Conestoga wagon

Conestoga wagon
/kon"euh stoh"geuh, kon'-/
a large, heavy, broad-wheeled covered wagon, used esp. for transporting pioneers and freight across North America during the early westward migration. Also called Conestoga.
[1690-1700; named after Conestoga, Pa., where it was first made]

* * *

Horse-drawn covered freight wagon.

It originated in the 18th century in the Conestoga Creek region of Pennsylvania. It had a flat body and low sides; with its floor curved up at each end to prevent freight from shifting, it was well suited for travel over early American roads. It became famous as later adapted by westward-traveling pioneers for hauling their possessions; with its tall white canvas top, it resembled a sailing ship from a distance, which earned it the name "prairie schooner."

Conestoga wagon

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

* * *

 horse-drawn freight wagon that originated during the 18th century in the Conestoga Creek region of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, U.S. Ideally suited for hauling freight over bad roads, the Conestoga wagon had a capacity of up to six tons, a floor curved up at each end to prevent the contents from shifting inside, and a white canvas cover to protect against bad weather; it was pulled by four to six horses.

      A descendant of the Conestoga wagon was the prairie schooner, used by the pioneers to transport their possessions westward. Named for its white canvas top, which at a distance made it resemble a sailing ship, the prairie schooner had a flat body and lower sides than the Conestoga wagon.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Conestoga wagon — on Oregon Trail reenactment in 1961 …   Wikipedia

  • Conestoga wagon — Con es*to ga wag on or Conestoga wain Con es*to ga wain [From Conestoga, Pennsylvania.] A kind of large broad wheeled wagon, usually covered, for traveling in soft soil and on prairies. [Webster 1913 Suppl.] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Conestoga wagon — ☆ Conestoga wagon [kän΄ə stō′gə ] n. [after Conestoga Valley, Lancaster County, Pa., where the wagons were made] a broad wheeled covered wagon used for hauling freight in colonial America: cf. PRAIRIE SCHOONER …   English World dictionary

  • Conestoga wagon — noun a large wagon with broad wheels and an arched canvas top; used by the United States pioneers to cross the prairies in the 19th century (Freq. 1) • Syn: ↑covered wagon, ↑Conestoga, ↑prairie wagon, ↑prairie schooner • Hypernyms: ↑wagon, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • Conestoga wagon — noun Etymology: Conestoga, Pa. Date: 1717 a broad wheeled covered wagon drawn usually by six horses and used especially for transporting freight across the prairies called also Conestoga …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Conestoga wagon — Con′es•to′ga wag′on [[t]ˈkɒn əˈstoʊ gə, ˌkɒn [/t]] n. trs a large, heavy, broad wheeled covered wagon, used to transport freight across North America during the early westward migration. Also called Con es•to′ga • Etymology: 1715–20; after… …   From formal English to slang

  • Conestoga wagon — noun A large cart with a canvas cover drawn by mules, oxen or horses and used extensively during the Westward Expansion of the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries. During the summer and fall the covered broad wheeled Conestoga wagons,… …   Wiktionary

  • Conestoga River — Origin Berks County, Pennsylvania Mouth Susquehanna River …   Wikipedia

  • Conestoga — originally referred to the Conestoga (people), an English name for the Susquehannock people of Pennsylvania. It may also refer to: simply people from the Pennsylvania in 1856 Year, refereed to this named and eventually they scattered in different …   Wikipedia

  • Conestoga — 1690s, name of an Indian tribe in southcentral Pennsylvania, probably from some Iroquoian language and sometimes said to mean people of the cabin pole; later a place in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. A characteristic type of covered wagon,… …   Etymology dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”