Original Document

Before the canals and railroads transported raw materials and goods across the state of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Dutch settlers in the Lebanon Valley had developed a vehicle that could travel on undeveloped trails and was capable of carrying a large cargo–the Conestoga wagon. It was named for the valley in Lancaster County where it was developed. It was one of the chief freight carriers in the East from 1750 until the coming of the railroads. The wagons were custom built, so no two were alike. The Conestoga generally had a vermilion framework, running gear, and wheels; a blue wagon body; red sideboards or shelving; and a white canvas cover. There were usually eight bows which followed the contour of the wagon. This prevented the wind from whipping the covers, which were corded down on the sides and drawn together at the ends. The harness, iron-work, and tar bucket were black. The wagon-jack was red, and the feed box was blue. These colors could be easily mixed at home. Four to six horses pulled it, and broad wheels kept it from getting stuck in the mud.


The early wagons were small. Most of Pennsylvania was covered with woods with Indian trails as roads. It was difficult to clear a path for the high and wide wagons. The Conestoga wagon probably began as a farm wagon adapted for use on the rough, hilly ground in Lancaster County. A cover was added to protect the goods. The bottom was bowed to keep the goods from sliding back and forth as the wagon traveled up and down hills. The wheels were large so the wagon could pass over streams without getting the goods wet. Large wheels also made it easier to pass over stumps and rocks in the road. A variety of wood was used for construction. Some wood was better for wheels, while another made better sideboards. Cured wood, that had been cut three or four years before, made better wagons. Tar buckets were made of black leather and hung under the rear axle. Tar was used to grease the oak axles. The axles were banded with iron to withstand wear. If they were not properly cared for, their creaking and groaning would be heard for miles as the wagon approached. To keep the wheels rolling along easily, the wagoner would grease the axles and hubs before beginning the trip and when the wagon rested on a hill to let the horses catch their breath, the wagoner would dip a feather into the tar and insert it in the opening caused by the heavy load pushing the wheels outward on the hub.



The wagons came in various sizes. The smaller ones were used on farms while the larger, 14 to 16 feet in length, were used to haul goods to Philadelphia and later, further west. The wheels would be painted red while the body would be blue. The driver would walk along side the wagon, or he would ride the wheel horse or pull out the lazy board to sit on. One who sat here, ran the risk of being called lazy! There were no real seats on the wagon. Equipment on the wagon consisted of a feed box for the animals, a bucket to water the horses, an ax to clear the road, a tool box to make small repairs, a tar bucket to grease the wheels, and a jack to remove the wheels.



The driver sent directions to his horses through a long leather line that was connected to the lead horse. "Haw" meant turn left and "gee" meant go right. The custom of driving on the right side of the road today is believed to have originated because the lead horse was on the left, and the wagon driver would walk on the left. If he needed to pass, he would do so on the left and drive on the right. The Conestoga wagoner initiated the custom of passing a vehicle on the right. When going downhill, the brakeman used a chain on the back of the wheel to keep the wheel from turning. It would slide down the wheel, slowing it down. A short board on the left side near the rear wheels was called a "lazy board" because the brakeman could sit or stand on it to relieve him from walking and could keep him within instant reach of the brake handle. On icy roads in winter, a heavy iron chain was fastened to the felloe of the left rear wheel and linked to the framework of the wagon to prevent it from slipping sideways. The same principle is applied today in the use of chains on automobile wheels.
It took several days to move a load 60 miles to Philadelphia. If it were muddy, the trip would take longer. It took less time in the winter when the roads were hard and frozen. The time required to make the journey from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh was twenty days. The wagon traveled at a rate of three miles an hour. The trips were monotonous, so the wagoners puffed on a cigar almost a foot long as they walked along the road. This cigar, selling at four for a cent, was called a "stogie," derived from Conestoga.


Before the Revolutionary War, 10,000 of these wagons traveled from the Lancaster-Lebanon Valley to Philadelphia hauling whiskey, farm produce, iron ore, charcoal, and finished products and returning with items imported from Europe.



The Conestoga wagon played an important part in the winning of the West. It was the most extensive carrier of freight for more than one hundred years. Pittsburgh was the gateway to the Ohio country, and during the heyday of wagon days over three thousand wagoners and their teams passed daily back and forth on the National Road, the artery of travel to the West.
By the 1820s and 1830s better and cheaper methods of hauling goods came into use through the canals and later the railroads By 1850 locomotives had become so powerful that they could pull ten to one hundred times the load of the Conestogas depending upon the size of their engines. They traveled at a speed of ten miles an hour cutting the travel time from Philadelphia to Lancaster from five days to one. Conestogas continued to haul freight from railroad stations to nearby businesses. After the Revolution, as settlements expanded westward, the Conestoga hauled freight to the new towns.