow falls during his burial in Truckee Canyon. About this date, Reed and McCutchen get horses and
supplies from Sutter and head back into the mountains after their families. They meet deep snow and are
unable to continue, so they cache the provisions and return to the fort to await another opportunity.
 November
Patrick Breen wrote of this time, "We pushed on as fast as our failing cattle could haul our almost
empty wagons. At last we reached the foot of the main ridge near Truckee [now Donner] Lake. It was
sundown. The weather was clear, but a large circle around the moon indicated an approaching storm." The
emigrants spend the night at the lake, 1,000 feet (300 m) below the summit; during the night, it begins
snowing on the summit. In the morning, the emigrants try to make it over the pass, but the snow is already
five feet (1.5 m) deep. Stanton and one of the two Indian guides do reach the summit, but turn back; the
others are too exhausted to push on. Night finds the emigrants huddled against the mountain in a windy
storm of snow and sleet. The next day, temporarily defeated, they return to the eastern end of the lake. They
have traveled 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) and are only 150 miles (240 kilometers) from Sutter's Fort.
The Donners, held up by the accident, are still behind. At Sutter's Fort, George McKinstry writes "All things
remain quiet here. The weather is bad. I am fearful the snow is too deep for the last company of emigrants
to cross the mountains." The two sections of the Donner Party camp for the winter. Near the lake, the Breen
family takes shelter in an abandoned cabin, against which Louis Keseberg builds a lean-to. About 200 yards
(180 m) away William Eddy and William Foster build a cabin against a boulder for the Eddys, Fosters,
Murphys, and Pikes. The Graves and Reed families occupy two sides of a double cabin about half a mile
away from the other two. About six miles (9.7 km) back, on Alder Creek, the two Donner families set up a
tent apiece; the single men accompanying them construct a brush shelter.
 December

Not much happened in these days, but it still snows hardly. But
sometimes, the weather softens and the sky clears. Because of the
cold weather, there are many deaths. The emergents had been
praying for the weather to turn better.
 Reliefs of the Donner Party

First Relief Left Sutter's Fort

As news of the Donner Party's plight spread, the First Relief of rescuers left Sutter's Fort. By February 5, they
reached Johnson's Ranch and continued on.
First Relief Reached the Donner Party
The First Relief reached the lake where the Donner Party camped on February 18. The remaining survivors were
starving, and eleven of the emigrants had died.
Second Relief Leaves Johnson's Ranch
Between February 21 and 26, the Second Relief, led by James F. Reed, left Johnson's Ranch. Twenty-three of the
emigrants were strong enough to travel with the First Relief across the pass; however, two returned to the camp
and two died during the journey
Second Relief Reached the Camps
The Second Relief arrived on March 1, 1847. They found survivors, weak but still alive, and significant evidence of
cannibalism. The Second Relief left with 17 survivors on March 3. A blizzard struck on March 5 to 7, and two
died. Most of the survivors, too weak to continue, returned to "Starved Camp". Three survivors, including two
children, continue.
Third Relief Arrived
The Third Relief arrived on March 12. More of the survivors had died and been cannibalized. The Third Relief
departed on March 14. Again, several were left behind, including George, Tamzene, and Samuel Donner, Levinah
Murphy and Louis Keseberg.
Fourth Relief Arrived
The Fourth Relief finally arrived on April 17, 1847. Only Louis Keseberg was alive. He reached Sutter's Fort on
April 29, 1847.
 Cannibalism in the donner
party
Cannibalism is when one species eat the
same species, which this happened in the
donner party. They started to cannibalize on
Dec. 26, 1846. Some members of the
Donner Party are believed to have turned to
cannibalism in order to survive. There are a
total of twenty-one people cannibalized in
the donner party. Many people are
cannibalized because they were killed by
starvation, exhaustion, exposure, infection,
or freezing. But some were not. Some of
the famous ones is that William Foster
murdered Luis and Salvador for survival.
 The end

“Well there you have it, the presentation about the donner party.
Let’s take a break and continue the lesson. Not everything have a
happy ending, but hopefully you can find you own. Don’t think
about cross-country roadtrips, or else you will end up like the
Donner party. And also, don’t take planes, because it’s
dangerous. You know what, just stay home and don’t do
anything. You don’t want to burn yourself and make people
think you are a piece of meat from the supermarket and eat
you. So just stay home and relax and watch TV and get fat.” -
Louis