Before reaching the Iowa, Sac and Fox Mission, wagon trains crossed the Wolf River, where travelers often encountered members of local Indian nations. Native Americans believed payment should be made for the use of their land, where travelers used wood and let their animals graze on native grass. Crossing rivers and streams was hazardous, and in some places Native Americans operated ferries or built bridges. On the Wolf River, Iowas operated a toll bridge, and some travelers became angry when asked to pay. In 1852, John Hawkins Clark wrote that a small stream crossed by a small bridge stopped their progress while a large Indian, sitting at the receipt of customs, demanded $1 per wagon for the privilege of crossing, and that not less than 1,500 wagons passed over that day.