Wagons Crossing
For Basil Nelson Longsworth, emigrant of 1853, crossing the
Snake River near this site was easy with the help of the newly
established ferry: "we ran both wagons on the boat and in a few minutes
were safely on the other side." Before the ferry was established, river
crossing required careful planning and considerable creativity.
We found the river here too dep to ford and
had to ferry in a large canoe belonging to the
Fort. The plan of crossing was to pile the load
into the bottom of the canoe and balance the
wagon on the top of the canoe. This required a
good deal of care and skill to prevent capsizing.
We had one wagon tumble into the river, but
succeeded in getting it out alive. But it was
well soaked.
P. V. Crawford,
August 10-11, 1851
