Welcome to Ben Franklin's World,

Podcast about Early American History with Liz Covert.

The study of history is key to understanding who we are

and how we can affect a better future.

Van Franklin's world will introduce you to historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present day world.

And now, here's your host, Liz Colart.

Hello and welcome to episode 77 of Ben Franklin's world.

The podcast dedicated to helping you learn more about how the people and events of our

early American past have shaped the present

day world we live in.

You have died of dysentery.

Parrots admonish their kids these days for staying up too late because they're playing on their

tablets and smartphones. But back in the early 90s, my parents used to have to tell my

brother and I to get off the trail and go to bed. In the decade before smartphones and tablets, we kids used to stay up late playing the

Oregon Trail computer game. I can't say what role this game played in my desire to become a professional

historian, but I used to love picking my oxen, loading my wagon with supplies,

and heading out on my 8-bit version of the Oregon Trail. And I'm pretty sure I died of dysentery more often than I made it to Oregon.

Since childhood, the Oregon Trail has captivated my intention.

So when I saw that a journalist named Rinker Buck

traverse the Oregon Trail in a mule-pulled covered wagon in 2011 and that he wrote a book about his experience?

Well, I knew I had to have him on Ben Franklin's world.

So today, we will pack our mental

...