We're Back... well almost! We just wanted to get on the airwaves and let you know we are definitely coming back with fun, new, and exciting episodes next week! We love you guys and appreciate your patience!

-Love Jen & Sarah

In the summer of 1902, escaped convict Harry Tracy sparked one of the largest manhunts in Pacific Northwest history after breaking out of the Oregon State Penitentiary in a violent escape. Moving through Oregon and Washington, he hijacked boats, took hostages, and repeatedly slipped through law enforcement after a series of deadly gunfights. For weeks he stayed ahead of posses until he was finally cornered at a farm near Creston, Washington. Wounded and surrounded in a wheat field, Tracy chose to end his own life rather than be captured, closing the chapter on the last desperate run of a notorious outlaw.

Episode Sources:

https://cowboystatedaily.com/2024/10/19/the-american-west-the-bloody-adventures-of-harry-tracy/

https://museumnwco.org/harry-tracy-the-most-underrated-outlaw-by-far/

https://www.historylink.org/File/5385

https://wheatlife.org/manhunt/

https://myedmondsnews.com/2024/10/history-outlaw-harry-tracy-and-his-local-connections/

https://www.legendsofamerica.com/harry-tracy/

https://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/ccca/the-true-story-of-harry-tracy-super-outlaw/

https://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/pdf/outlaw-harry-tracy3.pdf

https://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/pdf/outlaw-harry-tracy.pdf

https://spokanehistorical.org/items/show/321

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Tracy

http://www.oregonpioneers.com/bios/HarryTracy_1890s.pdf

What happened to DeOrr Kunz Jr.?

In July of 2015, a two-year-old boy vanished from Timber Creek Campground outside Leadore, Idaho and was never seen again.

Search crews combed the Idaho wilderness for days. Helicopters circled overhead. Dogs searched the forest. Volunteers moved through creek beds, ravines, and abandoned mine shafts deep inside the mountains.

But investigators found nothing.

No footprints.

No clothing.

No evidence explaining how a child disappeared without leaving behind a single confirmed trace.

And as investigators began interviewing the four adults who had been at the campground that afternoon, the story surrounding DeOrr’s disappearance only became more complicated.

This week on Mysterious Pacific Northwest, we’re covering one of Idaho’s most haunting unsolved mysteries.

 The Disappearance of DeOrr Kunz Jr.  is available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

Sources: 

https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/investigations/7-investigates/deorr-kunz-jr-disappearance-remains-unsolved-10-years/277-a07ca934-32fb-4f1d-b499-8b9235afb115

https://www.kivitv.com/news/ten-years-after-he-vanished-from-a-remote-campsite-the-question-remains-where-is-deorr-kunz-jr

https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/investigations/little-man-lost/he-vanished-from-a-camping-trip-without-a-trace-what-happened-to-baby-deorr-kunz/289-524426881

https://localnews8.com/news/top-stories/2025/07/10/what-happend-to-deorr-kunz-ten-years-and-no-answers/

https://www.strangeoutdoors.com/mysterious-stories-blog/deorr-kunz

https://charleyproject.org/case/deorr-jay-kunz-jr

https://amp.idahostatesman.com/news/article232504452.html

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/deorr-kunzs-father-speaks-nearly-192913917.html

https://people.com/crime/people-magazine-investigates-deorr-kunz-vanished-woods/

https://www.eastidahonews.com/2016/01/former-kunz-p-i/

https://www.eastidahonews.com/2025/07/ten-years-after-he-vanished-from-a-remote-campsite-the-question-remains-where-is-deorr-kunz-jr/

https://www.eastidahonews.com/2015/08/kunz-family-investigator-everything-points-to-an-abduction/

https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/deorr-kunz-jr-missing-five-years-later/277-f8f45c3f-ff20-4db8-aebf-30150f8b9d88

https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/search-for-deorr-kunz-jr-continues-near-leadore/277-584652677

https://www.eastidahonews.com/2019/08/cadaver-dogs-hit-on-area-near-where-deorr-kunz-jr-went-missing-search-to-resume-monday/

https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/deorr-kunz-jr-case-still-open-active/article_71c4a6d8-53e9-11ee-a7d6-9fbb89a53db4.html

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/kidnap/deorr-jay-kunz-jr

For the final episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re taking a step back.

After following the trail through its stories, its people, and everything it carried with it, this episode is a reflection—on the series, the history, and what stayed with us after spending so much time on that road.

It’s also a look back on two years of the show, how our storytelling has evolved, and what comes next.

Thank you for being here with us through this series.

Now streaming on all major podcast apps.

#thelongroadtooregon #historypodcast #pnwhistory #oregontrail #pnwpodcast #twoyears #podcastcommunity

Book list: 

The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey — Rinker Buck

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1476756474

The Oregon Trail: An American Saga — David Dary

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0806136485

The Indifferent Stars Above — Daniel James Brown (Donner Party, essential)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0061348112

Across the Great Divide — Laton McCartney

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0743249563

Westward Expansion: A History of the American Frontier — Ray Allen Billington

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0826319812

Frontier Regulars: The U.S. Army and the Indian — Robert M. Utley

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0252068828

Covered Wagon Women: Diaries and Letters (1840–1849) — Kenneth L. Holmes

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0803272701

Women’s Diaries of the Westward Journey — Lillian Schlissel

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0805211769

Surviving the Oregon Trail, 1852 — Mary Ann & Willis Boatman

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0874222388

For the final episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we step back from the trail itself and look at what was left behind.

Not just the miles traveled—but the lives changed along the way. The families who made it, the ones who didn’t, and the places that grew from a journey that was never as simple as it’s often remembered.

This episode reflects on the road west—what it required, what it cost, and what still remains.

Now streaming on all major podcast apps.

#thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #pnwhistory #historypodcast #americanhistory #westwardexpansion #pnwpodcast

Book list: 

The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey — Rinker Buck

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1476756474

The Oregon Trail: An American Saga — David Dary

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0806136485

The Indifferent Stars Above — Daniel James Brown (Donner Party, essential)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0061348112

Across the Great Divide — Laton McCartney

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0743249563

Westward Expansion: A History of the American Frontier — Ray Allen Billington

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0826319812

Frontier Regulars: The U.S. Army and the Indian — Robert M. Utley

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0252068828

Covered Wagon Women: Diaries and Letters (1840–1849) — Kenneth L. Holmes

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0803272701

Women’s Diaries of the Westward Journey — Lillian Schlissel

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0805211769

Surviving the Oregon Trail, 1852 — Mary Ann & Willis Boatman

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0874222388

The journey beyond the trail with the Denny Party—families who didn’t stop in Oregon, but continued north in search of something more.
From a difficult landing at Alki Point to the first uncertain days of settlement across Elliott Bay, this episode explores what it meant to arrive… and realize the journey wasn’t over.
This is the story of early Seattle—its beginnings, its challenges, and the people who chose to stay.
Now streaming on all major podcast apps.
#thelongroadtooregon #pnwhistory #seattlehistory #dennyparty #oregontrail #historypodcast #pacificnorthwest #americanhistorySources:
https://www.historylink.org/file/426
https://www.historylink.org/file/1009
https://www.historylink.org/file/212
https://www.historylink.org/file/790
https://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/exhibits-and-education/digital-document-libraries/denny-party
https://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/exhibits-and-education/seattle-history
https://www.nps.gov/articles/denny-party.htm
https://www.history.com/topics/us-states/seattle-washington
https://www.britannica.com/place/Seattle-Washington
https://www.duwamishtribe.org/history
https://suquamish.nsn.us/home/about-us/history/
https://www.washingtonhistory.org/research/collections/
https://www.historylink.org/file/2952
https://www.historylink.org/file/410
https://www.historylink.org/file/401
https://www.seattlepi.com/local/seattle-history/article/Seattle-history-Denny-Party-Alki-Point-1851-12521850.php
https://www.pacificnwmag.com/the-denny-party-and-the-founding-of-seattle/

For this episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re looking at a version of the trail many of us remember a little differently.

Before the research, before the real stories—for a lot of us, it started with The Oregon Trail. Decisions, supplies, river crossings… and the message we all remember.

This episode looks at what the game got right, what it left out, and how that version compares to the reality behind it.

Now streaming on all major podcast apps.

#thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #historypodcast #pnwhistory #nostalgia #edutainment #pnwpodcast

Sources: 

https://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/oregon-trail/

https://www.oregontrail.com/history/

https://www.mnhs.org/education/resources/the-oregon-trail-game

https://www.pbs.org/video/oregon-trail-game-history/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-oregon-trail-game-became-classroom-staple-180962833/

https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/14/15291674/oregon-trail-game-history-education-minnesota

https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Oregon-Trail-computer-game

https://www.died-of-dysentery.com/stories/history-of-the-game.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/science/03trail.html

https://www.gamehistory.org/oregon-trail/

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/71204/brief-history-oregon-trail-game

https://www.wired.com/2014/07/oregon-trail/

For this episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we follow one of the most infamous stories of the overland journey—the Donner Party.

What began as a hopeful crossing turned into a fight for survival in the Sierra Nevada, where early snow, starvation, and impossible choices reshaped every life in the camp.

This episode traces the full story—from the decision to take the Hastings Cutoff to the winter that held them in the mountains, told through firsthand accounts and historical record.

Now streaming on all major podcast apps.

#thelongroadtooregon #donnerparty #oregontrail #pnwhistory #historypodcast #westwardexpansion #americanhistory #truehistory

Sources:

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-history/

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-primary-sources/

https://www.nps.gov/places/donner-memorial-state-park.htm

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/the-donner-party.htm

https://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion/donner-party

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Donner-Party

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/donner_party/

https://www.legendsofamerica.com/ca-donnerparty/

https://www.utahhumanities.org/stories/items/show/96

https://www.truckeehistory.org/donner-party

https://www.sierranevadageotourism.org/entries/donner-party/

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-reed-diary/

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/donner-breen-diary/

https://www.library.ucdavis.edu/special-collections/donner-party/

https://digitalcollections.library.unlv.edu/donner-party

For the next episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we follow the story of the Whitman Mission—a place many emigrants passed through at the end of the trail, and where rising tension, disease, and cultural misunderstanding came to a breaking point in 1847.

This episode looks beyond a single version of the story, tracing what led to that moment and what followed—through firsthand accounts, historical context, and the realities of a region already deeply lived in.

Now streaming on all major podcast apps.

#thelongroadtooregon #pnwhistory #oregontrail #historypodcast #americanhistory #nativehistory #pnwpodcast

Sources:

https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/index.htm

https://www.nps.gov/articles/whitman-mission.htm

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/whitman_massacre/

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/cayuse_war/

https://www.historylink.org/file/5296

https://www.historylink.org/file/5297

https://www.britannica.com/event/Whitman-Massacre

https://www.loc.gov/item/2006679053/

https://www.loc.gov/collections/oregon-trail-miscellany/articles-and-essays/whitman-mission/

https://www.whitman.edu/whitman-mission-history

https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/cayuse.htm

https://www.nps.gov/whmi/learn/historyculture/measles.htm

https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/whitman-massacre/

https://www.wsna.org/whitman-mission-history

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/whitman-massacre

https://www.historylink.org/File/5192

This episode of The Long Road to Oregon, we’re tracing the trail through the homelands of the sovereign nations who lived along its length—Otoe-Missouria, Pawnee, Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Shoshone, Nez Perce, Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Chinookan peoples, and many more.

This episode honors their history, their endurance, and the world emigrants entered long before the trail had a name.

Sovereign Lands: The Native Peoples of the Oregon Trail, is out now everywhere you listen to Podcasts!

#thelongroadtooregon #oregontrail #pnwhistory #historypodcast #indigenoushistory #nativehistory #oregonhistory #pnwpodcast

Sources:

https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians

https://historicoregoncity.org/2019/04/02/disrupting-the-natives/

https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7794169

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/death-on-trails.htm

https://pacificu.libguides.com/c.php?g=1050460&p=7636236

https://www.historylink.org/file/10365

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/

https://www.human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/History/State_and_Local_History/Oregons_History%3A_People_of_the_Northwest_in_the_Land_of_Eden/01%3A_Chapters/1.04%3A_Native_Americans_in_the_Land_of_Eden-_An_Elegy_of_Early_Statehood

https://oregontrail101.com/native.html

https://www.legendsofamerica.com/indians-emigrants/

https://ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/

https://www.obbg.org/blog/2023/08/the-oregon-trail-and-indigenous-people-heritage/

https://ctuir.org/about/brief-history-of-ctuir/

https://www.oregontrailcenter.org/indians

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/oregon_trail/

https://www.oregontrail101.com/native.html

https://www.historyonthenet.com/american-old-west-in-depth

https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/narratives/this-land-oregon/the-first-peoples/the-first-peoples/

https://online.ucpress.edu/ch/article/99/3/53/189887/Retracing-The-Oregon-Trail

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/war-on-the-oregon-california-trails.htm

https://www.ndnhistoryresearch.com/2023/12/14/integrating-tribal-perspectives-into-an-oregon-trail-history/

https://www.eugenecascadescoast.org/blog/post/native-peoples/

https://www.history.com/articles/oregon-trail