First encountered the game in the 1980's when, ironically, we moved to Oregon. Naturally, it was fairly popular there. They had whole elementary school curricula dedicated to Oregon Trail studies, the game played a role in that, insofar as it was the only computer game we were able to play in the library since it was 'educational'. "Hunting" has, seriously, got to be one of the earliest shooter games.
What did I learn from the game? Shockingly, a lot. I've always said that the two most influential pop culture dynamics from my childhood were 1980's baseball card mania (learned more about market dynamics, transacting advantages and human behavior from that than anything I ever read in a book) and playing Oregon Trail, insofar as everything you did in the game required forethought, planning and trying to figure out what (y) factor caused (x) outcomes. Those are the kinds of seeds that, when planted in the mind of a child, can play a meaningful cognitive role going forward into their adult years. Pretty sure my entire outlook on resource management goes back to what I figured out playing Oregon Trail.
Unfortunately, I/we (people in my age range, the Gen X/Millennial netherworld) grew up in the "learn how to take tests" era. I know I'm not alone in saying many of us received very little meaningful 'education' as far as critical thinking. Lots of factoid memorization. Games like Oregon Trail were a bit of a lifeline for kids who enjoyed planning, strategy but weren't getting much of that in class.
I'm certain you'll find that your game was pretty meaningful to a ton of people.