When I was in elementary and middle school, I loved playing The Oregon Trail. In fact, it was so influential that they named a micro-generation after it, and yes, I'm part of it. I'm the Oregon Trail Generation.
According to Google, "The Oregon Trail Generation, also widely known as Xennials, is a micro-generation of people born roughly between 1977 and 1985 who experienced an analog childhood and a digital adulthood."
If You Played The Oregon Trail, You Know
If you never played the game, it was on a computer, and you started by ordering supplies for your covered wagon. You'd also have to choose how many oxen you wanted to make the trip and be strategic about what food and supplies you'd take. You only had so much money, and your oxen could only carry so much.
Then you'd head off on the Oregon Trail. There were many perils along the way. You could die of dysentery. There were also snake bites, drowning, multiple infections, broken limbs, or good old exhaustion.
You could hunt or buy supplies along the way if your wagon and its entire contents didn't get swept away while you were crossing a river.
I think I only actually made it to Oregon once or twice and the graphics were rudimentary, but that game was so addictive and fun. Writing about it makes me want to play it so badly.
Fun fact: you CAN play the early '90s version for FREE!
The Oregon Trail Journey
The Oregon Trail started in the state of Missouri, in about the center of the continental U.S., and meandered for about 2,000 miles to the Oregon Territory, along with other trails that went to California and New Mexico.
Small side note: I looked up to see if Indiana or Kentucky was part of the Oregon Trail. It was not. Womp WOMP.
You Can Actually Get Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter
Anyway, I saw a video recently about the fact that you can actually order a free sourdough starter that is from the original sourdough that made its way across our country in the 1800s, so I Googled it.
And yes, you can, but there's a bit of a catch...
The starter went west in 1847 with ancestors of the late Carl Griffith. Carl was a generous man and gave away the dried sourdough starter to anyone who asked until he died in 2000.
Carl was known for his generosity and the high quality and vitality of his sourdough starters, which came from a sourdough culture carefully nurtured and preserved in his family for more than 150 years.
The Oregon Trail Sourdough Starter Has Quite a History
After Carl died, the 1847 Oregon Trail Sourdough Preservation Society was created, and they continue the legacy of sending a dried sourdough starter to anyone who sends them a self-addressed stamped envelope.
Well, some well-meaning influencers got ahold of this information, and the floodgates opened. They started receiving a LOT of requests.
I mean, sourdough is all the rage these days, and if you can get one that's not only high quality but is also a part of American history, who wouldn't jump at that?
Since the start of the Oregon Trail Sourdough Preservation Society in 2000, over 108,000 starters have been sent out for free. But now, there is a backlog of starters that need to be sent out and only a small number of volunteers. The website says that they have suspended sending out the sourdough. They will try to be back up and sending out sourdough starters in November, but there are no guarantees.
They Need More Sourdough Volunteers
Now, what they do need are additional keepers and a couple more growers. The website mentions a lot of good information about their standards and what is involved.
If you are interested, please contact them at sourdough@carlsfriends.net.
If you just really want the sourdough starter, keep checking back with the website for updates. Please don't send in your self-addressed stamped envelope, as many influencers are stating, because their PO Box will be changing. So, you are wasting your time and a stamp.
And if you're part of the Oregon Trail Generation like me, this feels like exactly the kind of thing we should be doing. We survived dysentery. We can handle a sourdough starter. And in the meantime, you can still play the original game for FREE!
103 iconic photos that capture 103 years of world history
Gallery Credit: Rachel Cavanaugh & Elizabeth Ciano