Seven Trails West tells many stories in one; the epic tale of determined men and women (some of them famous trailbreakers, some little known); the lures that attracted these pragmatic dreamers to the West; and the ordeals and disappointments they overcame along the way. Richly illustrated with archival photos, paintings, maps, and documents, this exhilarating book offers the general reader a vivid overview of the western trail network that bound an immature nation together and provided an armature for later development. By turns an inspiring and disturbing account, Seven Trails West explores the virtues and vices, the triumphs and failures of the greatest voluntary mass migration in history. The critical yet still little-known role played by the trails in this migration is vital for understanding how America came to be.