PIONEER
STORIES
Bodil
Mortensen - Willie Handcart Company
"Ever Onward" by Joseph Brickey.
For more information go to www.josephbrickey.com
Two of those buried at the Rock Creek Hollow were
heroic children of tender years: Bodil Mortensen, age
ten, from Denmark, and James Kirkwood, age eleven,
from Scotland. Bodil Mortensen came alone, before her
family to join the saints in Salt Lake City, her older
sister traveled a year before her and was in Salt
Lake. Bodil joined the Willie Handcart Company with a
family from her country Denmark. Winter storms began
early that year and slowed the travel of the company.
Rock Ridge was along hard journey for the children.
The distance was about 15 miles, including a two-mile
stretch in which the trail rose more than 700 feet in
elevation. It took some of the children 27 hours to
reach the camp. The snow was already more than a foot
deep, a blizzard was raging, and the temperatures were
freezing. A howling October snowstorm blinded
ten-year-old Bodil Mortensen as she climbed with
several other younger children, shivering and hungry,
up the snow-covered slope of Rocky Ridge. Bodil was
exhausted and weak, the young girl struggled on her
way, hoping to reach Salt Lake City to be with her
sister. Bodil was apparently assigned to care for some
small children as they crossed Rocky Ridge. When they
arrived at camp, in the wee hours of October 24, she
must have been sent to gather firewood. All she could
find was twigs of sagebrush. The next morning she was
found leaning up against the wheel of a handcart,
twigs clutched in her hands, frozen to death.
Cyrus
Wheelock - Wrote the lyrics to Ye Elders of
Israel
attended the October conference of 1856. When
conference was opened President Young arose and said:
"There are a number of our people on the plains who
have started to come with handcarts; they will need
help and I want twenty teams to be ready by morning
with two men to each team to go out and meet them." .
. .
Brother Young called upon everyone present to lend a
hand in fitting up these teams. As I was going out
with the crowd, Brother Wells spoke to me, saying,
"You are a good hand for the trip; get ready..."
I had a saddle horse. We were instructed to get
everything we could ready and rendezvous between the
Big and Little Mountains, a short day's drive out from
Salt Lake. Next day teams and volunteer men were
ready. A better outfit and one more adapted to the
work before us I do not think could have possibly been
selected if a week had been spent in fitting up.
Besides the wagons and teams, several men went
horseback. We had good teams and provisions in great
abundance. But best of all, those going were alive to
the work and were of the best material possible for
the occasion. . . .
The weather soon became cold and stormy. We traveled
hard, never taking time to stop for dinner. On getting
into camp all were hungry and willing to help. No
doubt many of the boys remember the hearty suppers
eaten on this expedition. There was some expectation
of meeting the first train, Brother Willie's, on or
about Green River. We began to feel anxiety about the
emigrants, as the weather was now cold and stormy, and
we, strong men with good outfits, found the nights
severe. What must be the condition of those we were to
meet! Many old men and women, little children, mothers
with nursing babes, crossing the plains pulling
handcarts. Our hearts began to ache when we reached
Green River and yet no word of them. Here an express
was sent on ahead with a light wagon to meet and cheer
the people up. Cyrus Wheelock and Stephen Taylor went
with this express.
At the South Pass, we encountered a severe snowstorm.
After crossing the divide we turned down into a
sheltered place on the Sweetwater. While in camp and
during the snowstorm two men were seen on horseback
going west. They were hailed. On reaching us they
proved to be Brothers Willie and J. B. Elder. They
reported their company in a starving condition at
their camp then east of Rocky Ridge and said our
express had gone on to meet the other companies still
in the rear.
We started immediately through the storm to reach
Brother Willie's camp. On arriving we found them in a
condition that would stir the feelings of the hardest
heart. They were in a poor place, the storm having
caught them where fuel was scarce. They were out of
provisions and really freezing and starving to death.
The morning after our arrival nine were buried in one
grave. We did all we could to relieve them. The boys
struck out on horseback and dragged up a lot of wood;
provisions were distributed and all went to work to
cheer the sufferers. . . .
The handcart company was moved over to a cove in the
mountains for shelter and fuel, a distance of two
miles from the fort. The wagons were banked near the
fort. It became impossible to travel further without
reconstruction or help. . . .
Each evening the elders would meet in council. I
remember hearing Charles Decker remark that he had
crossed the plains over fifty times (carrying the
mail) and this was the darkest hour he had ever seen.
Cattle and horses were dying every day. What to do was
all that could be talked about. Five or six days had
passed and nothing determined upon.
Steve Taylor, Al Huntington, and I were together when
the question, "Why doesn't Captain Grant leave all the
goods here with someone to watch them, and move on?"
was asked. We agreed to make this proposal to him. It
was near the time appointed for the meeting. As soon
as we were together, Captain Grant asked if anyone had
thought of a plan. We presented ours. Captain Grant
replied, "I have thought of this, but there are no
provisions to leave and it would be asking too much of
anyone to stay here and starve for the sake of these
goods; besides, where is there a man who would stay if
called upon?" I answered, "Any of us would." . . .
There was a move made at once to adopt this
suggestion. Accordingly, next morning storerooms in
the fort were cleared and some two hundred wagons run
in and unloaded. No one was allowed to keep out
anything but a change of clothing, some bedding, and
light cooking utensils. Hauling provisions was not a
weighty question.
The unloading occupied three days. The handcart people
were notified to abandon most of their carts. Teams
were hitched up and the sick and feeble loaded in with
such light weight as was allowed. All became common
property.
When everything was ready Brother Burton said to me,
"Now Brother Jones, we want you to pick two men from
the Valley to stay with you. We have notified Captains
Hunt and Horgett to detail seventeen men from their
companies to stay with you. We will move on in the
morning." . . .
There was not money enough on earth to have hired me
to stay. I had left home for only a few days and was
not prepared to remain so long away; but I remembered
my assertion that any of us would stay if called upon.
. . .
We were about out of anything fit to eat. . . .
Game soon became so scarce that we could kill nothing.
We ate all the poor meat; one would get hungry eating
it. Finally that was all gone; nothing now but hides
were left. We made a trial of them. A lot was cooked
and eaten without any seasoning, and it made the whole
company sick. Many were so turned against the stuff
that it made them sick to think of it. . . .
Things looked dark, for nothing remained but the poor
rawhides taken from starved cattle. We asked the Lord
to direct us what to do. The brethren did not murmur,
but felt to trust in God. We had cooked the hide,
after soaking and scraping the hair off until it was
soft, and then ate it, glue and all. This made it
rather inclined to stay with us longer than we
desired.
Finally I was impressed how to fix the stuff and gave
the company advice, telling them how to cook it; for
them to scorch and scrape the hair off; this had a
tendency to kill and purify the bad taste that
scalding gave it. After scraping, boil one hour in
plenty of water, throwing the water away which had
extracted all the glue, then wash and scrape the hide
thoroughly, washing in cold water, then boil to a
jelly and let it get cold, and then eat with a little
sugar sprinkled on it. This was considerable trouble,
but we had little else to do and it was better than
starving.
We asked the Lord to bless our stomachs and adapt them
to this food. We hadn't the faith to ask him to bless
the rawhide, for it was "hard stock." On eating now,
all seemed to relish the feast. We were three days
without eating before this second attempt was made. We
enjoyed this sumptuous fare for about six weeks.
James
Kirkwood - Willie Handcart Company
Let me tell you of James Kirkwood. James was from
Glasgow, Scotland. On the trip west, James was
accompanied by his widowed mother and three brothers,
one of whom, Thomas, was 19 and crippled and had to
ride in the handcart. James's primary responsibility
on the trek was to care for his little four-year-old
brother, Joseph, while his mother and oldest brother,
Robert, pulled the cart. As they climbed Rocky Ridge,
it was snowing and there was a bitter cold wind
blowing. It took the whole company 27 hours to travel
15 miles. When little Joseph became too weary to walk,
James, the older brother, had no choice but to carry
him. Left behind the main group, James and Joseph made
their way slowly to camp. When the two finally arrived
at the fireside, James, “having so faithfully carried
out his task, collapsed and died from exposure and
over-exertion.”
Mary
Hereford & Ephramine Wickland
Many individuals had personal experiences that
confirmed in their minds the importance of the work
they were doing with the second rescue in the Stake of
Riverton Wyoming. One such person was Mary Hereford, a
Lamanite member of the Wind River Branch. In the fall
of 1991, Mary was given a paper by her branch
president assigning her to research the name of
Ephramine Wickland, a one year old girl who was a
member of the Willie company. Shortly there after, the
home in which Sister Hereford lived burned to the
ground. In the terror of watching the fire, she
remembered the paper that had been given to her with
the name of the little pioneer girl. She later
described her feelings as she stood outside watching
her home burn:
"Standing outside…I said a little prayer, "Please
Lord, don’t let the paper burn." When the firemen said
we could go in, I looked around and started to cry.
The house had been very badly burned and there was a
lot of smoke damage…the next day we went back to the
house to see if we could save anything… the kitchen
was the worst. My microwave was melted to a crisp.
While looking on top of the refrigerator I found the
paper.. Everything on the paper was burnt except that
my name and the person whose work was to be done were
white. The names seemed to be highlighted I was very
surprised. Mary insisted that the only reason the
paper did not burn with the rest of her possessions
was that Ephramine, the little pioneer girl, wanted
her temple work completed. Mary found that indeed
sealing work needed to be done for the child.
The Second Rescue was a resounding success. During the
fourteen month period from August 1991 to September
1992, more than 4,200 individual temple ordinances
were completed in behalf of the Willie and Martin
handcart pioneers, their 1856 rescuers, and their
families. Overall, 52 percent of the temple ordinances
for the handcart pioneers and their rescuers need to
be completed. In addition to baptisms and
confirmations, children were sealed to their parents,
husbands and wives were sealed for eternity, and the
sacred covenants of the endowment were made in behalf
of these handcart pioneers who gave so much for their
testimonies of the restored gospel.
Susannah Stone - "...we murmured not..."
In 1856, Susannah prepared to emigrate. She wrote,
"My parents, relatives and friends did all in their
power to keep me from coming to America, but I had the
spirit of gathering, and the Lord opened up my way,
and I came to Utah in 1856 with the handcart
company…We waded through the cold streams many times,
but we murmured not, for our faith in God and our
testimony of His work were supreme. Only once did my
courage fail.
One cold, dreary afternoon, my feet having been
frosted, I felt that I could go no further and
withdrew a little from the company, and sat down to
await the end, being somewhat in a stupor. After a
time, I was aroused by a voice, which seemed as
audible as anything could be, which spoke to my very
soul of the promises and blessings I had received, and
which should surely be fulfilled, and that I had a
mission to perform in Zion. I received strength and
was filled with the Spirit of the Lord, and arose and
traveled on with a light heart. As I reached camp, I
found a search party ready to go back to find me, dead
or alive." She gathered her courage and continued on.
Susannah was engaged to a young man in this
company, but had been advised to wait until they
reached Zion to marry. Her fiancé died. "I had no
relatives, but many dear and devoted friends, and we
did all we could to aid and encourage each other…in
the blizzards and falling snow, we sat under our hand
carts and sang, 'Come, Come Ye Saints, no toil nor
labor fear, but with joy, wend your way. Though hard
to you, this journey may appear, grace shall be, as
your day.'
" While traveling thru the United States, the
people tried to discourage us by telling us there was
famine in Utah, that the grasshoppers had eaten up
everything and that there had been a grasshopper war,
etc, but we traveled on trusting in God." Years later
she remarked "I am thankful that I was counted worthy
to be a pioneer and a handcart girl. It prepared me to
endure hard times in my future life. I often think of
the songs we sang to encourage us o our toilsome
journey, It was hard to endure, but the Lord gave us
strength and courage."
Mrs.
Evens - "...a rider on a horse came back
looking for us..."
Emigrants of Welshmen made up the Third handcart
company - Stories from a journal...
"The flour was self rising and we took water and baked
a little cake. After the few weeks of traveling this
little cake was all we had to eat and after months of
traveling we were put on half rations and at one time,
before help came, we were out of flour for two days.
During this hard journey I was expecting my first baby
and it was very hard to be contented on so little
food. My husband had lost a leg in his early childhood
and walked on a wooden stump, which caused him a great
deal of pain and discomfort. When his knee, became
very sore, my husband was not able to walk any farther
and I could not pull him in the little cart, being so
sick myself, so one late afternoon he felt he could
not go on so he stopped to rest beside some tall
sagebrush. I pleaded with him to try to walk farther,
that if he stayed there he would die, and I could not
go on without him. The company did not miss us until
they rested for the night and when the names were
checked we were not among the company and a rider on a
horse came back looking for us. When they say the
pitiful condition of my husband's knee he was assigned
to the commissary wagon and helped dispense the food
for the rest of the journey. I hated to see him suffer
so but it was with relish that I ate his little cake
when he was too miserable to care for food. We were
allowed to bring 17 pounds of clothing, there was one
tent for a dozen people. There were five mule teams
and wagons to haul the tents and flour. Words by Mrs.
Even
Thomas D. Giles - "Elder Pratt gave him a
remarkable blessing..."
Emigrants of Welshmen made up the Third handcart
company - Stories from a journal...
The Thomas D. Giles family traveled in the company. He
was blind and with a wife and baby girl and two boys,
7 and 9 he pulled his handcart westward. Soon after
starting across the plains, the baby became ill and
died. She was buried beside the trail and the company
moved onward. A few weeks later his wife died. She
also was buried beside the trail. The two boys were
sent back to join another company near Fort Bridger,
Elder Giles became seriously ill and after holding the
company for two days, Captain Bunker ordered the camp
to move on, leaving two of the men to bury the sick
man when he died. It was expected that death would
come in a matter of hours. Remarkable faith and the
frequent administrations of the Elders who attended
him kept the patient alive until evening when Parley
P. Pratt the Apostle, who had know Brother Giles in
Wales reached the camp. Elder Pratt gave him a
remarkable blessing. In it he made these promises:
That he should rejoin his company and arrive safely in
the Salt Lake Valley; that he should there rear a
family; and that because of his faithfulness he would
be permitted to live as long as he wanted. These
blessings were all fulfilled in their entirety. He
rejoined his company, reached the Valley October 2,
1856, remarried, and lived to bless and name seven of
his grandchildren. His death occurred November 2,
1895, after he had expressed a desire to go."
Ellenor Roberts - "...walked the rest of the
journey bare-footed."
Emigrants of Welshmen made up the Third handcart
company - Stories from a journal...
Ellenor Roberts, a Welsh girl, was married to Elias
Lewis under a shade tree at the Iowa outfitting camp.
"As the journey continued, food became very scarce and
many of their priceless possessions were traded for
food. One of these was her wedding ring, which was
exchanged for flour." Elias and Ellenor walked the
entire distance. Ellenor was always particular about
her shoes. She always kept them shiny and clean. When
they reached the Missouri River she took them off, set
them on the bank of the river, and when she got on the
other side she discovered she had left them. She
walked the rest of the journey bare-footed.
Captain Bunker's Company was welcomed into Salt
Lake Valley on October 2. The first three companies of
1856 had safely arrived in Utah
Josiah Rogerson Sr. - "Let Us Oft Speak Kind
Words"
September 13, 1856.
About 10:30 this morning we passed Fort Kearney and as
on of the singular deaths occurred on our journey at
this time, I will give a brief and truthful narration
of the incident.
Two bachelors, named Luke Carter, from the Clitheroe
Branch, Yorkshire, England and William Edwards, from
Manchester, England, each about 50 to 60 years of age,
had pulled a covered handcart together from Iowa City
to this point. They slept in the same tent, cooked and
bunked together; but for several days previous,
unpleasant and cross words had passed between them.
Edwards was a tall, loosely built and tender man,
physically, and Carter more stocky and sturdy. Carter
had favored Edwards by letting him pull only what he
could do in the shafts for some time. This morning, he
grumbled and complained, still traveling, about being
tired and the he couldn’t go any further.
Carter retorted; “Come on, Come on, You’ll be all
right again when we get a bit of dinner at noon.” But
Edwards kept on begging for him to stop the cart and
let him lie down and die. Carter replied coarsely,
“Well, get out of there and die then.”
The cart instantly stopped. Carter raised the shafts
of the cart. Edwards walked from under the and to the
south side of the road a couple of rods, laid his body
down on the level prairie, and in ten minutes, he was
a corpse.
We waited a few carts of us a few minutes longer till
the captain came up and closed Edwards’s eyes. A light
loaded open cart was unloaded. The body was put
thereon, covered with a quilt, and the writer pulled
him to the noon camp, some five or six miles, where we
dug his grave and buried him a short distance west of
Fort Kearney.
His traveling companion offered no compassion to him
whatsoever, but just before Edwards closed his eyes
and was dying, Albert Jones brought to him a drink of
water in a tin cup and moistened his dying lips.
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