Brigham
Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Ezra T. Benson, Jedediah M. Grant, and
John D. Lee went to the historian’s office, where Willard Richards prepared a
bundle of thirty letters. Jedediah M.
Grant was getting ready to travel to St. Louis on his way to Washington,
D.C. He received some good instructions
from the brethren. He also received a
copy of the “Word and will of the Lord” (D&C 136) and a letter of
instructions to purchase flag material in the east. Brigham Young also wrote a letter and gave instructions to his
teamsters who were leaving for Mount Pisgah.
Wilford
Woodruff celebrated his 40th birthday by writing five letters to be taken by
Brother Grant to New York for Ezra Cartersen, Ilus F. Carter, Freedom Moulton,
Sarah B. Foss and Brother Enion. He
also wrote more letters, one to Joseph Stratton, still in St. Louis, and one to
Brother Cotton in St. Joseph, Missouri.
Eliza R.
Snow wrote: “The day fine ‑‑
the snow thaws some with the sun altho’ the wind is quite chilly.”
Ellis
Eames, an accomplished violinist, visited Winter Quarters from Council Point. The band gathered together and went around in
a sleigh driven by Porter Rockwell, and serenaded the Saints at several
locations in the city. Heber C. Kimball
invited them to his home, where a dance was held.
A
daughter, Emeline Rebecca Adair, was born to George W. and Miriam Billingsley
Adair.1
A company
of Mexicans and Indians camped near the mission. They were thought to be on the way to Sonora, Mexico. Daniel Tyler wrote: “Some had pack‑animals and others ox
teams; the ox yokes were straight poles lashed to the back of the oxen’s horns
with rawhide. The cattle were large and
fat and of the same variety as the wild bulls.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 532; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:140; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 105‑06; Beecher, ed., The
Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 155; Tyler, A Concise History of
the Mormon Battalion, 269; Woman’s Exponent, 14:4:30-1
John D.
Lee let Norman Bliss borrow his mules and wagon to haul wood, on condition that
Brother Lee would receive half of the wood.
The Missouri River was still frozen solid, allowing Brother Bliss to
cross on the ice.
John Kay
arrived from Ponca. He had to leave his
family fifty miles up the river because their cattle failed from lack of feed.
In the
evening, John D. Lee went and visited with Brigham Young for two hours. They spoke about raising funds and
purchasing items for the journey to the west.
They then walked to the Council House and joined a supper and party with
the police. Hosea Stout wrote about the
party: “We had the Police, Twelve &
Band present, and enjoyed ourselves uncommonly well by dancing, talking, eating
sweet cakes &c, and some little preaching and about had the old Police
dance called ‘President Marks’ return to Mormonism.’” Brother Stout then gave a
“loud sermon” on “real Mormonism.” The
party continued until 3 a.m. Brother
Stout added, “It is almost unnecessary to say that the Twelve seemed to enjoy
themselves well.”
Luman
Shurtliff and Daniel Hunt started heading down the Mississippi River on a
riverboat bound for St. Louis. Brother
Shurtliff wrote: “This was the first
boat down the river this spring and there were great cakes of ice floating on
the river which made the trip rough.”
An Indian
child was bit by a rattlesnake and only lived a few more hours. The child was buried with Catholic rites
that included ringing of the mission bell.
Azariah Smith recorded: “While
we were drilling this afternoon, the bells in the Catholic Church rung for
nearly an hour and sounded most beautiful.
After being dismissed from drill, I went in the Church and there was
twelve images which looked very nice.”
Melissa Coray, one of four women still with the Battalion, celebrated
her nineteenth birthday.
An order
was issued by Colonel Cooke:
Authentic
information of the withdrawal of all naval forces from the town and harbor of
San Diego having been received, Lieutenant Stoneman, with a detachment of
thirty‑one non‑commissioned officers and privates, dismounted men
of the First Dragoons, will march to‑morrow morning to take the post
(formerly occupied by marines and sailors) at San Diego, for the protection of
the town and the depot of provisions and other public property. He will take rations for four days.
A
daughter, Margaret Elizabeth Shupe, was born to the Mormon Battalion family of
James W. and Sarah Prunty Shupe. She
was born in the barracks.2
Journals of
John D. Lee, 106; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:237 Our Pioneer Heritage, 1:505; “Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,”
typescript, BYU, 71‑2; Tyler, A Concise History of the Mormon
Battalion, 269; Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith,
78; Ricketts, Melissa’s Journey with the Mormon Battalion, 68; Woman’s
Exponent, 14:4:30-1
The
weather was clear, warm, and pleasant.
Ice was starting to thaw. Eliza
R. Snow mentioned that the thawing also affected the houses. “It thaw’d so much that the water broke into
the house like a torrent & we retreated to Sis. Walkers till eve, when we return’d to a cheerful fire . . . the
frost stiffen’d the mud & snow & we came home ‘dry shod’ at late bed‑time.”
The band
went around the city playing and collecting grain to help John Kay bring his
family to Winter Quarters.
Brigham
Young met with his brother, Joseph Young, to discuss his concerns about the
preparations for the pioneer journey.
Joseph believed that one hundred pounds of provisions per man was too
little. President Young commented in
his journal, “I did not want any to go who had not faith to start with that
amount.” Many in the city were very
busy making preparations for the pioneer journey. Hosea Stout was very sick with a headache and had to have his brother
Allen arrange the guard for the night.
President
Young and Willard Richards attended a High Priests’ party that lasted until 2
a.m.
Luman
Shurtliff and Daniel Hunt arrived by steamboat at St. Louis.
More
provisions arrived from San Diego. One
of the wagons had broken down and did not arrive.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 533; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
107; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:237; Beecher, ed., The
Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 156; Bigler, The Gold Discovery
Journal of Azariah Smith, 78; Woman’s Exponent, 14:4:30-1
At 2 p.m.,
Brigham Young, John D. Lee, George D. Grant, and Albert P. Rockwood met to
count the wagons and teams in their company.
While some of John D. Lee’s men were crossing over the frozen Missouri
River, the wheels cut through the thawing ice clear to the hub.
Eliza R.
Snow heard news that the cattle at the herding grounds up the river were dying
because the rushes were buried under eighteen inches of snow. She also heard that the pioneer company was
planning to leave on March 18.
Horace K.
Whitney wrote: “This morning Ellis Eames, Jackson Redden, Merit Rockwell, two
ladies and myself went down to the point in Bro. Kimball’s carriage, and
attended a party. I took my flute to
assist Bro. Eames in playing. Had a
very good time, good supper, etc.”
Cyrus
Neff, age twenty, died of fever. He was
the son of John and Mary Neff.3
The men
received four days of provisions and in the evening held a dress parade. James S. Brown later reflected on the
difficult life while at the mission.
Day after
day the duties of soldier were performed, drilling, out on detached duty, or
marching here, there and everywhere, early and late, by day and by night, just
to suit the fancy of some of our officers, and not always upon real occasion
for the movements. It would seem that
in many respects the soldier’s life is much like a faithful wife’s; and in
others much unlike a woman’s work. Like
hers, in that the task seems never done, busy all day and up at every hour of
night in response to calls of first one child, then another, or even to the
exploits of some mischievous cat, her rest broken and her life worn away;
unlike hers, in that she usually has a dry shelter, regular meals, and a place
to lie down when she can rest, while the soldier in time of war never knows
where he will make his bed at night, often is without food and drink, having to
move at the word of command over deserts, rocks, mountains, plains and rivers‑‑a
stranger to the locality he may call his home.
But the toils of both are necessary, she to rear the nation’s pride and
strength ‑‑ a soldier in the right; he to protect her and himself,
to defend their country’s rights and avenge her wrongs.
Thomas
Ward, a former editor for the Millennial Star, died of dropsy and a liver
problem.4
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 533; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
107‑08; The Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 156; Nibley, Exodus
to Greatness, 340; Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith,
78; Woman’s Exponent, 14:4:30-1
The
morning was “cold and dark” and the ground froze again. Later in the day it warmed up and in the
afternoon the “streets as a flood of mud and water” were very difficult to
travel.
In the
afternoon, Allen Weeks arrived from Mount Pisgah with Lucinda Pace and her
family. John D. Lee read to her a
letter from her husband, James Pace, who was away with the Mormon Battalion. Brother Lee purchased a home for her family
near the house of Charles Bird.
Hosea
Stout discovered that one of his policemen was not at his post and had been
suspected of not doing his duty for many weeks. Brother Stout went to confer with Brigham Young on the matter. They received word that the policeman was at
a party being held at Phinehas Young’s home.
They went to the party and indeed found the man there. They stayed for a while, danced a couple
dances, and then left the party.
Brother Stout kept a watch on the man to see if he would do his duty at
all that night. He did not.
Joseph
Smith Turley, age three months, died of water on the brain. He was the son of Theodore and Sarah Turley.5
Journals of
John D. Lee, 108; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:239‑240
The
morning was cloudy, with a few rain showers.
Brigham Young preached at the funeral of Cyrus Neff. Afterwards a Council Meeting was held. The captains of the various companies gave
reports. Thomas Bullock reported that
the first division had 116 pioneers, 38 wagons, 38 horses, and 26 mules. Brigham Young prophesied to Charles Bird
that he would have some money for him within a few days because he had dreamed
the previous night that three hundred dollars of gold would be given to him.
Ezra T.
Benson spoke to the gathering. He
discussed two alternatives for the pioneer company. One idea proposed that the pioneers with the Twelve continue all
the way over the mountains this season until they found the place “to plant the
standard and build the Temple of the Lord.”
The other alternative plan would have them stop short of the mountains
and plant a crop, then bring the Saints from the Missouri River. The second alternative looked attractive
because many people felt the Missouri River was a sickly place and they feared
that they would all die if they stayed another season. Elder Benson argued that most of the
sickness had been brought into the camp prior to arriving at the Missouri.
Dr.
Willard Richards arose and offered some medical opinions regarding the various
diseases they had experienced and their probable causes. He felt they were cause by inhaling impure
air and drinking stagnated water near Nauvoo.
He suggested that the air was cleaner away from the saltwater
oceans. Thus, the mountain air and
clean water would improve their health as they traveled to the west. But, if he rushed his sick family to the
mountains, it would shorten their lives rather than lengthen their days. He preferred to leave his family at Winter
Quarters for another season. Dr.
Richards also believed that many of the brethren were sick because they labored
too hard in such a short time. “Too
much exercise is injurious to health.”
Willard
Richards explained that irrigation would be needed at their next location to
plant crops which would require very hard labor to build a dam and dig
ditches. It would also be more
difficult protecting the crops and the land would not produce as much as in the
east. “Will it not be better to leave
the families here this season where they have houses to shelter them from the
storms and other necessaries prepared and let the pioneers go over the
mountains and prepare the place, then return and bring the families over next
season in perfect safety to the place of gathering.”
Orson
Pratt spoke about the revelations received to organize the Camp of Israel. He stated that if any families journeyed
west that season, they should be the families of the Mormon Battalion. Brigham Young put an end to the “diversity
of spirits” regarding this topic. He said
that he would not be hurried, “for I am determined to do as I am dictated by
the Spirit of the Lord.”
George D.
Grant came into the meeting and shared the alarming news that the snow was
thawing so fast that a portion of the mill dam had broken away. He warned that it would break again if they
did not immediately send men to secure it.
He stated that “if the brethren were humble and pliable, all would be
well; the best thing that could be done at present was to repair the mill dam
so that the Pioneers could get their grain ground.”
President
Young and Willard Richards walked up to the dam and were pleased to see Wilford
Woodruff, Ezra T. Benson, and fifty other brethren hard at work repairing the
dam.
In the
evening, the weather “turned cold as Greenland.” A trial was held for the negligent policeman at the home of James
W. Cummings. The policeman admitted his
faults and conducted himself with honor.
He was reprimanded sharply for neglecting his duty. Hosea Stout wrote: “After the investigation was over, all was well satisfied with
him and if he will profit by what has passed he will do well.”
Luman
Shurtliff and Daniel Hunt went to see the mayor of St. Louis to solicit his
support on behalf of the poor at Garden Grove.
Brother Shurtliff wrote:
He read our
petition and looked over our subscription list for Quincy. All this time we prayed that his heart would
be softened and direct his mind and pen for our best good. I think he was directed as he wrote a very
good newspaper article asking the citizens of St. Louis to respond liberally to
our call. He then wrote us two
subscriptions and got us each a partner to go with us, then divided the
city. My partner and I took the upper
part and Brother Hunt and his partner took the lower part. The mayor also signed five dollars.
The
battalion drilled as usual and was allowed to “play ball” and amuse themselves
during the day. The weather was cool,
making it uncomfortable because they lacked clothing.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 533‑34; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D.
Lee, 108‑12; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:240 “Luman
Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 72; Bigler, The Gold Discovery
Journal of Azariah Smith, 78
It was
again very cold. The Missouri River
froze hard overnight making it again safe to cross teams over on the ice. Heber C. Kimball and Wilford Woodruff
preached in several of the Winter Quarters wards. Elder Woodruff asked the people in his ward to donate food to
Bishop Abraham O. Smoot for the poor.
Elder Woodruff committed that he would also take provisions to the
bishop. After the meeting he took
thirty pounds of flour and other goods to Bishop Smoot. He then went with the bishop to visit the sick. They called on Brother Bundy, Sister Cox,
and Job Smith. They anointed them,
blessed them, and left them some provisions.
John D.
Lee spent the day visiting and taking care of two of his sick wives. He spent two hours with Louisa Free Lee
reading his journal to her.
In the
evening, Brigham Young met with Bishops Newel K. Whitney and George
Miller. A large number of Omaha Indians
came near Winter Quarters.
William A.
Morse, age four weeks, died. He was the
son of Gilbert and Cynthia Morse.
William Spears, age fifty-three, died of black scurvy. He was the husband of Janet Spears.
The wind
was very cold. An inspection was held
at 9 a.m. and a dress parade at 4 p.m.
Colonel Cooke drilled Company A for quite some time but then got mad and
quit. Henry Standage went to the nearby
Indian Village. He recorded: “Saw some very aged Indians which while
meditation on the Restoration, Mormonism &c. Brought to mind the words of Isaiah ‘There shall no more thence
be an infant nor an old man that hath not filled his days’ . . . God being
pleased to remove his people into so healthy a country. Surely the Times of Restitution has begun.”
A
conference of the Church was held.
Eight branches were represented, comprising nine Elders, eighteen
priests, five teachers, nine deacons and 276 members. Since the last conference forty‑one people had been
baptized into the Church.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 534; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:140; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 112‑13; Brooks, ed., On
the Mormon Frontier, 1:240; The Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow,
157; Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith, 78; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 211‑12
The
morning was cold and “disagreeable.”
John D. Lee helped Elisha Groves and Sylvanus Collett, who were out of
meal.
In the
evening, Brigham Young met with the officers of his company and reproved them
sharply because they did not have their pioneer companies ready. He expected them all to be ready for the
march by the following Monday. He would
then take them up to Old Council Bluff to draw out timber and fencing for those
who would stay at Winter Quarters for another year.
A son,
Edward Milo Webb, was born to Edward M. and Caroline Owens Webb.
A
daughter, Anna Nelson, was born to Edmond and Jane Taylor Nelson.
Colonel
Cooke, frustrated with some of the men, reduced in rank several non‑commissioned
officers for not learning the drill.
The cold weather continued and snow could be seen on the mountains.
Luman
Shurtliff and Daniel Hunt started to go door‑to‑door asking for
donations for the poor in Garden Grove.
Brother Shurtliff wrote, “Sometimes we got curses and sometimes we got
money and sometimes we got clothing.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 534; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
113‑14; “Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 72; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 212
The
weather was quite cold and the ground was covered with snow. Brigham Young wrote letters to battalion
wives, Sisters Allen and Rosecrans, instructing them to get ready to emigrate. He also met with the Twelve and Bishop Newel
K. Whitney to read mail that was recently brought from the east by Alexander
McRae and Andrew L. Lamoreaux. These
letters confirmed reports that had been received regarding persecutions of the
Saints near Farmington, Iowa. The mob
had been “hanging” Saints up by ropes.
William H. Folsom had been hung up and had lost conscienceness. Fourteen‑year‑old Rodney Swasey
was hung by his heels for five minutes by the mob, trying to frighten the boy
into saying something which could be used as evidence against the rest of the
Saints. The mob could get nothing out
of him.
Six others
were also hung, Charles Drown among this number. Alexander McRae had been taken by a mob and carried to Madison
jail near Mount Rose and was held for ten days. He was finally released on bail and then quickly escaped the area
with young Rodney Swasey, whom he brought with him to Winter Quarters. John D. Lee was asked to care for Rodney and
get him ready to go with the pioneers.6
After
dining with Willard Richards, the Twelve met with Bishop Newel K. Whitney and
others, to form a committee to discuss the needs of various people. Heber C. Kimball’s company met at the
Council House.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 535; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
114‑15; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:240
John D.
Lee and George Laub worked in the Council House rigging wagons for the pioneer
company.
Brigham
Young met with the Twelve and others in the evening to discuss the needs of
those who would remain at Winter Quarters for another year. Plans were made to establish a new
farm. They planned to find a location
on the next day.7
A
daughter, Lydia Davis, was born to Franklin and Ann Davis. Patty Sessions helped with the
delivery. A son, John Henry Tanner, was
born to John J. and Rebecca Smith Tanner.8
Private
Thomas Dunn recorded:
Nothing of
importance transpired. The weather is
colder than we have had for some time past.
A cool and chilling wind from the sea, also cloudy and dull but no
frost. Time passes off well. Still I, as well as most of the Battalion,
am anxious for the time to arrive when we can be discharged and return to our
families. At the same time bearing in
mind that they are anxious also for our return to them.
Parley P.
Pratt and John Taylor arrived in New Orleans.
They made arrangements for a steamboat to carry them up the Mississippi
River. The Church publication in Wales
later reported: “It took them only 30
days from England to there; and there were no crosswinds, nor any cause to take
in one sail except for one time, for a few hours. They went past all the ships they saw, and some who started from
two or three weeks before them arrived there after they did.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 535; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
115‑16; “Private Journal of Thomas Dunn,” typescript, 22; Smart, ed., Mormon
Midwife, 73; Dennis, ed., Prophet of the Jubilee, 98, 115
The
morning was clear, warm, and pleasant.
Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Ezra T. Benson, Alpheus Cutler, Daniel
H. Spencer, George A. Smith, and John D. Lee rode around the city to find a
location for a farm. They found only a
“suitable small piece” of one thousand acres, south of the city which could be
used for early crops by the Saints during the coming year. They decided to continue their search on
another day to the north, near Old Council Bluff.
In the
afternoon, Brigham Young, the Twelve, Levi Richards, Luke S. Johnson, and Lyman
O. Littlefield had supper at the octagon.9 Wilford Woodruff recorded that he “assisted
Br Richards to eat a Potatoe Pie.”
Horace and
Orson Whitney prepared to emigrate in the spring in the place of their father,
Bishop Newel K. Whitney, who would remain behind.
After
supper, the Twelve retired to the historian’s office and read a bogus
revelation that had been written by Charles W. Wandell to entrap the
Strangites. (See March 6, 1846, in
volume one.) They all agreed that this method was terribly wrong. Brigham Young wrote, “Any man that presumes
to write in the name of Jehovah is doing wrong and will see cause to repent in
dust and ashes.”
John D.
Lee later met with Willard Richards and Ezra T. Benson to read letters from the
battalion at Pueblo. A letter from
William Bird made mention of the Great Salt Lake area. He also complained about the outrageous
conduct of Captain James Brown, leader of the battalion at Pueblo.
Hyrum
Bassett, age twenty‑one, died. He
was the husband of Lucinda Stout Bassett.
Lumber for a casket was not obtained.
Some men went into the woods and chopped down a large, straight tree,
sawed it long enough for a coffin, dug out the center, lined it with material,
and laid Hyrum to rest.
A
daughter, Almira Davenport, was born to James and Almira Phelps Davenport. Patty Sessions helped with the
delivery. A son, Volney LeRoy King, was
born to Thomas R. and Matilda Robison King.
A son, Edwin John Lawrence, was born to John and Rhoda Sanford
Lawrence. He died within hours. A son, Hezekiah Thatcher Jr., was born to
Hezekiah and Abbie Thatcher. He also
died the same day.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 536; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:141; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 116‑17; Our Pioneer
Heritage, 16:423; Smart, ed., Mormon Midwife, 73
Wilford
Woodruff spent the day preparing his carriage for the pioneer journey.
John D.
Lee met with Brigham Young, who was in good spirits. President Young had received $200 in gold which fulfilled what he
had seen in a dream recently. President
Young still owed several hundred dollars to Brother Lee and they discussed
payments in leather, meal, and other items needed for the pioneer journey. Brother Lee received forty‑four pounds
of leather and two “Morocco dressed skins.”
In the
evening, the Twelve and others held a dance in the Council House. The party lasted until 3 or 4 a.m.
Isabella
Hood Hill, age twenty-five, died. She
was the wife of Archibald Newell Hill.
Susan A. Roberson, age three months, also died. She was the daughter of Joseph L. and Susan
Roberson.
Charles C.
Rich and his family left Mount Pisgah, heading for Winter Quarters to prepare
for the pioneer journey. Lorenzo Snow was
appointed as the new president of the Mount Pisgah settlement. Before the Rich family left, a party was
held in their honor by the Saints in Mount Pisgah. Sarah Rich wrote: “Before
we left Pisgah, the brethren and sisters got up a party for our benefit; it was
held in Brother Orval Cox’s shop. There
were about one hundred people there.
Mr. Rich was helped to some means to assist us on our journey. We had a good time, and good feelings
prevailed; all were sorry to have us leave.”
Charles Decker had been sent with a team to help the Rich family, and
Sister Huntington and her family, make the journey to Winter Quarters. They traveled fifteen miles and camped on
the prairie.
Lorenzo
Snow wrote of the conditions at Mount Pisgah:
In the fore
part of March provisions began to grow scarce in Pisgah. We had made arrangements for each Ten to
send as many hands as possible into the Settlements to work for provisions but
the weather was so cold and blustering and roads so slipry they did not get
away till about the middle of the month.
Our dependence for sustaining the lives of People of Pisgah rested
almost entirely upon the successful and speedy execution of these arrangements.
Brother
Snow’s family had been suffering from lack of food but he wrote: “Thus far they suffered without a groan or
murmur, or any bitterness of complaint.
Our living was coarse but we always had bread stuff of some kind. Such articles as Beans, Onions, Turnips and
Potatoes etc. we done without . . . and I feel grateful beyond expression that
I am honored with a family that have endured these things with so good
feelings.” He honored his wife Harriet
for her “course of management that was prudent saving and economical, relieving
me of much care and burden.”
Colonel
Cooke wrote:
General
Kearny is supreme‑‑somewhere up the coast; Colonel Fremont supreme
at Pueblo de Los Angeles; Commodore Stockton is Commander‑in‑chief
at San Diego; Commodore Shubrick, the same at Monterey, and I at San Luis Rey;
and we are all supremely poor, the government having no money and no credit,
and we hold the territory because Mexico is poorest of all.
Wilford
Woodruff’s Journal, 3:141; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
117‑18; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:241; “Sarah Rich
Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 64‑5; “The Iowa Journal of Lorenzo
Snow,” BYU Studies, 24:3:271‑72; Tyler, A Concise History of
the Mormon Battalion, 270
The
morning was cold with occasional snow showers.
At 9 a.m., men were quickly called together to work on the mill dam, to
protect it from rising water.
In the
afternoon, Brigham Young met with the members of the Twelve and Captains of
Hundreds to discuss the government and direction of Winter Quarters after the
pioneers left for the journey to the west.
Several decisions were made.
Winter Quarters was to be stockaded for protection. The brethren should labor together for the
good of the settlement. Labor would be
tithed to help the poor. Each family
could have a private garden. A guard
must be maintained. The wives of the
battalion members should plan on emigrating with the companies that would leave
after the pioneers. Thomas Bullock was
appointed as the historian of the pioneer company. Charles C. Rich was appointed to be in charge of the
military. John Scott would continue to
be in charge of the artillery. Hosea
Stout would continue as captain of the guard.
Horace S. Eldredge would continue as the marshal. The Nauvoo bell would ring each morning to
wake up the pioneer company. Later it
would again ring to signal that the day’s journey would soon begin.
Dr.
Willard Richards went to visit the George A. Smith’s family who were very
sick. Elder Smith’s mother‑in‑law
was dangerously ill. John Smith was
also quite ill. There was concern that
these illnesses would affect the planned journey of their pioneer companies.
In the
evening, a meeting of the Seventies was held at the Council House. The case of Jonathan P. Packer was brought
forward. Brother Packer was accused of
stealing some six shooters by forging an order. Some felt that he should be cut off from the quorum. Others, including Hosea Stout argued that he
should stay in the quorum and be fellowshipped.
Eliza R.
Snow spent a very enjoyable evening at Sister Gheen’s home with Sister Chase,
and Patty Sessions. Heber C. Kimball
called on them and gave some wonderful instruction. Sister Snow wrote, “after which we had some glorious
communications of the spirit of God both by way of prophecy & the gift of
tongues and our hearts were made to rejoice & praise the name of God.”
A son,
Ephraim Young, was born to James and Elizabeth Seeley Young.
Charles C.
Rich’s company crossed over the “Big Prairie,” traveled twenty‑six miles,
and arrived at Brother Evans’ camp.
A son,
Willard Willber Weeks, was born to Allen and Melissa Bennett Weeks.
Henry
Jacob Brown was born.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 536‑37; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s
Journal, 3:141; Kelly, ed., Journals
of John D. Lee, 118‑20; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:241; “Sarah Rich Autobiography, typescript,” BYU, 65; Beecher, ed., The
Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 159
Wilford
Woodruff visited the sick family of George A. Smith. Soon after he left, Elder Smith’s mother‑in‑law,
Susannah Ogden Bigler, age sixty, died of consumption. She was the wife of Mark Bigler
A Sabbath
meeting was held. Speakers
included: J. Wallace and Heber C.
Kimball.
Eliza R.
Snow spent the evening with Patty Sessions.
She brought some poetry that she composed for Sister Sessions. These verses included:
Truth and
holiness and love
Wisdom,
honor, joy and peace
That which
cometh from above
In your
pathway shall increase
Thus the
spirit of the Lord
In your
bosom shall abide:
And produce
a rich reward,
While the
still small voice shall guide.
Righteous
are your hearts desires,
And they
will not be denied;
But our
Father oft requires
That our
patience shall be tried.
Brother H. Loveland visited with the sisters
and shared a “curious” tale of a cake which had been baked for a short time
covered by a lid. When it was
uncovered, some writing was discovered on the cake.
Also in
the evening, at the Council House, the High Council heard charges against
Bishop John Murdock. They were about to
rule against him, when Brigham Young stepped forward and showed inconsistencies
and problems with the charges. He
“trimmed out the council for not doing their duty.” He asked the brethren to cease holding dances and to start
holding prayer meetings and sacrament meetings. He exhorted them to repent and commit to fulfill their
duties. He asked them to pray for the
Twelve that they might be able to “bear off the kingdom of God triumphantly.”
At 10
p.m., the Twelve went to Willard Richards’ office and instructed the Captains
of Hundreds and other leaders regarding the pioneer camp. The meeting concluded at 1 a.m.
Horace K.
Whitney spent most the day and much of the night making a copy of the
revelation on plural marriage for his father, Bishop Newel K. Whitney. The original would be given to Brigham Young
and the copy kept by Bishop Whitney.
Luman
Shurtliff and Daniel Hunt continued their mission to solicit donations for the
poor at Garden Grove. On this day the
two men felt uneasy and retired to a private room to talk things over and to
pray to the Lord. Brother Shurtliff
wrote:
My mind was
lit up by the Holy Ghost and our duty was made plain before my mind. It was that I should give all my affairs to
Brother Hunt in St. Louis and go immediately to Louisville, Kentucky, only
taking what money would pay my passage and that Brother Hunt should finish
collecting in St. Louis and take the means collected in St. Louis and Quincy
and go to camp for the Saints needed the means collected. When we arose I asked Brother Hunt if he had
obtained any satisfaction. He replied,
“It is manifest to me that you shall go south and I finish here and take the
means home.”
This was a
hard assignment for Brother Shurtliff because of his close association with
Brother Hunt. They had thus far
collected about $200 in goods. Brother
Shurtliff went to the editors of two newspapers and received letters of
introduction to some of the most respectable editors of Louisville and
Cincinnati.
Orders
were received from General Kearny to send Company B to San Diego to protect the
town. Kearny’s dragoons who had been in
San Diego, and Companies C, D, and E were to proceed to the Pueblo of Los
Angeles. Company A would remain at San
Luis Rey.
Watson, ed., Manuscript History of Brigham Young,
537; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 3:141; Kelly, ed., Journals
of John D. Lee, 120‑21; “Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript,
BYU, 72; Beecher, ed., The Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 159;
“Private Journal of Thomas Dunn,” typescript, 22; Tyler, A Concise History
of the Mormon Battalion, 271; Our Pioneer Heritage, 2:63; Smart, ed.,
Mormon Midwife, 74; Woman’s Exponent, 14:4:30-1
The day
was very cold. In the morning, Brigham
Young met with the captains of the various pioneer companies. He asked each captain to present a report on
the following day regarding how many men were ready to start on the
journey. These men would then be asked
to travel several miles to the north to prepare a farm near “Old Council
Bluff.”
Norton
Jacob wrote: “On the 15th in compliance
with Brother Heber’s counsel I went down to where Brother Joe Ricks is settled
on west branch of the Nishnebotana to see if I could get any assistance to help
me to go with the pioneers. Brother
Ricks very readily agreed to send a two horse team with me and take care of my
family while I should go along with the Twelve as a pioneer.”
In the
evening, Brigham Young said that he wanted to hold many council meetings before
the lead pioneer group left. He wished
to instruct and train the leaders who would be staying behind. Winter Quarters would be governed by the
High Council and the presidency of two emigration companies. No one would be allowed to start the journey
west without three hundred pounds of bread stuff for each person.
Martha
Maria Hurlbutt Redden, age thirty-two, died.
She was the wife of Jackson Redden.
A daughter, Elizabeth Scott, was born to John and Elizabeth Menerey
Scott.
Twins,
Rhoda Ann and David Fullmer, were born to David and Rhoda Marvin Fuller. A daughter, Maranda Jane Whipple, was born
to Nelson W. and Susan Bailey Whipple.10
Company B
left for San Diego to replace General Kearny’s dragoons. Robert S. Bliss was part of this
company. He wrote: “It is a great relief to once more get out
of our quarters & we hope to get full rations when we get there & it is
a sea port so we will get oysters &c occasionally.” They camped fourteen miles south of San Luis
Rey. Extra beef rations were issued.
Kelly, ed., Journals of
John D. Lee, 121; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:241; “Norton Jacob Autobiography,” BYU, 45; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,”
Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:88‑9; Smart, ed., Mormon Midwife,
74
Many of
the Saints were busy preparing for the pioneer journey to the West. John D. Lee received a letter from Charles
Bird, informing Brother Lee that he had bought 50‑75 bushels of seed
potatoes. Brigham Young advised John D.
Lee to purchase the potatoes from Brother Bird for the journey.
Patty
Sessions visited Mary Harvey Peirce, who was gravely ill. Later on, Sister Peirce died at the age of
twenty‑five of pneumonia. She was
a wife of Brigham Young.
At 4 p.m.,
the Captains of Hundreds and the presidents of the companies were called
together for a meeting at Willard Richards’ office. They discussed whether or not oxen should be taken on the lead
pioneer trek. After much discussion, it
was decided to allow oxen to be taken at their own risk.11
Simeon F.
Howd and Lucinda Morgan were married. A
son, John Willard Rushton, was born to James and Isabella Hoyle Rushton. A son, Dexter Stillman, was born to Dexter
and Barbara Redfield Stillman. Patty
Sessions helped with the delivery.
A
daughter, Angeline B. W. Bennion, was born to John and Esther Wainwright
Bennion.
Luman
Shurtliff prepared for his journey to Louisville, Kentucky. Parting with his companion, Daniel Hunt, was
difficult. Brother Shurtliff wrote:
On the
morning of March 16, 1847, Brother Hunt came to the landing with me and about
nine o’clock we parted. I stood on the
deck and watched this good man and wept like a child. I reviewed in my mind all the events of the Saints and prophets
and knew that I would be cast into all kinds of company, many of whom would
hate the Mormons, and I felt like no other man could feel unless in similar
circumstances. I felt lonely and
alone. After supper, I locked myself in
my room and reflected, if Eternity was full of such spirits of those whom I was
now associated on this boat, I would keep out of it as long as I could. Quite a contrast between this society and
the Saints.
Company B
continued their march to San Diego.
They traveled twenty miles and had to dig for water that night at their
camp six miles from San Diego. Robert
S. Bliss wrote, “Today makes 8 months of our time in the service of U[ncle]
Sams, we look to the time of our discharge with all the patience possible.”
Addison
Pratt, concluding his mission in the Society Islands, received word from
Captain Sajat on the Island of Papeete, that he would be leaving for Oahu very
soon. Elder Pratt needed to sail with
this ship to start his journey toward America.
The headwinds from Tiarei to Papeete were bad and the sea was rough in
the morning, making it impossible to row by canoe to Papeete. But in the afternoon the seas calmed. He rowed by canoe with a friend Haametua,
and they spent the night on a small, low island.
Kelly, ed.,
Journals of John D. Lee, 121‑22; Ellsworth, ed., The Journals of
Addison Pratt, 323‑24; “Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript,
BYU, 72; Our Pioneer Heritage, 2:63; Bigler, The Gold Discovery
Journal of Azariah Smith, 79; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah
Historical Quarterly, 4:89
Brigham
Young buried his wife, Mary H. Peirce, the daughter of Robert and Hannah Harvey
Peirce. Eliza R. Snow wrote a poem for
the Robert Peirce family.
Mary’s gone‑‑she’s
gone: but wither?
To the
paradise of love:
Gone to mingle
in the circle
Of our
friends who dwell above.
Did they
not rejoice to meet her?
They had
sent for her to come,
And were
waiting to receive her ‑‑
She was
freely welcom’d home.
There she
is a gem of honor;
Yes, a gem
of precious worth:
She will
there increase the glory
Of her
kindred on the earth.
Tho’ she’s
gone from us, she’s moving
In a more
exalted sphere:
And while
she is made more happy
Do we well
to shed a tear?
Could we
for one passing moment
Death’s
dark mystery unfold ‑‑
Could we
draw aside the curtain,
And
eternity behold,
We should
chide our grief & sorrow
And
suppress each rising sigh;
And rejoice
in death, the portal
Op’ning to
the worlds on high.
Therefore,
bow in sweet submission.
God has
chasten’d you in love;
You will
yet rejoice with Mary
In the
royal courts above.
Wilford
Woodruff spent the day putting the top on his carriage. A rally was again made to raise men to work
on the mill dam. They succeeded in
getting the water to run into the mill race.
Bishop
George Miller wrote a letter to Brigham Young stating his objections to the
plan of settling in the Great Basin. He
predicted, “we would find it hard to sustain ourselves in food and raiment; and
would most likely, bring on the thoroughfare where all the slime and filth,
malcontents from Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, etc. would pass nearby us
to the newly acquired Territory of California and Oregon.” He felt the Saints should gather in Oregon
somewhere or in Texas. Even though he
strongly disagreed with the current plan, Bishop Miller closed his letter with
a testimony:
Although I
am in poverty and rags, I am not unwilling to undertake to do anything that
this people persist in doing to build up this Kingdom. I have been as a beast of burden ever since
I came into the church, and have never swerved in my actions, or feelings, to
do with my might all things to push forward the cause of Zion, and am, and ever
have been, willing to spend and be spent for the cause. I do not say this by way of boasting, but
because of the frankness of my heart.
In the
evening, at 7 p.m., President Young continued to instruct the Captains of Fifty
and Hundreds regarding emigration. It
was reported that many of the pioneers were almost ready for the journey. President Young was anxious to start the
trek. He hoped to arrive at the Loup
Fork of the Platte River by April 1st.
He spoke of criticism regarding his management of funds.
Just as I
am with my brethren now going to the mountains, not to benefit myself
independent of my brethren. I feel as
the apostle said, that they without the ancients could not be made perfect,
neither can you be made perfect without me nor I without you. I never have wronged any man out of his
money. Still I do not expect to pay all
my debts before I go, but the borrowed money I will pay and I will do it by
faith.
During the
meeting, a messenger arrived to announce that the mill had started operating. On hearing this, the assembly shouted with
joy.
President
Young spoke of Patriarch John Smith, the uncle of the Prophet, Joseph
Smith. “Don’t leave him. He has been with us from the beginning. He is of Joseph’s family and we want him
along. . . . It would be better for some young persons to remain than Father
Smith to be left.” He called on the men
to help George A. Smith, Orson Pratt, and Willard Richards obtain what would be
needed for the pioneer journey. The
meeting concluded at 9 p.m.
Benjamin A.
Babcock, age eleven, died of scurvy. He
was the son of Amos and Mary Archer Babcock.
Willard Richards Bullock, age two, died of “effects of persecution.” He was the son of Thomas and Henrietta
Rushton Bullock.
As Company
B was approaching San Diego, they met part of General Kearny’s Dragoons
marching north. The battalion learned
that two to three hundred marines had landed at San Diego under the command of
Commodore Stockton. Company B soon
arrived at San Diego and camped at the foot of Presidio Hill, six miles west of
the San Diego Mission.12 Captain Jesse D. Hunter was placed in
command of the post, as Lt. George Stoneman left with General Kearny’s dragoons
for Los Angeles.
The other
four companies, received four days reduced rations of flour and salt beef. Henry Standage wrote, “Great talk through
the battalion of refusing to do duty until more food is furnished as the
country abounds in beef and plenty of rations at San Diego. Several of Co[mpany] D put under guard and
[William] Maxwell put in stocks for refusing to drill.”
At
daylight, Addison Pratt and his companion continued rowing their canoe toward
Papeete. Elder Pratt wrote:
We had not
proceeded far before we were overtaken with a rain squall which wet us and but
for my umbrella I should have got a severe soaking. After experiencing two or three squalls, we arrived at Papeete
with no other injury. I found the bad
weather had put back Capt. Sajat, that he would not be ready for sea before the
first of next week. So I have some time
to visit among the friends.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 538; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:141; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 120‑24; Beecher,
The Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow, 160; Ellsworth, ed., The
Journals of Addison Pratt, 324; Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of
Azariah Smith, 80; Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the
Mormon Battalion, 212‑13; “Private Journal of Thomas Dunn,”
typescript, 22; Bennett, Mormons at the Missouri, 158
John D.
Lee and Thomas Johnson drove their teams across the frozen Missouri River and
traveled to Trader’s Point, in Iowa.
The traveling was difficult over muddy roads. When they arrived at the Point, Brother Lee bought forty‑five
bushels of seed potatoes and fifty dollars worth of dry goods. They stayed overnight at John Gheen’s house.
Another
work crew was assembled to work on the mill dam. It was a very warm day.
Hosea Stout and George W. Langley went up the river to hunt and try out
their guns.
Patriarch
John Smith wrote in his journal this day:
The cold
weather has continued until yesterday; it has been very severe ever since it
commenced, in December. At this time
the weather is more moderate; the ice on the river is getting very thin, but
our teams crossed last evening on their way to Missouri for provisions. . . .
The Twelve, with a company of pioneers, are fitting out for the mountains. We are doing all we can to assist them and
furnishing them with provisions, seeds, teams, etc. We have had the coldest winter I ever experienced, or at least it
seems so to me.
Wilford
Woodruff was feeling ill much of the day, but in the evening was able to go to
a concert held in the Council House.
John
Proctor, age seventy-eight, died of old age.
Phebe P. Trane, age sixteen, also died.
She was the daughter of Parson and Charlotte Trane. Lucy T. McGate, age twenty-five, died of
consumption. She was the wife of James
McGate.
Eliza R.
Snow spent the afternoon at the Noble’s home. While there, Brigham Young stopped by and talked to Sister Snow
about her accommodations for traveling to the west. She recorded, “The present calculation is for the families of the
Twelve & all others that were able to go over the Mts this season.”
Sister
Snow wrote a Song for President and Sister Young.
The time of
winter now is o’er
There’s
verdure on the plain:
We leave
our shelt’ring roofs once more
And to our
tents again
Chorus,
Thou Camp
of Israel, onward more
O Jacob,
rise and sing ‑‑
Ye Saints,
the world’s salvation prove,
All hail to
Zion’s king.
We go to
choice & goodly lands,
With rich
& fertile soil:
That with
the labor of our hands
Will yield
us wine & oil
We go
beside the mountain cliffs
Where
purest waters flow ‑‑
Where
mature will her precious gifts
Abundantly
bestow
We’ll find
a climate pure & free
Producing
life & health
Where
steady care & industry
Will be a
source of wealth.
And there
again we will surround
In peace
the luscious board;
And share
the products of the ground
With skill
and prudence stor’d
We leave
the mobbing Gentile race
Who thirst
to shed our blood;
To rest in
Jacob’s hiding place,
Where
Nephite Temples stood.
We seek a
land where truth will reign
And
innocence be free ‑‑
Where
lawful rights will be maintain’d
A land of
Liberty
We seek a
land of holiness
Where
justice to the line,
And to the
plummet, righteousness
Will ev’ry
work define.
We go where
virtue will be known,
And merit
meet it’s due;
For Zion’s
pathway will be strewn
With light
& glory too.
We go where
hypocrites will fear,
And tremble
at the word
Of him who
is appointed here
To wield
the two‑edg’d sword
We’ll find
the land the prophet saw ‑‑
In vision,
when he said:
“There,
there will the celestial law
Be given
and obey’d.”
We go where
nations yet will come
In ships,
from climes abroad:
To seek
protection‑‑and a home,
And worship
Israel’s God.
We’ll build
in peace & safety there
A City to
the Lord
And shout
amid our toils, to share
A Latter‑day’s
reward.
William
Hyde, Henry Bigler, and seventeen other men were sent to take charge of a fort
on a hill east of San Diego, recently constructed by the marines. Henry Bigler described this fort, called
Fort Stockton:
They had
dug a ditch and set up a line of large wine casks filled with dirt and gravel,
and against them they had thrown up from the ditch a heavy embankment of earth,
rocks and gravel. There were seven
cannons placed so as to command the town and surrounding country. Inside this fortification stood a building
in which we quartered. On the top was a
small swivel gun, so hung as to be easily turned and brought to point in any
direction.
The
marines who had been at San Diego for a time returned to their ship, the U.S.
frigate Congress. Robert Bliss
commented, “The Marines are the finest troops I ever saw; we now have all we
want to Eat for the first time since we left Santa Fe & spend our time more
happy amidst the various scenes here.”
At the
post in San Diego, the Physician, Dr. John S. Griffin recorded his observations
of Company B of the Mormon Battalion:
The
Californians [Mexicans] have no great ideas of their [the battalion’s] soldier
like qualities and in action would not dread them much‑‑this arises
in a great measure from their dress‑‑carriage &c‑‑which
is as unlike any soldier‑‑as any thing could possibly be‑‑yet
I think if brought into action they would prove themselves good men‑‑as
I am told they are generally fine shots and they drill‑‑tolerably
well‑‑they are bear‑footed and almost naked.
Colonel
Cooke issued an order for Lt. Oman, Sergeant Brown, and thirty privates from
the four companies to remain at San Luis Rey Mission to guard the post. The rest of the battalion was preparing to
march to Pueblo de Los Angeles. Since
many of the men were without shoes, they prepared for the march by wrapping
their feet in raw hides.
The
soldiers of the battalion continued to have hard feelings toward their leader,
James Brown. John Steele
explained: “He would confess his sins
before the boys and partly confessed and tried to soothe it over and asked the
boys if they would forgive him if he had done them any harm and promised to do
better for the time to come, but next morning the tremendous oaths that came
from his mouth were horrible. . . .”
Captain Brown asked for the men to pray for him. Private Steele observed that only six or
eight out of 130 men committed to do so.
Kelly, ed., Journals of
John D. Lee, 120‑24; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s
Journal, 3:142; Beecher, ed., The Personal Writings of Eliza Roxcy Snow,
160‑63; Nibley, Exodus to Greatness, 344; Bigler, The Gold
Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith, 80; “Journal Extracts of Henry W.
Bigler,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 5:59; “The Journal of Robert S.
Bliss,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:89; Daniel Tyler, A Concise
History of the Mormon Battalion, 272‑73; Yurtinus, A Ram in the
Thicket, 547, 311; George Walcott Ames, Jr., “A Doctor Comes to
California,” California Historical Society Quarterly, 22:54; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 213
The
morning was foggy and warm. A council
meeting was held in the evening with the Twelve and the High Council. Wilford Woodruff recorded that Brigham Young
“reproved and rebuked in the power of God.”
Other speakers include Ezra T. Benson, William W. Major, and Brother
Case.
At 6 a.m.,
John D. Lee left Trader’s Point and started to head back toward Winter
Quarters. Because the roads did not
freeze overnight, they were very muddy and his mules had great difficulty
dragging the wagon. Along the way, he
met Brother Hendrickson who asked Brother Lee to pay back a fourteen-dollar
loan. Brother Lee explained that his
funds were being used to build the mill, so he would have to wait. He observed that Brother Hendrickson was
well off, with five yoke of oxen, three horses, and plenty of provisions for
his family of two. Brother Lee
encouraged him to use his means to help two or three families of the Mormon
Battalion and to take ten pounds of flour to help Brigham Young, “and if you do
this you shall never regret it but shall receive an 100 fold in the own due
time of the Lord.” Brother Hendrickson
promised to follow this counsel.
By sunset,
Brother Lee reached the ferry crossing.
He could not cross because the ice had thawed during the day. He secured his loads for the evening and
stayed at Jesse P. Harmon’s home.
Brother Lee wrote: “After supper
I was called upon to administer to his wife who had been confined mostly since
September last. She was instantly
restored and was the next morning up singing and prepared breakfast with her
own hands. Rejoiced in the Lord and
felt confident that she would survive her sickness, that she felt perfectly
free and well.”
Charles C.
Rich’s family arrived at the ferry crossing and John D. Lee greeted them after
their long journey from Mount Pisgah.
Sarah Rich recorded: “On the
19th of March we arrived at the Missouri River, and found we could not cross,
and here we had to remain three days.”
Companies
A, C, D, and E struck their tents at sunrise, leaving their temporary home of
several weeks at San Luis Rey Mission, and marched twenty miles to the north
toward Pueblo de Los Angeles. The
battalion camped at Foster’s Range, close to the sea shore, on the edge of the
“Plains of Domingo.”13
Wilford
Woodruff’s Journal, 3:144; Sarah Rich Autobiography, typescript, BYU,
65-66; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 124‑26; Brooks, ed., On
the Mormon Frontier, 1:242; Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The
March of the Mormon Battalion, 213; “The Journal of Nathaniel V. Jones,” Utah
Historical Quarterly, 4:14; Yurtinus, A Ram in the Thicket, 563;
Brown, Life as a Pioneer, 91
Hosea
Stout recorded the weather: “The
weather this morning was cold and windy having turned to the North yester
evening and was howling all night as in the middle of the winter. We had a clear sky to day
notwithstanding.” Sarah Rich, with her
family, across the river from Winter Quarters wrote: “It was cold and windy and very disagreeable, especially for the
little babies ‑‑ we had three of them in our family, the oldest of
the three a little over one year old.
We all felt good natured and made all hands as comfortable as possible.”
A
long-awaited day arrived in Winter Quarters.
The water‑powered grist mill was put into operation in the
afternoon. It ground 11 bushels of corn
per hours and seemed to run smoothly.
Brother Stout wrote: “It runs
beautifully grand and does a good business.”
The ice
continued to break up on the river, allowing the ferry to make two or three
crossings. John D. Lee was able to
cross back over the river to Winter Quarters during the morning. He labored all day hauling potatoes to his
house that he had recently purchased at Trader’s Point.
In the
evening, President Young instructed John D. Lee that most of the potatoes
needed to be provided for the sick. It
had been recently discovered that potatoes greatly improved the health of those
suffering from sicknesses caused by malnutrition. Wilford Woodruff attended the funeral of sixteen‑year‑old
Phebe Trane, who died the day before.
He wrote, “There is now much sickness and death in the camp.”14
The
battalion marched at sunrise and traveled ten more miles up the beach. They then traveled up a rich valley, along
San Juan Creek, and came to the mission at San Juan Capistrano.15
Henry Standage described the mission as “a large stone building, rent by
earthquake, some 30 years ago. Plenty
of beautiful fruit trees here such as Quince, Pear, Apple, Orange, Fig, Olive,
Pepper, date and a large Vineyard.”
James S. Brown added, “We were told that an earthquake did the damage,
and that some three hundred people had been killed.” The men treated their sore feet.
Henry Standage wrote: “I
suffered much today my feet being very sore.
The raw hide with which I had bound my feet around having become very
hard by the sun.”
Azariah
Smith and a few others went down to the ship, Congress, anchored in the
bay. He wrote, “She was well finished,
ready for war, having upward of sixty cannons on board some 26, 32 and 62
pounders, &c. The marines and crew
was very sociable, showing us different parts of the Ship.” The ship Savannah came in from
Monterey and anchored about two miles from the harbor.
Luman
Shurtliff arrived at Louisville at 8 p.m.
The Lord directed him to that city to collect donations for the poor in
Garden Grove, Iowa. He lodged that
night in an Inn.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 538; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
126‑27; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:242; “Sarah Rich
Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 65‑66; Bigler, The Gold Discovery
Journal of Azariah Smith, 80; Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The
March of the Mormon Battalion, 213; “Private Journal of Thomas Dunn,” 22;
“Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 73
On this
Sabbath morning, the Nauvoo Temple bell rang at 11 a.m., calling all the Saints
together for a Sunday service. The
meeting opened by singing the hymn, “The Morning Breaks, the Shadows Flies” and
prayer by Alpheus Cutler, of the High Council.
Brigham
Young addressed the congregation. He
stated that he wanted to spend a whole day with the Saints before he left with
the advance pioneer company. He spoke of
trials that had been experienced recently.
“Experience is the dear schoolmaster . . . if the people were
universally righteous they might overcome and not fall by sickness, yet the
Lord takes some away before they arrive to years of maturity to accomplish His
will.” He encouraged the Saints to do
the work in the Kingdom. “The Lord
bestows upon his children a certain portion of the dowry that he has for them
according to the light which they have lived up to which has been given to them
and says to them go and occupy upon what I have given.”
President
Young again related the recent dream he experienced, when Joseph Smith visited
with him. Joseph had told him
repeatedly that the Saints must keep the Spirit of the Lord. “Be pure and holy for the Comforter will not
dwell in an unholy temple.” President
Young spoke out against stealing, murmuring, and coveting. “Be contented with your lot and station and
stop your whining and babbling about the Twelve, saying that Brigham oppressed
the poor and lives off their earnings.”
Such charges were false. He
reminded them of the thousands of poor who had been fed because of his efforts. He continued to reprove the people sharply,
“This people mean to tie my hands continually as they did last year so that we
can’t go to the place of our destination.
They are already coming to me saying can’t you take me along? Don’t
leave me here, if you do I am afraid I shall die, this is such a sickly place.
. . . If you have not faith to live here you will die over the mountains.” He encouraged the Saints to have greater
faith and to listen and obey counsel.
He then concluded by speaking of future days, “We want to build up another
Temple and then send out 1000 of the elders to preach and gather out the honest
in heart.”
In the
afternoon, the Twelve met together and spoke on “the celestial law of the
Kingdom of God.” After this discussion,
they enjoyed a social hour at Ezra T. Benson’s home.
In the
evening, the Twelve met with the High Council.
Orson Pratt reported that five hundred dollars of city tax had been
collected to support the police, but that few additional funds were expected to
come in. Jon C. Wright was released as
the tax collector, and Horace S. Eldredge was appointed in his place.
A severe
snow storm hit the city during the night.
Moses M.
Dayton, age twenty-five, died. He was
the son of Hiram and Permelia Bundy Dayton.
Lewis Huls also died.
Arnold
Stevens experienced a terrible accident.
He was handling a wild mule when he was dragged over some logs and
received serious internal injuries.
Brother Stevens, fearing that he would die, called Ebenezer Hanks and
Orson Adams in to make out a will. He
planned to leave his mule, saddle, and bridle to his oldest son. The rest of his things would be left to his
wife.
The Saints
in St. Louis were organized into two wards.
John H. Rummel, John Murray, Joseph L. Vandyke and I.I. Smith were
ordained elders.
Luman
Shurtliff called upon the mayor of Louisville, asking for support in Brother
Shurtliff’s efforts to raise donations for the poor in Garden Grove, Iowa. The mayor was kind and promised
assistance. Brother Shurtliff also
called on the editors of the newspapers and they promised to publish a lengthy
note announcing Brother Shurtliff’s mission.
The
soldiers felt very worn‑out in the morning as they started their
march. They traveled on a large plain
with thousands of cattle and horses.
There was not a house in sight.
They established their camp after marching twenty‑three weary
miles.
Robert S.
Bliss recorded:
I visited
the Shiping in the harbour the Congress Man of War carrying over 60 Guns
now lies in port. She is a fine vessil
a Spanish Bark which came from the Sandwich Island with our provisions also is
in port & we expect another ship in dayly; I am now in the fort on the hill
above town & can see two ships a long distance out at Sea; we hope they
will come into port & take us to [Monterey]; there is only one company in
town to Guard the fort town & the Bastion so we are divided into 3 parts
which keeps busy here.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 538‑39; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s
Journal, 3:21; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 127‑30; Our
Pioneer Heritage, 2:238; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah
Historical Quarterly, 4:89; Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The
March of the Mormon Battalion, 213; Ricketts, The Mormon Battalion,
249; “Luman Shurtliff Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 73
The
morning was cold, blustery, with driving snow showers. At 1 p.m., Brigham Young met with the
Twelve, the presidents of the companies, and the captains of the divisions in
the Council House. They discussed
modifying the plans for the pioneer company. The Twelve and others in the lead pioneer company would leave
behind their families until a place could be prepared for them over the
mountains. The pioneers would proceed
all the way to the Great Basin and decided to take enough provisions to last
two years. There would be two pioneers
for each wagon. About one hundred
families could follow after the pioneer group, including as many of the
battalion families as possible. They
should have two years provisions and bring fresh supplies for the pioneers. The pioneers would return and bring their
families forward the following spring.
Horace K. Whitney commented in his journal, “The new arrangements with
regard to our removal will probably [delay] our departure somewhat.”
It was
decided to stockade Winter Quarters for protection. The houses west of Second Main Street would be moved to form a
line. This work would be accomplished
during the next week.
The
Charles C. Rich family crossed over the river and arrived at Winter Quarters,
completing their journey from Mount Pisgah.
Sarah Rich wrote: “We finally
crossed over the river in a flat boat and arrived safe in Winter Quarters. The brethren there soon found an empty house
for us to stop for a while.”
In the
evening, a meeting was held with the bishops to discuss caring for the
poor. Brigham Young spoke about
patriarchal blessings and the blessing of children. He said that any father who held the priesthood was a patriarch
to his own family and when he blessed his family, it was a patriarchal
blessing. These blessings could be
recorded.
Leach
Bostwick, age seventy-two, died.
The
battalion marched early. They could see
cattle on the plain “as far as the eye [could] reach.” Their camp was established on the San
Gabriel River. They were told that this
was the site where General Kearny and Commodore Stockton had fought a
victorious battle against Mexican troops in January.
Azariah
Smith wrote: “I and Father went down to
the Ocean to bathe and as we were a coming back, the ship Savannah came
in sight around a point which extended out into the Pacific west of San
Diego.” There were three ships in the
harbor and one anchored outside the harbor.
A meeting
was held between General Kearny and Colonel Fremont. Fremont offered to resign, but Kearny refused to accept it, and
asked Fremont if he would obey his orders.
Fremont eventually agreed to accept orders from Kearny.
Luman
Shurtliff started to go door‑to‑door asking for donations for the
poor Saints in Garden Grove.
Elder
Addison Pratt went to visit Captain Sajat and found him very ill. Elder Pratt wished to help Captain Sajat get
better as soon as possible so he could start his voyage toward home. The captain showed him some disgusting
chicken soup that had been prepared for him and Elder Pratt made arrangements
to send a man to make Captain Sajat some good soup. Elder Pratt wrote, “he ate of it verry heartily, and said it
relished better than anything he had tasted since he had been sick.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 538‑39; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s
Journal, 3:21; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 127‑30; Our
Pioneer Heritage, 2:238; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” 4:89; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 213; “Excerpts
from the hitherto unpublished Journal of Horace K. Whitney,” Improvment Era,
50:202; Ricketts, The Mormon Battalion, 133; “Luman Shurtliff
Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 73
In the
morning, a committee met at the Council House to carefully define new
boundaries for the Winter Quarters City, and identify those houses to be moved
into a stockade line. The committee consisted
of: Alpheus Cutler, Winslow Farr, Isaac Morley, Reynolds Cahoon, John D. Lee,
Willard Snow, Hunter Edwards, Shadrach Roundy, Henry Herriman, Ira Eldredge,
and Brother McCrary.
Brigham
Young and several of the Twelve met in council with David Lewis, who had
recently come in from the Ponca settlement located about 150 miles up the
Missouri River. George A. Smith
proposed that the Ponca settlement be closed down, that the four hundred Saints
residing there return to Winter Quarters as quickly as possible to put in a
spring crop. Brother Lewis was
instructed to return to Ponca with the new plans. Wilford Woodruff reported that there was about one thousand acres
of good land on the east side of the river covered with weeds. He believed the land could easily be fenced
in.
In the
evening, Brigham Young met with his extended, adoptive family to conduct
business and make plans for the emigration.16
President
Young spoke to the brethren:
My plan is
to leave my family here for the present and take my adopted boys or brethren,
fit up my own waggons and go over the mountains, find the place, plant the
standard, put in crops, build houses, then come back and receive my family to
myself, then remove them to the place of our destination and the preparation
that we make. . . . I also intend to leave a part of my boys here to plant and
raise a crop and fit themselves out to come on next season. . . . Just as soon
as I find the spot I want Bro. [William Weeks] to dig deep and lay the
foundation of the Temple unto the Lord just as soon as the Saints by a united
exertion can complete it.
President
Young proposed that Isaac Morley be appointed to preside over the farm to be
created sixteen miles north of Winter Quarters, above Old Council Bluff. He said, “But this is my council that you
build your houses and lots for your cattle so as to be perfectly safe from
Omaha depredations.” Volunteers were
chosen to work on the farm which would become known as “Summer Quarters.”
A son,
John Alma Vance, was born to Isaac Y. and Martha Yager Vance.
The
battalion waded across the San Gabriel River and arrived in Pueblo de Los
Angeles at about noon.17 James S. Brown wrote: “We marched into the main street and stacked
our arms as if to say, ‘We have possession here.’” They could not find
convenient quarters, so they returned one mile to the river and camped on a
green, close to the Spanish Rancho ranch.
A son,
George Butterfield, was born to Thomas J. and Mary Parker Butterfield.
Thomas
Dunn recorded on this day:
I went to
coast but there was little to be seen.
The Frigate Congress is now laying in harbor. Two small boats besides. We also received intelligence from San Luis
Rey, that the Battalion had all left for Pueblo [Los Angeles] except for 25 who
still remained there. . . . It has been very dry for some years. Otherwise the climate is delightsome and
healthful. But very little
sickness. For a few days past it has
been rather cool for the country.
Robert S.
Bliss added: “The boys caught plenty of
fish to day; we are well situated here & our drill is light on us & we
have plenty to eat so our time passes away more pleasant than it did under Col.
Cooke. Capt. Hunter is the highest
Officer here.” They also observed
whales spouting water, and watched them rise 30‑40 feet out of the
water. Azariah Smith caught twenty‑three
fish, averaging over a pound each.
Private
David Smith, part of the small company maintaining the mission, died on this
day.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 539; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee,
130‑31, 133‑34; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:242;
Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion,
214; James S. Brown, Life of a Pioneer, 91; “Private Journal of Thomas
Dunn,” typescript, 23; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah Historical
Quarterly, 4:89; Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith,
81
The
morning was clear and warm. Brigham
Young spent some time in the morning making plans for the farm to the north,
which would later be called “Summer Quarters.”
He decided to delay further plans until some families were ready to move
up to the farm site.
Brigham
Young, Heber C. Kimball, Newel K. Whitney, and Albert P. Rockwood rode in
President Young’s carriage to John Neff’s home. Brigham Young sold the grist mill to John Neff for $2,600. This enabled President Young to pay off his
debts on the mill.18
Willard
Richards wrote a letter to Jacob Peart in St. Joseph, Missouri. In this letter he reported:
In a few
days I start with my brethren, the Twelve, and as many more as can get ready,
as pioneers, to find the place where a stake of Zion shall be located over the
mountains, leaving all our families at this place with the anticipation of
returning here to winter and taking our families over one year hence. A few families may follow us this spring,
after grass starts, such as have teams and provisions plenty to last them one
year and a half, or from 300 to 500 pounds of beard‑stuff per soul; but
few can do this, and none can depend upon the labors of the pioneers.
He
encouraged Brother Peart to bring his family to Winter Quarters, to help plant
crops on the Willard Richards’ farm plot, planned for the east back of the
river.
It is not
probable that my farm will be more than a mile or two from my house, and you
can visit at your leisure. The farming
company will be organized and a record will be kept of every man’s labor, and
one will not live on the toils of another. . . . Come and help make a garden
this spring that I may, with your help, eat the fruits thereof, and my heart
will bless you. . . . Our new water mill is now running and grinds about twelve
bushels per hour. It is a first rate
article, and can do the business of two such camps.
Omaha
chief, Big Elk and an Indian interpreter called on Brigham Young, asking for
provisions. President Young shared
dinner with them and let them sleep overnight in the Council House. Hosea Stout wrote, “Council House full of
Omahas again.”
Emeline
Pendleton, age two, died of congestive fever.
She was the daughter of Calvin C. and Sally Seavey Pendleton.
A
confrontation occurred with some Omaha Indians. John Barrows was stripped of his coat and his dog was shot by
five Indians. The Omahas had also
recently killed a number of cattle.
The
battalion rested in their camp while Colonel Cook and Doctor Sanderson went to
San Gabriel Mission to examine it for possible quarters. Some of John C. Fremont’s men were staying
there. Captain Owens was in command of
the Missouri horsemen there. Colonel
Cooke tried to take possession of the artillery there, and ordered the men to
leave the mission, but Captain Owens refused, declaring that he would only take
orders from Colonel Fremont. Doctor
Sanderson later declared the Mission to be an unhealthy place for quarters.
Colonel
Cooke was outraged that Captain Owens refused his orders.
The
general’s [Kearny] orders are not obeyed? . . . To think of a howitzer brought
over the deserts with so much faithful labor by the dragoons; the howitzer with
which they have four times fought the enemy, and brought here to rescue of
Lieut. Colonell Fremont and his volunteers, to be refused to them by the Lieut.
Colonel Fremont and in defiance of the orders of his general! I denounce this treason or this mutiny.
Several of
the battalion officers and others went into Los Angeles for entertainment. Some Indians came into the camp to try to
sell their wares and food.
Rations of
flour were increased for the men.
Robert Bliss wrote: “My health
continues to improve & I feel more cheerful.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 539‑40; Journal of Discourses, 6:173‑74;
Jenson, Encyclopedic History of the Church, 503; Kelly, ed., Journals
of John D. Lee, 131‑32; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:243 Nibley, Exodus to Greatness, 345‑46; Journal of Henry
Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 214‑15;
“The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:89;
Tyler, A Concise History of the Mormon Battalion, 273‑74; Clarke,
Dwight L., Stephen Watts Kearny, Soldier of the West, 303; Ricketts, The
Mormon Battalion, 146
Omaha
Chief, Big Elk visited with Brigham Young.
President Young complained that some Big Elk’s men had stolen two of
George A. Smith’s horses during the night and they had recently killed a number
of the Saints’ cattle. Big Elk promised
that if the horses were found, they would be returned, but that the Ponca and
Pawnee were also nearby and may have been causing this trouble.
Brigham
Young replied in letter to Mr. E. M. Estill, who had inquired about the
possibility of opening a store at Winter Quarters. President Young mentioned that a variety of articles were needed
by the people. These articles needed to
be light, durable, and portable. Botanic
medicine was especially needed. “This
place will be under the watch of vigilant police, and we shall not expect
Indians to come within the stockade, or that any disorderly conduct will be
tolerated here. Consequently we shall
object to your bringing any spirituous liquors to this place, to sell or give
away.”
President
Young met with the Twelve and the High Council in the evening. The sale of the flour mill to John Neff was
approved and it was decided by vote that John Neff should take one fifth of the
grain at the mill as payment for its use.
President Young warned the brethren that if any man shot an Omaha Indian
for stealing, they would be delivered up to Big Elk for the murder.
Thomas P.
Cloward and Mary Ann Page were married.
Samuel B. Flake, age five months, died.
He was the son of James M. and Agnes H. Love. John Lawrence, age two weeks, died. He was the son of John and Rhoda Sanford Lawrence.
The
battalion officers were trying to make arrangements for some new clothing for
the men. Mule teams left in the morning
for San Diego to obtain provisions.
Henry Sanderson observed that things were three to five times more
expensive in Pueblo de Los Angeles than they were back east.
At a
meeting of the St. Louis Branch it was decided to divide the city into six
wards with leaders over each, acting as bishops. The leaders appointed were: George Norval of the 1st Ward, Thomas
Forester of the 2nd Ward, William Standing of the 3rd, John Barker of the 4th,
James Beck of the 5th, and Samuel Musick of the 6th Ward.
John
Taylor and Parley P. Pratt arrived on the steamer Patrick Henry from New
Orleans, traveling back from their mission to England. At this point they parted company. Elder Pratt would journey through the
country to Winter Quarters and Elder Taylor would go with a company of Saints
on a steamer up the Missouri toward Winter Quarters.19
Parley P. Pratt recorded, “I took a horse and rode through the
northwestern portion of Missouri, and into Iowa, by land. I went incog. for fear of my old enemies in
that State.”20
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 539‑40; Our Pioneer Heritage,
1:5:440; Record of St. Louis Branch 1847‑50, 5; Journal of Henry Standage
in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 215; Nibley, Exodus to
Greatness, 347; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:243; Roberts,
The Life of John Taylor, 185; Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt,
356‑57
Horace S.
Eldredge, the city marshal, rang the Nauvoo Temple bell at 9 a.m. signalling
that a public meeting was to be held. A
special conference was convened at 10 a.m. to transact business before the
Twelve and the other pioneers left for the west. Heber C. Kimball formally proposed that Winter Quarters be
stockaded on four sides for protection.
Brigham Young counselled those living in dugouts to move out of those
houses into more healthy homes for the summer.
He warned the people not to use bloodshed against the Indians. Precautions should be used to discourage the
Indians from stealing, but shooting the Indians for stealing was not
acceptable. He also condemned stealing
within the city. Those caught should be
delivered to the authorities. He instructed
the pioneers to keep the Word of Wisdom.
Orson Pratt and George A. Smith also spoke.
Norton
Jacob attended this meeting. He later
recorded: “Brother Brigham chastened
the people severely for being so covetous and withholding their means in fitting
out the pioneers.”
In the
afternoon Brigham Young preached to the Saints and announced that those who
would follow after the pioneers this year needed to take eighteen months of
provisions. To prevent families from
leaving ill‑prepared, as happened the previous year, a committee would be
appointed to inspect each wagon. But he
added, “If mob violence should rend it necessary for all to remove, take your
cows, put your loads on their backs and fasten your children on the top. Where the saints do all they can, the Lord
will do the rest.” He warned the people
that after the Twelve left, men would rise up, condemn the Twelve, and assert
themselves as leaders to govern the people.
Orson Pratt read to the congregation “The Word and Will of the Lord”
(D&C 136) and commented on it. He
was followed by Heber C. Kimball.
Wilford
Woodruff met with his emigration company in the evening. He recorded, “I met with my company &
expressed my feelings to them concerning labouring together for the season in
raising grain taking care of the families of those who went in the pioneer
company. The spirit of union prevailed
among them.”
The Twelve
met with the William McCarey, a black member of the Church from New Orleans who
claimed to be part Indian (see February 26, 1847). Mr. McCarey made “a rambling statement,”
claiming to be Adam in an Indian costume.
He said he had an odd rib, showing his body to the brethren. He remarked that he discovered his missing
rib in his wife. He entertained the brethren
with his musical ability on the flute.
Lydia
Davis, age two weeks, died. She was the
daughter of Franklin J. and Ann Davis.
Mary Ettleman Houston, age sixty-one, died of scurvy. She was the wife of James Houston.
Rations
were very scarce. Only one pound of
coarse flour and one and a quarter pound of beef was issued to each man.
The Savannah
sailed for New York with a salute from four cannons on the Congress,
which could be heard five miles away.
Many of the men had sent letters for family and friends in the east,
which were taken on the ship.
Corporal
Arnold Stevens, age forty-four, died of internal bleeding, caused by injuries
sustained the previous week from a mule.
John Steele wrote: “He was
dressed in his robes and neatly laid in a coffin made of what is called
puncheons of cottonwood. These are
slabs split off like staves.” He was
buried with military honors.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 531‑32; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D.
Lee, 134‑35; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 3:143;
Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:243‑44; Our Pioneer
Heritage, 2:238; Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the
Mormon Battalion, 215; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah Historical
Quarterly, 4:89; “Journal Extracts of Henry W. Bigler,” Utah Historical
Quarterly, 5:59; “Norton Jacob Autobiography,” BYU, 43, 45‑46
The day
was warm and signs of spring were noticed.
Large flocks of geese were seen flying north. The Missouri River was finally free from ice. Hosea Stout wrote that the day was “pleasant
as summer.”
Brigham
Young asked John D. Lee to care for Andrew Lytle’s wife, Hannah. Brother Lytle was away in the Mormon
Battalion and President Young wanted Brother Lee to watch over her family until
they could be sent over the mountains during the next year.
At 7 p.m.,
Brigham Young held another meeting with his extended family. Isaac Morley called the meeting to
order. New family members were welcomed
into the organization. Plans were made
for the summer farm. Three companies
were organized, to be led by Isaac Morley, John Vance, and John D. Lee. Laborers would start working at the farm on
Monday.
Daniel
Spencer arrived with mail from the Austin post office in Missouri. He brought fourteen packages of
newspapers. In the evening, the Twelve
and others read the newspapers together and examined a map of the west.
Mary C.
Burnham, age nineteen, died of scurvy.
She was the wife of Jacob D. Burnham.
Wilford Woodruff attended the Sister Burnham’s funeral. Nancy Clement Smith, age thirty-one, wife of
George A. Smith, died of scurvy. Mary
C. Huntley, age nineteen, also died.
Hyrum Turner, age three died. He
was the son of Nelson and Lucinda Turner.
Elder
Woodruff recorded, “During the evening I took a ride out with my family &
friends around the City & down the river Bank. I wet my feet & returned home.”
The
battalion moved their camp about a mile north, three‑quarters of a mile from
Pueblo de Los Angeles, on the bank of the San Gabriel River. James S. Brown wrote: “At this time the air was full of alarming
rumors. A revolt of Californians was
talked of; then it was Fremont who was said to be in rebellion against General
Kearny’s authority; and again, a powerful band of Indians was ready to pounce
down upon us.”
Elder
Addison Pratt boarded the schooner Providence for the first leg of his
voyage home from his mission. He paid
fifty dollars for passage to Oahu (Hawaii).
Captain Sajat was feeling much better.
Watson, ed., Manuscript History of Brigham Young,
532; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 3:143; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 135‑36;
Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:243‑44; Ellsworth, ed., The
Journals of Addison Pratt, 324; Brown, Life of a Pioneer, 92; “The
Journal of Nathaniel V. Jones,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:14
Hosea
Stout recorded, “The weather still, beautiful, clear & warm like summer.” The Saints at Winter Quarters met at the
stand for a Sabbath service. Brigham
Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, Ezra T. Benson, Wilford Woodruff, and
George A. Smith spoke. Elder Smith
testified that God would take the Twelve to “the very place for a stake of
Zion.” Patriarch John Smith was
appointed to preside over the Church at Winter Quarters after the Twelve
left. President Young prophesied, “You
will find when I am gone that rebellious and arbitrary spirits will arise who
will usurp authority that was never given to them and lose sight of the council
that was given to them and will kick up the devil among the people. When these things take place, remember what
was told you.”
In the
afternoon, a sacrament meeting was held.
Brigham Young, Willard Richards, George A. Smith, Amasa M. Lyman,
Willard Richards, and W.W. Phelps spoke to the congregation. This was the first time the sacrament was
administered to a general assembly in Winter Quarters.
In the
evening, the Twelve met with the High Council and bishops. Afterwards, they met together in council.
James
Cummings, age sixty-seven, died of scurvy.
He was the husband of Sarah Wright Cummings.
A
daughter, Lydia Urslin Webb, was born to Charles Y. and Margaret Allen Webb.21
On this
Sunday, the battalion listened to the preaching of Private Jeremiah
Willey. The dragoons, led by Lt.
Stoneman, arrived in from San Diego.
They reported that they had to kill four Indians on the way because of
“depredations on the Spaniards and taking life.” Colonel Cooke recorded:
“The Dragoons horses came back with feet so worn as to make the most of
the lame and useless. I shall tomorrow
commence the introduction of horse shoes in California, at least in this
southerly part.”
Robert S.
Bliss went to the coast and caught “a fine mess of fish.” A ship from Denmark entered the Harbor with
a cargo of merchandise. In the evening
John J. Warner, of Warner’s Ranch, buried his child. Azariah Smith wrote: “Two
Indians carried the corps on their heads and a couple [of] young ladies one on
either side with a candle burning. In
this way the corps was borne to the grave, and after being placed in the grave
the Gentlemen and Ladies help cover it by pawing the dirt with their hands.”
The
schooner, Providence, with Elder Addison Pratt on board, waited in the
harbor for favorable winds to start the journey from Papeete, Tahiti toward the
Sandwich Islands. On the ship were also
nine crew members and four other passengers.
At 3 p.m., the winds shifted and the ship caught a fine breeze out to
sea. After long months of waiting, Elder
Pratt finally started his voyage home from his mission.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 533; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:143‑44; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier, 1:243‑44;
Ellsworth, ed., The Journals of Addison Pratt, 324‑325; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 215; “The
Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:89; “Journal
Extracts of Henry W. Bigler,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 5:59; Bigler,
ed., The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith, 81; Cooke, Conquest,
295; Ricketts, The Mormon Battalion, 146
A meeting
was held in the Council House with the captains of the companies and the
pioneers. Twenty‑five pioneers
reported that they were ready to start the journey. Thirty‑two others said they would be ready within two
days. Brigham Young requested that
those who were ready should assist moving families up to “Summer Quarters,”
about thirteen miles to the north. John
D. Lee was appointed to move his family to the farm. Ezra T. Benson would act in Brother Lee’s place as a captain in
the pioneer company. Some of the
pioneers would start the journey to the Elkhorn river on the following morning.
A terrible
accident occurred. Two mules were
hitched to a blacksmith shop. They
pulled down the shop and timbers fell upon several men at work in the shop. Wilford Woodruff reported, “A large stick
fell upon the head of Brother Little John Utley & was a wonder that it had
not broke his head & neck both. It
injured him severely. He was carried
into the house. Several of us laid
hands upon him & I prayed with him.”
John D.
Lee started his journey to Summer Quarters.
By 8 p.m., his company reached a creek three miles north of the fort
ruins at Old Council Bluff.
Hosea
Stout had difficulty raising the city guards because so many were sick, absent,
or preparing to go with the pioneers.
Patty
Sessions wrote: “I bought 5 cents worth
horse radish, set some of it out, sowed some garden seeds in trays of dirt and
put some more into the ground.”
Elizabeth
McFate Richards died of scurvy. She was
the wife of Franklin D. Richards, who was on a mission in England. A son, Hyrum Thomas Fielding, was born to
Joseph and Hannah Greenwood Fielding.
Levi Jackman
and Lyman Curtis left their homes, to begin their journey, to join the historic
pioneer company. Brother Jackman wrote:
I left home
in company with Lyman Curtis to join the camp of pioneers to find a home for
the saints somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.
I had one yoke of oxen and a wagon.
Lyman had one horse. We took
bread stuff to last us eighteen months.
Some beans, a little pork, but we had no groceries for we were not able
to get them. My clothing was old and
scarce. And in this condition we
started to go, where, we could not tell or what we should have to contend
with. We only knew that we must go and
the Lord would attend to the bringing out the result.
Captain
Daniel C. Davis announced to Company D that he had made some arrangements for
some leather and wanted to know who wished to get shoes. At 4 p.m., drilling started again. In the evening a meeting was held. The speakers included, George P. Dykes and
Cyrus C. Canfield.
Robert S.
Bliss visited the harbor. He caught a
“fine mess of fish” and oysters. He saw
a ship sail into the harbor. Azariah
Smith wrote: “Today I and Father went
down to the coast and ran races, jumped and sung songs for the first tie since
we left Nauvoo.”
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 533; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal,
3:144; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 140; Brooks, ed., On the
Mormon Frontier, 1:244; “Levi Jackman Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 26;
Journal of Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion,
215; “The Journal of Robert S. Bliss,” Utah Historical Quarterly, 4:90;
Bigler, The Gold Discovery Journal of Azariah Smith, 81; Smart, ed., Mormon
Midwife, 77
April 5,
1847 is traditionally recognized as the start of the historic pioneer journey
of 1847, however, in reality, this day, March 30, may have been the first day
some pioneers moved out of Winter Quarters.
Tarlton Lewis and Stephen H. Goddard probably left on this day to start
traveling to the Elkhorn River, thirty‑four miles to west, to build a
raft to be used to cross the river.
Heber C.
Kimball had six wagons ready for the journey.
Horace K. Whitney and his brother Orson were “flying around” getting
ready to start.
In the
afternoon and evening, Brigham Young met with the Twelve and discussed plans
for the pioneer journey. A concert was
held in the evening by William McCarey.
John D.
Lee explored the country about thirteen miles north of Winter Quarters. He found a “splendid location” for a farm,
consisting of about six thousand acres. He described the land as: “2 creeks leading from a steep precipice
which formed the W[est] line running to the Mo. river enclosed the N[orth] and
S[outh] line and the river the E[ast] with the exception of the foot of the
N[orth] and south precipice.” His
company reached the site at noon. In
the evening, Brother Lee called his family together to consecrate and dedicate
the location to the Lord.
Colonel
Cooke visited the battalion. The men
drilled again. It was reported that
money would soon arrive to pay the battalion, who had only received one and a
half months pay. In the evening,
Captain Jefferson Hunt preached to the men.
Captain Hunt explained to the men in detail the reason why Captain A.J.
Smith was allowed to take command of the battalion after Colonel Allen
died. He tried to turn away perceived
hostile feelings toward himself for this action back many months ago. Levi Hancock and Philemon Merrill also spoke.
Lydia
Hunter, nine months pregnant, was not feeling well. The men were experiencing some prejudice feelings from the people
in San Diego because of rumors spread by the Missouri soldiers before the
battalion company arrived. The
battalion men drilled.
Luman
Shurtliff arrived in Cincinnati, by way of Louisville, on his mission to
collect donations for the poor in Garden Grove, Iowa. He called upon the mayor, but did not receive any support. However, the editors of the newspapers were
very kind and published good articles for him.
A rich foreigner donated twenty dollars to the cause of the poor.
Watson, ed., Manuscript
History of Brigham Young, 544; Brooks, ed., On the Mormon Frontier,
1:244; Kelly, ed., Journals of John D. Lee, 140‑41; Journal of
Henry Standage in Golder, The March of the Mormon Battalion, 215;
“Excerpts from the hitherto unpublished Journal of Horace K. Whitney,” Improvement
Era, 50:202; Ricketts, The Mormon Battalion, 134; “Luman Shurtliff
Autobiography,” typescript, BYU, 73
Joseph A.
Stratton arrived from St. Louis. He had
been recently released from his leadership over the Saints in that city and was
asked to come to Winter Quarters to prepare for the journey west. He brought a package of letters from the St.
Louis Saints. Levi Jackman and Lyman
Curtis arrived in Winter Quarters, ready to be part of the pioneer company.22
In the
evening, Brigham Young addressed the captains of the various companies. He spoke against selfishness. Letters from Orson Hyde and John Taylor were
read. These were sent while on their
mission in England. Wilford Woodruff
wrote of this meeting: “Expressed my
feelings with many others upon the subject of blockading this city &
uniting together in their labour in cultivating the earth.”
Later, the
Twelve met together and decided that W.W. Phelps was to be authorized to travel
to the east and obtain a printing press and type. A letter of recommendation would be given to him, calling upon
the eastern Saints to assist Elder Phelps complete his mission.
John D.
Lee cleared off the ground for the foundation of one of his houses. A. D. Young assisted him to begin cutting
logs. Thomas Woolsey and W. Woolsey did
the hauling. In the afternoon, William
Pace and McGee Harris helped cut logs until nightfall. All the hard labor of that day resulted in
logs enough for two houses.
Mary
Richards packed up her things and prepared to return to Winter Quarters after
about a six-week visit with the Burton family.
The Burtons tried to persuade her to stay until June, but she needed to
return. The family had treated her very
kindly, especially when she had been ill.
At 3 p.m., a little boy came to inform her that the Brother Duel was
ready to take her on the journey back to Winter Quarters. She wrote:
“I there parted with them, after receiving many Invitations to visit
them again and promising to write to them.
I found Bro Duels family to be very kind and sociable, they treated me
with the greatest respect. We traveled
about 4 miles and at night camped by the Lake.”
Two wagons
arrived to obtain provisions for the battalion in Los Angeles. News was received that the Indians had been
raiding some of the settlements and had killed 15‑20 Mexicans. Kearny’s dragoons had been sent to fight
against them. The men of Company B
learned that they were much better off than the rest of the battalion in Los
Angeles.
Watson, ed., Manuscript History of Brigham Young,
544; Kenney, ed., Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, 3:144; Kelly, ed., Journals
of John D. Lee, 140‑41; “Levi Jackman Autobiography,” typescript,
BYU, 26; Ward, ed., Winter Quarters, 115; Bigler, Chronicles of the
West, 52
1The Adair family would arrive
in Salt Lake Valley later in the fall with the Charles C. Rich company. They
would later settle in Beaver, Utah.
2The Shupe family, including
little Elizabeth, would arrive in Salt Lake Valley on July 29, 1847, shortly
after the original pioneer company. The family would later settle in Riverdale,
Utah.
3John D. Lee remarked in his
journal that John Neff had been approached to lend a few hundred dollars to
assist in building the mill, but had refused and made some unkind remarks
against the Twelve. Brigham Young had warned Brother Neff that “he should feel
the hand of the Lord upon him and his family.” Soon sickness came upon the
family and Brother Neff sent for the Twelve and their blessings. On March 24,
1847, Brigham Young would sell the mill to John Neff for $2,500.
4Thomas Ward had served as a
counselor in the presidency of the mission after Wilford Woodruff left for the
states. He and Reuben Hedlock, the president, had been disfellowshipped for
mismanagement of Church funds. Brother Ward had confessed his wrongs when John
Taylor, Parley P. Pratt, and Orson Hyde arrived to put the mission back in
order.
5Theodore Turley is the author’s
3rd-great grandfather.
6Rodney DeGrass Swasey did not
go with the pioneers, but later arrived in Utah. He later settled in California and then spent the rest of his
days raising a large family in Mona, Utah.
He fought in the Walker and Black Hawk wars and a peak in Millard County
was named after him, Swasey Peak.
7This location would be known as
Summer Quarters.
8The Tanner family later settled
in South Cottonwood, Utah.
9Willard Richards’ unusual
shaped home.
10The Whipple family later
settled in Salt Lake City where Nelson Whipple made the first shingles for the
old Salt Lake Tabernacle.
11Eventually, sixty-six oxen were
taken with the lead pioneer company.
12San Diego at that time included
a few dozen adobe houses and a population of several hundred Mexicans and
Americans.
13They camped near present-day
San Onofre, California.
14There were at least twenty‑five
deaths in Winter Quarters during March.
15This church had been completed
in 1806 and was known as the largest and most beautiful church in California at
that time. In 1812 the church was
destroyed by an earth quake.
16Those present were Solomon
Angell, Truman O. Angell, Millen Atwood, Benjamin Brown, James Busby, Daniel Carns,
Isaac Chase, Phinehas Cook, David Davis, Hyrum Dayton, Charles Decker, Simeon
A. Dunn, Edward P. Duzette, Sylvester H. Earl, Edmund Ellsworth, William
Empery, Addison Everett, Absalom P. Free, George D. Grant, Thomas Grover,
Samuel Gully, Sidney A. Hanks, Jacob F. Hutchinson, Frederick Kesler, John D.
Lee, John Lytle, William Major, Isaac Morley, Robert Peirce, Albert P.
Rockwood, Moses M. Sanders. Joseph S. Schofield, Charles Shumway, Samuel L.
Sprague, William Weeks, Jacob Wilder, and Edwin D. Woolley.
17Los Angeles was founded in 1781
and in 1839 it became the capital of Southern California. On August 13, 1846, the United States flag
was raised over Pueblo de Los Angeles when Commodore Stockton took possession
of the city. When the battalion
arrived, there were about five thousand residents, mostly Mexicans and Indians,
living in one thousand adobe houses.
18In 1858, President Young
praised Brother Neff’s generosity: “I
went to brother Neff, who had just come in the place and asked him for and
received 2,600 dollars, though he did not know where the money was going. He
kept the mill another year, and it died on his hands. I say, God bless him for
ever! for it was the money he brought from Pennsylvania that preserved
thousands of men, women, and children from starving. I handled and dictated it,
and everything went off smoothly and prosperously.” Later, in 1848, John Neff
built a mill on Mill Creek, in the Salt Lake Valley, about two miles below the
mouth of mill creek canyon.
19At St. Joseph, Missouri, John
Taylor would leave the steamer and board a carriage. He desired to reach Winter Quarters before the pioneer company
left for the west.
20Parley P. Pratt would visit the
Saints at Garden Grove and Mount Pisgah on his way to Winter Quarters.
21Charles Young Webb was away in
the Mormon Battalion.
22Levi Jackman was born in 1797,
in Vermont. He later served in the
bishopric of the Sixteenth Ward. In
1870, he moved to Salem, Utah, where he died in 1876.