Madera Method Wagon Train 1993-94
In 1993, the Madera Method added a new domension to its projects. In addition to performing research from primary sources, the students were taken on wagon trips to increase their historical empathy—to give them “seat knowledge” to compliment their “head knowledge.”
The first Madera Method wagon train took place in January 1993. With two wagons, four mules, and three outriders on horseback, students were taken from Nogales, Arizona to Madera. It took 26 days.
The wagons followed part of the actual trail taken by William P. Huff in his journey to California in 1849-50. Students helped drive the wagons, tend the animals, and prepare meals on the trail over an open fire.
