The Donner Party was a group of American pioneers who became trapped in the Sierra Nevada mountains during the winter of 1846–1847. The group’s journey to California was delayed by mishaps, including a fateful decision to take an ill-advised shortcut called the Hastings Cutoff.
Stranded by heavy snow, members of the party faced starvation and were forced to resort to cannibalism to survive. With about 40 of the 87 travelers eventually dying from starvation, illness, and exposure.