Opening Fireside: January 13, 2010

In preparation for this year's Youth Conference, our Stake held a "kick-off" fireside in January. Our goal was to get the youth, leaders, and parents excited about the upcoming conference and to tell the story of the Martin and Willie Companies. The content of the fireside is provided here for those leaders and/or youth who will be going on trek, but missed out on the fireside. Please note that the video links will take you to an outside site (youtube), but you need simply to click your browsers "back" button to return to the blog.

Conduct: Dean Tippetts
Music: Curtis Wilkerson and Russell Roberts
Opening Song: Come Come Ye Saints
Opening Prayer:
Video Overview (click here to view):
Talk by Ben Snyder: Why do we care and what is the point of going on Trek?


Program (Script was accompanied by Power Point)
(DESIREE): In the early 1830s, the Prophet Joseph Smith first began referring to the far west as the “region blessed by the Lord as the land of Zion." The death of Joseph Smith did not mark the end of Mormonism, as his enemies had hoped. Instead it only served to unite the Saints even more. However, persecutions increased and it became clear to Church leaders that Nauvoo was to be a replay of Missouri. The time had come to embark upon the exodus to the Rocky Mountains.

(SALLY) Across the seas, thousands of converts awaited the directive to gather. Because of the times, communication was difficult, and living far away from the core of Saints meant you had no idea of what was going on. For example, Brother William Tate, who converted in Scotland and then moved to India wrote this in a letter in April of 1852, almost 7 years after the prophet's martyrdom: (DEAN) Dear Brother, let me know as soon as possible how the church is getting on and if it is true that Br. Joseph Smith was shot...(I have not) received any information from any of the brethern this last 10 years, only what I see in the papers. The brethern whom I knew in Scotland have all moved to America. Dear Brother, my soul has often been grieved with the many lies I hear from day to day about the Saints of the most high God and I am sick and tired of them."
(DESIREE) Ten years after initiating the gathering of the people of America to the Salt Lake Valley, Church leaders focused their efforts on bringing thousands of converts from across the seas to Zion. European Saints longed to gather with other believers; They sought the blessings of eternal life in temples; they wanted their ancestors and their children to enjoy these same blessings. The Saints were compelled to gather what means they could, save for years at a time, and make preparations for this journey to America. They left family, fortunes, jobs, homes, property and all they knew to pursue the magnificent task of being a part of building up the kingdom of God. Their zeal for Zion was no less fervent than the desire for gold that pulled thousands of others to California. They were willing to take the risk and endure the consequences.

(SALLY) Many Saints had the spirit of gathering but not the means. The average fare across the ocean was $86, a fortune of them. In 1852 The Perpetual Immagration Fund was introduced. It was a fund created by tithes and contributions to help the poor but eager emigrants with the costs of the journey. Once in Zion, they could repay the debt and help others to come as well. The fund would eventually help over 26,000 Saints to emigrate. The people of the Willie and Mart companies boarded the ships "The Thorton" and "The Horizon" in Liverpool, England in May of 18__, much later than desired. The handcart pioneers should have hit the trail at Iowa city in June, but they were still on the ocean. Crew members on both ships were to have said the Saints were such a model of order and discipline in spite of the miserable conditions that they had never seen a better lot of passengers.

(DESIREE) The meals on the ship were scanty at best and many arrived in America undernourished. The emigrants crammed into trains that took them to Iowa City ready for the walk to Zion. A resident of Iowa City, Wallce Staggnard describes them this way: (MIKE) In all its history, the American West never saw a more unlikely band of pioneers than the 400-odd who were camped on the bank of the Iowa River at Iowa City...they were not colorful--only improbale. Looking for the brown and resolute and weather seasoned among them, you would have seen instead starved cheeks, pale skins, bad teeth, thin chests, all the stigmata of unhealthy work and inadequate diet. There were more women than men, more children under fifteen than either...Most of them, ... had never pitched a tent, slept on the ground, cooked outdoors, (or) built a campfire. They had not even the rudimentary skills that make frontiersmen. But as it turned out, they had some of the stuff that makes heroes."

(SALLY) Upon arriving in Iowa City, the already late Saints were astonished to discover that provisions for the trek, including handcarts were not prepared and readied for them, as they had believed. This created a three week delay as men cobbled together handcarts and women sewed together tents. Each person was limited to 17 pounds of luggage, including bedding and clothing. To this were added cooking utensils, bringing the total weight allowed to 100 lbs. placed on each cart. However, the lightweight carts were flimsy, having been hastily made of green wood that later dried out and shrunk, which later caused many carts to fail under the weight.

(DESIREE) The Willie company left Iowa City on July 16th and made it to Florence, Nebraska less than 4 weeks later. There they faced the monumental decision: should they continue the journey or winter in Nebraska? A mass meeting was held to determine the hearts and minds of the people. The majority, including missionaries returning to SLC, who had experienced the journey, were in favor of pushing forward. One dissenting voice, Levi Savage, a seasoned frontiersman, who knew the mountains as well as anyone, expressed his dissent with tears running down his cheeks. (ROLAND)...."Brothers and sisters, wait until Spring to make this journey. Some of the strong may get through in case of bad weather, but the bones of the weak and old will strew the way." Brother Savage proved himself well, when after being voted down he pledged, "Brethern and sisters, what I have said I know to be true; but seeing you are to go forward I will go with you, will help you all I can, will work with you, will rest with you, will suffer with you, and if necessary I will die with you." And so, with inadequate supply and late in the season, they left Florence, finding sooner rather than later the truthfulness of Brother Savage's words.

(SALLY) Hunger stalked them on the trail. They never had enough to eat. Illness added to their woes. The farther along they went, the more their energy flagged. John Jaques wrote: (JERRY)...."You felt as if you could almost eat a rusty nail or gnaw a file. You were ten times as hungry as a hunter, yea, as ten hunters, all the long day, and every time you woke up in the night. Eating was the grand passion of the pedestrian on the plains, an insatiable passion, for we never got enough to eat." This was just the beginning of what the hardships to follow. The hungry handcart company reached Fort Laramie but to their great dismay found the Fort had no supplies left. Thus, rations were reduced to 12 ounces of flour per day, and they resolved to make every effort to travel faster. However, Wyoming meant steeper, rockier and more rutted trails, wreaking havoc on the fragile carts. The carts became so difficult to pull that they were forced to reduce the weight by dumping articles of clothing and bedding leaving them with even less protection from the elements. Missionaries returning to the Valley passed the companies on the trail, offering encouragement and promising to hurry on to the Salt Lake Valley to send supplies back to them.

-KAREN CHRISTIANSEN (story of Ann Jewell Rowley, told in 1st person)

(DESIREE) Missionaries who were returning to the Salt Lake Valley, overtook the large companies along the trail, offering words of encouragment and the promise to send supply wagons. Upon reaching the Valley, these missionaries relayed the plight of the Saints out on the Plains to President Brigham Young. He had assumed the companies had wintered in Nebraska. With great alarm, he called a meeting for that evening to begin plans for rescue. It happened that the missionaries had arrived in Salt Lake City on October 4th, the day before conference and the very day the Willie company cut their rations a second time. In the first address of conference, President Young plead for assistance for those companies on the trail (ROLAND):..."I shall call upon the Bishops this day. I shall not wait until tomorrow...for sixty good mule teams and twelve or fifteen wagons. I want good horses and mules...also twelve tons of flour and forty good teamsters, besides those that drive the teams." To emphasize the seriousness of the situations, he repeated some of his plea three times. "Your faith, your religion and profession of religion will never save one soul of you...unless you carry out just such principles as I am now teaching you. Go and bring in those people now on the Plains, and attend strictly to those things which we call temporal, otherwise your faith will be in vain."

(SALLY)-At first deaths occurred slowly and irregularly, but within a few days at more frequent intervals, until it became unusual to leave camp without burying one or more persons. (DEAN)...."Nearly all suffered more or less from cold....our old and infirm people began to drop and they no sooner lost spirit and courage than deaths stamp could be traced upon their features. At first the deaths occured slowly...these men were worn down by hunger, scaricity of clothing and bedding and too much labor in helping their families...it was surprising to an unmarried man to witness the devotion of men to their families and to their faith under these trying circumstances...many a father pulled his cart, with his little children on it, until the day proceding his death. I have seen some pull their carts in the morning, give out during the day, and die before next morning."

(DESIREE) Finally the Willie company reached a point where they knew they could not go on, it was find help or perish due to a new storm that had just come in. It was decided that Captain Willie and Joseph Elder would go in search of the rescue parties they knew were looking for them. At the same time the Valley Boys with the supply wagons were also stranded in the storm and had decided to wait it out. They sent Rescue Riders ahead, in the storm in search of the handcart companies. Willie and Elder reached the supply wagon's camp at the same time that the Rescue Riders were spotted by the Willie company. One of the first rescuers on the scene, Joseph A. Young said (MICHAEL) “I camped with them that night in the snow at a place called Rocky Avenue...we continued on over taking the handcart company ascending allong Muddy Hill. A condition of distress here met my eyes that I never saw before or since. The train was strung out for 3 or 4 miles. There were old men pulling and tugging their carts, sometimes loaded with a sick wife or children-women pulling along sick husbands- little children 6 - 8 years old struggling through the mud and snow. As night came on the mud would freeze on their clothes and feet. There were 2 of us and hundreds needing help, what could we do?” For the stranded Saints, their first sight of the rescurers was faith restored.

Jon Marchant retells story of Rescue Rider in 1st person (his actual ancestor)

(SALLY) However, their trials were far from over. After one day of reprive, they awoke on October 23 to what many of them would later describe as the worst day of their lives. This was the ascent of the highest point on the Mormon Trail, at 7,300 feet, the killer know as "Rocky Ridge." The path was a 5 mile climb over jagged rocks, hidden under snow and ice. Debility from weeks of starvation had taken its toll and many would fall here. In all it would be a 17 mile, 25 hour, non-stop killing journey to Rock Creek, which cost the company another thirteen lives. Working together several families would move one cart a few rods and then go back and bring up another cart. They worked this way until six carts had been pushed several rods. The wagons were so overloaded with sick and debilitated that some were fearful that someone would smother.

(DESIREE) Meanwhile, the Martin Company was at least 100 miles behind and rations had been reduced to just 4 oz of flour a day. They had been snowed into Martin's Cove for 5 days before they were forced to move on. One night Elizabeth Jackson recorded, (MELISSA) "We camped out with nothing but the vault of heaven for a roof, and the stars for companions. The snow lay several inches deep upon the ground. The night was bitterly cold. I sat down on a rock with one child in my lap and one on each side of me. In that condition I remained until morning. It will be readily perceived that under such adverse circumstances I had become despondent. I was six or 7 thousand miles from my native land in a wild, rocky mountain country, in a detitute condition...and I with three fatherless children with scarcely nothing to protect them from the merciless storms." That night at the end of her strength and will, she had what she called a stunning revelation. "In my dream my husband stood by me and said, 'Cheer up Elizabeth, deliverance is at hand.'" The next day, the Rescue Riders found them.

(SALLY)These faithful Saints still had to cross rivers, climb Rocky Ridge and bury many of their loved ones before they too reached the SLC Valley on Nov. 30. The journey had taken them more than 7 months, cost them all their worldly possessions, and took over 200 peoples lives. Most who died were the strong, able-bodied men who had sacrificed their food for their children, their sleep to watch the livestock at night, and their strength by taking on the largest part of the pulling of the handcarts. Widows and fatherless children were the largest group to enter the gates of Zion. But the real miracle is that over 1000 people did enter the Valley against odds that no one should have ever survived.

Closing Remarks: President Hinckley video "Mormon Acts of Courage"

Closing Song: "True to the Faith"
Closing Prayer