In my second chapter of the first wagon train book I wrote for the Prairie Roses Collection, I introduced my hero as a trader who had purchased three Chicago wagons for transporting freight to California. He chose them over the larger, heavier Murphy wagons often used for hauling cargo. However, at the time, I did not do a lot of research into exactly what constituted a Chicago wagon.
Last month, I came across information about Chicago wagons in a Daughters of Utah Pioneers lesson I taught titled “Down and Back Church Trains.”
 |
| Mormon Trail ctsy U.S. National Park Service |
To set the stage, between 1847 and 1860, thousands of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled the Mormon Trail to the Great Salt Lake Valley. As time passed, fewer of these immigrants came from other regions of North America and more (like many of my ancestors) came from Europe. With no means to purchase fully-outfitted wagons to make the overland journey, increasingly the church began to send wagons and supplies from Utah Territory to the departure point which, for many years, was Florence (now part of Omaha), Nebraska Territory.
By 1860, on the cusp of the American Civil War, a concerted effort on the part of the church to send wagons and supplies back to Florence to collect the immigrants was put into place. During the years of 1861 through 1865, the American Civil War years when there was such a great demand of wagons (and replacement wagons) for the war effort, the church found it necessary to provide greater aid for those immigrants of their faith to reach their destination.
The following are excerpts from the circular sent from the church president, Brigham Young, to the bishops throughout Utah Territory to introduce this program:
“…There were only twenty-nine wagons sent to Florence last season; this year we wish to send two hundred wagons with four yoke of oxen to each wagon. In addition to said teams we also wish to forward as many loose oxen to Florence as our this year’s immigration may wish to purchase, as that will give us the use of their money before it goes into the hands of strangers [translation: many of them enemies, who overcharged the Mormons], thus saving for our use from about $10 to 30,000 which are yearly paid out in cash for cattle and wagons….
“The wagons sent should be the best Chicago make, 2 inch iron axletree, and be in such condition…Wooden axle Chicago wagons can be sent if there are not enough iron axle wagons of that make. Other good wagons, of similar make, can also be sent, if there are not enough Chicago wagons….”
Overall, Chicago wagons is not a brand name. Rather, it is a type, and the designation indicates where the wagons were made. The reason Chicago wagons became a generic term was because some of the most legendary wagon makers were originally based in Chicago, Illinois.
By the mid 1850’s, the city of Chicago was a little less than twenty years old. The population was almost 80,000. Wagon makers numbered less than one hundred, most of them being Germans who did not speak much English. However, they produced quality wagons. In areas not served by a railroad, wagons were the primary means of transporting goods and people. As buyers saw the craftsmanship, attention to detail, and dependability of certain makes of wagons that came from Chicago, those became the wagons of choice—for farm use, travel, and hauling freight (particularly where the long-distance hauling did not require the heavier Murphy freight wagons). They were given the generic name of Chicago wagons.
Eventually, Chicago claimed more than two hundred wagon and carriage makers during the heyday of horse-drawn vehicle making. Among the more notable brands besides Peter Schuttler were Weber, Louis Palm, and Columbus. Henry Mitchell, who eventually moved his home to Racine, Wisconsin his home, started his wagon construction business in Chicago.
An example: Weber Wagon Company, after a decade in business, employed eighteen people and produced two hundred wagons a year. (They eventually became the International Harvester Company.) In comparison, by about 1850, after approximately a decade in business, Peter Schuttler employed about one hundred men and produced about one thousand, eight hundred wagons a year. Keep in mind, at this time, wagons were largely hand-built.
In a different article, I learned in the case of Brigham Young’s statement, he referred to Peter Schuttler Company wagons, based in Chicago. Many wagons were sold to Mormons moving west. Because it was such a large company, for many, “Chicago” wagons also became synonymous with Peter Schuttler Company wagons.
 |
| Schuttler wagon |
Chicago wagons were used for travel across the Great Plains and the western mountain ranges. Although many of the Chicago wagons built for hauling freight had about the same dimensions (3-1/2 to 4 feet wide by 10 feet long) as pioneer travel/prairie schooner wagons, the wooden parts needed to be built sturdier, with metal axles, and more metal reinforcements on the moving parts.
 |
| Murphy freight wagon. Note where driver sits |
All three of the books I have written for the Prairie Roses Collection include freight haulers—private traders rather than regularly employed freighters—along with pioneers traveling the established trails of the day. I first mentioned the distinction between the larger Murphy freight wagons (12 feet in length) and the smaller Chicago freight wagons in the first book I wrote for the Prairie Roses Collection, Pearl. In it, my hero chose Chicago wagons over Murphy wagons. However, after giving the lesson, mentioned above, I decided it was time learn more about Chicago wagons.
In my third book, Lucy, set in 1863, this same trader sent his employees, including my hero in the second book, Clara, as trail boss—back to the Missouri River region of Kansas. The purpose was not only to purchase goods difficult to be found in the West, but to buy four new Chicago wagons to transport them west. The wagons would then to be used to haul trade goods to the gold and silver towns of Virginia City and Gold Hill in Nevada Territory.
To find the book description and purchase options for Lucy, Book 46 in the Prairie Roses Collection, please CLICK HERE
Sources:
https://wheelsthatwonthewest.com/blog/chicago-wagons/
https://alchetron.com/Peter-Schuttler
http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/bridgerd.html
Jeppson, Ellen Taylor, “’Down and Back’ Church Trains”; Tales of Triumph, Volume 6 (Salt Lake City, Utah: International Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 2023), Pages 288-289.
https://westernmininghistory.com/4127/heavy-freight-wagons-of-the-american-west/
