Having selected banker as her profession and purchased sturdy oxen as well as all the ammunition she could afford, Honour Rae loaded her family into a wagon and set out to establish a homestead. Unfortunately, she could only keep two hundred pounds of the deer, elk, bears, bison, squirrels, and rabbits she massacred along the way. Soon, dysentery set in and attempting to ford the river proved to be a huge mistake. Somehow, Rae and her family pulled through—albeit with the loss of any extra wagon parts. The Oregon Trail conquered, and having made it to the Willamette Valley, she sat down to write this book.