Early Pioneers

By the 1800s, the population of the United States had grown to about 4 million people. Pioneers were heading west, outside the borders of the United States, in search of inexpensive farmland to settle. They traveled across the Appalachian Mountains to reach the plains.

Can you name the states the Appalachian Mountains span?

Daniel Boone

Daniel Boone settled in Kentucky in 1773 after leading a group of pioneers safely across the Cumberland Gap. Pioneers who left Kentucky were attacked by Native Americans who lived in the region.

What state was settled by Daniel Boone?

Later, Boone purchased much of the land in Kentucky from the Cherokees. The trails he expanded for pioneer travel became known as the Wilderness Road. Boone founded the settlement Boonesborough, and Kentucky became the fifteenth state in 1792. Boone and other early pioneers paved the way in both trails and legends for future generations to follow the call ever westward.

Find the Cumberland Gap and Boonesborough on the map below.