Pioneers: The Legend of Little Germaine
Germaine Van Bibber was nine years old in 1845 when her family joined the wagon train bound for Oregon at Independence, Missouri. Her father, Isaac, was from a venerable Virginia family of Dutch descent. The family of her mother, Anais Josephe Charlebois, was from French Canada by way of Vermont. The Van Bibbers, who had become disillusioned of life in the east, simply packed up their three children one day, and joined Josephe’s brother and new wife who were bound for the Oregon Territory. By the time they reached Southern Idaho, Stephen Meek, an adventurer, mountain man, and experienced guide, convinced a few hundred families, including the Van Bibbers, to leave the main wagon train, which was taking the Oregon Trail to the Willamette Valley, and travel an alternate route through the Cascades, a route he claimed he knew well. Leaving the main wagon train near what is now Vale,…