What type of wagon inspired the dominant form of transportation on the improved trail through the Great Appalachian Valley from Pennsylvania to North Carolina?
Covered wagon The covered wagon was long the dominant form of transport in pre-industrial America. With roots in the heavy Conestoga wagon developed for the rough, undeveloped roads and paths of the colonial East, the covered wagon spread west with American migration. Heavily relied upon along such travel routes as the Great Wagon Road and the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails, it carried settlers seeking land, gold, and new futures ever further west.
Surrey (carriage) A surrey is a "popular American doorless, four-wheeled carriage of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Usually two-seated (for four passengers), surreys had a variety of tops, ranging from the rigid, fringed canopy-top … to parasol and extension tops." The seats were traditional, spindle-backed (often upholstered), bench seats. Before the advent of automobiles, these were horse-drawn carriages.