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Samuel M. Kemp

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Chatterly, John, [Autobiography], in "Utah Pioneer Biographies," 44 vols., 7:72-75

Chatterly, John, [Autobiography], in "Utah Pioneer Biographies," 44 vols., 7:72-75.

Father brought six other families besides our own. Myself and my cousin James Morton Thorpe, each drove a wagon, 4 single men teamsters, James Beard, Ned Wood, Tout, and another young man each drove a wagon. Mother cooked for our family, and the four single men. The men had to stand guard nights, and a number stayed out with the cattle, when they were feeding all through the night, and five men at a time standing guard round the camp, as the night was divided into 3 watches, it took 15 men with the cattle and 15 men to watch the camp, so that guarding came around pretty often. I had to stand my share with the rest of the men, altho I was just turned 16 years old. I got lots more than my share as father being the wheelwright he mended the wagons that got broke down, and I had to stand guard at such times, as he would not ask one of his own teamsters to do it. Whenever any of our oxen strayed behind, in company with others I had to stay behind and catch up with them. There were about 60 wagons in our company, as we had ten wagons belonging to emigrants going to Oregon. The Indians had stamped[ed] their train of about 60 wagons at Wood River in Nebraska and they had lost quite a number of their oxen and cows. We met their company going back to their old homes, the ten wagons that were with us turning back with us and travelled with us right into Salt Lake Valley.	
The company was divided up into 5 companies of ten wagons in a company father had charge of one company and two of the Oregon wagons were attached to his company. In corralling the train at night, it was formed into a near circle, leaving an open place to drive in the oxen in the mornings to hitch up the oxen, the opening was always toward the East, as the Indians had agreed to not molest the Mormons if they would leave the opening of the corral toward the east. They never did, as not any Mormon camp was ever attacked. We left the Oregon company camped at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. One of the men of these emigrants named Mr. Kemp was as nice and respectable as a man as there was among our own people. Always willing to help with anything that needed doing such as helping when crossing streams, guarding and anything where assistance was needed.	
I will here relate an incident that happened on the way. One day a young man, about 23 years of age, named Terence Mcbreen and I went out hunting following along on the banks of the Platte River, as we were going along, we ran across some of our young boys, from our train, Tom and Jim Carlett, my brother Morten and two boys named Childs. They had some 3 or 4 Sioux Indian boys about 10 or 12 years of age and they were making them get into a good sized creek, and he [be] washed down into a big hole, that the stream had formed, cutting the creek bed, and making a waterfall of 4 or 5 feet to the stream below. Breen and I started them (the boys) to the train, that was about 1/2 mile away travelling along. We went along hunting presently we heard a sound of sp[l]ashing water, onlooking around we saw 6 or 7 Indians on ponies, with rifles in their hands. We got alarmed and started to run and we could get over the gravel beds better than the Indians ponies could, in fact all of the heaps of gravel were 10 or 12 feet high, we did slide down the gravel some as we climbed the mounds of gravel, could not get up at all. Mr. Breen wanted us to throw our guns away, so we could travel faster, but I told him "I was going to stick to mine" so he kept his. The Indians fired 4 or 5 shots at us, but we did not get hit, altho we heard bullets whiz past us and strike the ground. As the Indians felt they could not overtake us, they turned back to their tee-pees.	
We arrived in Salt Lake City, in the latter part of September 1851; before we got into Salt Lake Valley it was found that my aunt Ellen's (fathers oldest sister) cow had got left behind. Of course, it was me that had to go back, and find her. I got ready to go back on our mare, just as I was about to start Mr. Kemp volunteered to go back with me, which was a &lt;great&gt; relief to me, and I felt very grateful to him. We started back and when we came to the little mountain, as it was called, we overtook several teams going to Fort Bridger. They had been to Salt Lake City to buy supplies for Fort Bridger and other mountaineer camps, 5 wagons with 3 and 4 yokes on a wagon, the cow we went after was with the men and a choice splendid bull belonging to Mr. Peary of Phelp's company. When I went to drive the cow towards the west teamsters drove me back. Mr. Kemp drew his pistol and marched in amongst the wagons, and told the men that he was going to have the cow and bull, and if any of them undertook to interfere with him, he would shoot them, the men made a big noise about it, but he drove out the cow and the bull. We started toward Salt Lake City and on our way we found an old ox of ours that had given out, which we took along. In getting into Salt Lake Valley we found Mr. Kemp's folks camped several miles from the city, so I had to proceed to get to the city before night.

Samuel M. Kemp

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