Facts and Figures on
ConestogaWagons
cost to build a Conestoga wagon
$250
length of time to build
2months
cost of a teamof six horses
$1,200
amount of goods hauled
3 to 5 tons
number of barrels of flour hauled in one wagon
30
average distance traveled in one day
12 to 15miles
cost of a goodmeal at a tavern
12.5¢
cost of a drink
3¢
cost of an overnight stay at a tavern
for a driver and teamof horses
75¢ to $1.50
cost to walk on a toll road
2¢ for 11miles
cost of horse and rider on toll road
16¢ for each 10miles
no toll for children to and from school, people going to and from
church, clergymen, and those inmilitary service
L
ET
’
S
R
EVIEW
1. Define industry.
2. Give amodern day example of an industrial good.
3. Give amodern day example of an industrial service.
4. What major geographical feature prevented the early
industrial development of Pennsylvania?
5. Why was the Conestoga wagon such an important vehicle for its time?
6. For what other improvement was the Conestoga wagon responsible?
7. Describe the difference between the Conestoga wagon and prairie schooner.
8. What mode of transportation carried Conestoga wagons over rivers?
9. What wordmeans to pay money?
10 Explain how the word turnpike got its name?
Travelers often stayed at
taverns and inns on their
long travels by horse or
wagon. City Tavern in
Philadelphia was a
favoritemeeting place to
many and briefly served as
Washington’s military
headquarters. Torn down
in 1854, an exact
recreation of the tavern
was built in 1976 in time
for the city’s Bicentennial
Celebration.
Mountains of Pennsylvania Hinder Industrial Growth
63
