Travel

A pioneer traveling over an established road could stop for meals and a night's lodging at an inn. In frontier inns, there might be so few beds that it was not uncommon for each one to accommodate several guests. No personal service was provided; in the morning the guests went outside to wash at the water trough and share the same towel. Meals were served family style, at one table, with the same food for all.

Early railways offered fast transportation but were often uncomfortable and inconvenient. Railway lines were of comparatively short length, and various gauges were used. (Gauge is the distance between the rails.) Therefore, cars often could not pass from one line to another, and travelers might have to change lines 8 or 10 times between the East Coast and the Mississippi River. Meanwhile they had to provide their own meals, which were generally carried picnic-style in a basket, and had to stop off in a town if they wished a night's rest in a bed.

Sleeping cars and more comfortable passenger cars came into common use after the Civil War. When the longer western railway lines were built, arrangements were made for passengers to get off at certain stations where meals had been prepared for them. Train travel still presented its problems, however; smoke and sparks came in through car windows, the cars were often overcrowded and dirty, and accidents were common.

In contrast to road and rail, water travel was usually comfortable and sometimes luxurious. Packet boats on the canals offered separate cabins for women passengers, and meals were prepared and served on board. On river steamboats the stateroom and dining-saloon facilities were more elegant than could be found by a traveler anywhere else.