case2001: Survival in the Donner Party
Description
This data frame contains the ages and sexes of the adult (over 15
years) survivors and nonsurvivors of the Donner party.source
Ramsey, F.L. and Schafer, D.W. (2002). The Statistical Sleuth: A
Course in Methods of Data Analysis (2nd ed), Duxbury.Details
In 1846 the Donner and Reed families left Springfield, Illinois, for
California by covered wagon. In July, the Donner Party, as it became
known, reached Fort Bridger, Wyoming. There its leaders decided to
attempt a new and untested rote to the Sacramento Valley. Having
reached its full size of 87 people and 20 wagons, the party was
delayed by a difficult crossing of the Wasatch Range and again in the
crossing of the desert west of the Great Salt Lake. The group became
stranded in the eastern Sierra Nevada mountains when the region was
hit by heavy snows in late October. By the time the last survivor was
rescued on April 21, 1847, 40 of the 87 members had died from famine
and exposure to extreme cold.References
Grayson, D.K. (1990). Donner Party Deaths: A Demographic Assessment,
Journal of Anthropological Research 46: 223--242.