Step 2.

Now you will work with pages from a diary. A diary is a book with blank pages. People write their thoughts and experiences in diaries. We can learn a lot about history from reading old diaries. Today we will read pages from a diary of an imaginary settler.

Choose someone in your group to read Handout 1 out loud.

Welcome to the MyTown

project! Please follow these steps:

MyTownCenter Card #1Going West!

Step 1.

Read the presentation. If you are in a group, take turns reading out loud. The person who reads the slide should push the “next”

button.

Step 3.

Pass out the diary pages so that each person has at least one to read. Read the pages out loud, one at a time.

Step 4.

Work together to put the diary pages in the order they were written. Now take turns reading them again in the right order.

Step 5.

Now that you have learned about Garrison’s journey, let’s see what you remember! Each person needs Handout 2. Read the questions on the page. You may talk quietly with each other about the answers. Then write your own answers on the page.

Lesson 1 Handout 1

Pages from a Settler’s Diary

My name is Garrison Harrison. My family has been traveling west in the wagon train. I love to write and draw, so I have been keeping a diary all along the way. But today, a big gust of wind blew some of my pages away. I chased the pages around and caught four of them, but now they are out of order. Could you please help me put these page back in order? The page I wrote the longest time ago should be first. The page I wrote just this morning should be last. When you have the pages in the correct order, please date them for me. Here are the dates to write on the pages: September 17, 1859 September 18, 1859 September 20, 1859 September 21, 1859 Thanks for your help! Garrison Harrison

Date

Dear Diary, It has been over two months since we left our farm in Missouri to move to California. When we got to St. Joseph, we joined about 30 families who were also going west. We formed a big wagon train. It has been a hard trip. The wagons have jiggled so much for so long, some of them are starting to fall apart!

Tomorrow is my birthday. I’ll be 15 years old. My parents said that some of the settlers have a surprise for me. I can’t wait.

Date

Dear Diary, Today was my 15th birthday. Mrs. Perini mixed up flour, honey, and goat milk, and the Wheelers pitched in some peaches. Mrs. Perini poured it all in a black iron pot and cooked it on the campfire. Some of the families got together and surprised me with a little party. Believe it or not, Mrs. Perini’s birthday cake was delicious! We hadn’t had cake for a long, long time. I should tell you that one of the men in our wagon train is named Ned Johnson. My family met Ned back in Utah territory. Ned knows about land in California where all of us could settle and start a new town. The land is owned by a twin sister and brother named Linda and David Torres. The Torres twins want settlers to come to their land to start a town and new farms. When we get to California, I hope we meet the Torres twins and build a new town!

Date

Dear Diary, Today was both awful and wonderful. The awful part was getting all of our wagons through the pass — that’s a trail that goes through the mountains. We were near the end of the wagon train. The wagons in front left big ruts in the mud, and the wagons near the end got stuck. All of the horses were tired, and all of us settlers were tired, too. We got lucky when a stagecoach came along and the driver hooked his fresher horses up to our wagons to help us get going again. The wonderful part of today is that we have finally arrived in California!

Date

Dear Diary, It is our second night in California, and we had a camp meeting. All of the families have been through a lot together. We have had good times and hard times on our long journey west. At the camp meeting, the families had a big decision to make. Were they going to go with Ned to meet the Torres twins and start a new town? Or, were they going to leave the wagon train to settle on their own? I am so happy to say that almost all of the families decided to start a new town! Tomorrow we meet the Torres twins.

Lesson 1 Handout 2

Remembering the Journey 1. What are some of the reasons settlers came to California? 2. What people were already in California before the settlers? 3. Imagine you are part of a family in the wagon train. Write a short story that tells:

A. Why your family has decided to leave your home and move to California.

B. How your imaginary wagon train family will make a living in California. Will you farm? Will you work at a business?

Lesson 1 Handout 3

MyTown Mystery Assignment #1 How Did Your Community Start?

You have a history mystery to solve! Just like the imaginary community in the MyTown story, the community where you live has a history. Finding out about the past is like solving a mystery. You have to search for clues and answers. To solve this history mystery, you might need to use a computer and the Internet. You’ll need a teacher, parent, or other adult with you if you go online. You might also need to visit a library to find books about your community. Your job is to find answers to these questions:

1. Who were the first people to live on the land where your community is? Were they American Indians?

2. Is your community near where a mission used to be? If so, what is the name of the mission?

3. Is your community near where a rancho used to be? If so, what is the name of the rancho?

4. Did new settlers come to your community like in the MyTown story? Why did they come?

5. Where is your community located? Name any mountains, rivers, beaches, and valleys nearby.

Try to find pictures or drawings that go with your answers.