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The Donner Party, short for Donner-Reed Party, was a group of pioneers who became deserted on the way to California. The path had been blocked by heavy snow, and, when faced with the issue of a dwindling food supply, a few members of the party allegedly resorted to the cannibalization of the dead bodies.

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George and Jacob Donner along with James Reed and around a dozen others, left

Springfield, Illinois

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They’ve reached Independence, Missouri and have joined up with the main wagon train

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The group splits up, most using the Oregon Trail, and the Reed and Donner families taking a “shortcut” recommended to them by Lansford Hastings

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The group splits up, most using the Oregon Trail, and the Reed and Donner families taking a “shortcut” recommended to them by Lansford Hastings

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Instead of leading the group like he was supposed to, Hastings left with a different group

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They lost two weeks of time because they had to create a new trail through the Wasatch Mountains

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After gathering as much grass and water as they could carry, the party entered the Great Salt Lake Desert

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The pioneers had arrived at what is now called the Donner Pass, only to discover that their path was blocked by heavy snowfall

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Shortly after, most of the Donner Party had set up makeshift tents near what is now known as Donner Lake

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Patrick Breen began his diary that would cover the events of what happened there from then until March 1st

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The first death has occurred

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A small group of ten men and five women strap on makeshift snowshoes and try to hike to safety

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During their hike to safety eight of the men died and the bodies of some were cannibalized by the others - Two men and all of the women made it to Sacramento Valley and started to form a rescue group

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After they had eaten their dogs and animal hides, the remaining survivors had to resort to cannibalizing the frozen bodies of the dead in order to live

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After the relief party was formed, they finally set off to rescue the others

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Seven men from the relief party have arrived at the lake and they proceed to rescue 23 emigrants

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Several people died on the way back

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By the end of the rescue operation the final headcount was 47, that means that out of 89 emigrants, only a little more than half had survived