The West, its history, myth and legend are a vital part of the traditional American imagination. According to the latter, the pioneers and their wagon trains contributed not only to forging a nation, but also to being representatives of the most admired features of the American spirit, the very embodiment of the so-called Manifest Destiny that legitimised the country's territorial expansion. For this reason, the aim of this paper is to deal with a very important event in this process: the great caravans. With this in mind, it describes the organisation of the various caravans, their routes, characteristics and specific purpose, as well as the context in which they took place and the differences between them. It analyses the conditions that led to the different migrations that opened up new spaces for colonisation promoted by the federal government, to the detriment of other groups previously settled in these areas, such as Mexicans and natives. It also reflects on the different historiographical approaches that have emerged in studies of the American West, from Turner to the revisionist position.