This is a work of nonfiction. The story is true. In any piece of history, however, a writer must weigh conflicting and uncertain sources and make decisions about which are to be credited, and I have done so throughout the book. The events of the Donner Party story occurred in extremely difficult circumstances, involved many people, and often were not recorded immediately. Naturally, perceptions and recollections differed, and frequently the sources do not agree. As a general rule, I have relied most heavily on primary sources written at or near the time of the events, such as journals and letters. Second, I rely on memoirs and letters written years later by individuals who were directly involved. I have tried to place relatively little emphasis or reliance on third-hand accounts.
As with all writers who have recounted the Donner Party story, I created a chronology and at times had to choose among competing sources in selecting specific dates. Although I believe all the dates included in the book are accurate, I recognize that other Donner Party historians might reach different conclusions about specific dates. To preserve the narrative, assumptions must be made.
In places, I have relied on reasonable and obvious speculation to flesh out the narrative. Some things can be assumed. Parents fret about the safety of their children. Little girls smooth the dresses of their dolls. People wave farewell. At other points, I have relied on my own observations or experiences. During my research, I traveled the route of the Donner Party, and often one can still see today what one would have seen then: the heft of Independence Rock looming in the distance, the flat crawl of the Humboldt River across Nevada, the intimidating eastern face of the Sierra. I drew on personal experiences in other ways as well. I know, for example, the feel of a Sierra blizzard—the force of the snow against your face or the staggering, almost fearsome height of the drifts.
Readers familiar with the Donner Party story will note that some names are spelled differently in this book than in most others. In particular, I use Tamzene Donner instead of Tamsen, but also William McCutchan instead of McCutchen and Margret Reed instead of Margaret. Given that nineteenth-century spellings must be deduced from handwritten documents that are often unclear, the exact spelling of a name is sometimes open to dispute. I have reviewed countless original Donner Party documents and have tried to use the same spelling used by the person involved. I thank Kristin Johnson for her excellent research into the spelling of Donner Party names, on which I have also relied, and her willingness to share her knowledge with me.
The same caution should apply to the ages of Donner Party members, many of which are also imprecise. Again, I have tried to select the most likely date of birth for each character.
In quoting letters, journals, and other materials written by survivors, I have preserved the original spelling, some of which is, to say the least, unorthodox. Often I have, however, added punctuation for ease of readership.
One last logistical matter. Many of the letters, journals, and other original source materials about the Donner Party have been reprinted over the years. In most cases, I have read the original version of the documents during archival research. However, as a general rule I cite the published versions, since they are more accessible for readers who may wish to track my research. Indeed, by purchasing two anthologies—Dale Morgan's two-volume Overland in 1846 and Kristin Johnson's Unfortunate Emigrants—interested readers can gain access to most, though certainly not all, of the key primary documents. I also cite two secondary sources as they are excerpted in Unfortunate Emigrants, since they are extremely difficult to find in their original form. They are J. Quinn Thornton's Oregon and California in 1848 and Eliza Farnham's California, In-Doors and Out.