As his obituary and son's biography indicated, Stephen made the initial trip in 1851 to Utah alone, leaving his wife and children in New Jersey. He returned in 1852 and brought them all back with him in 1853. A couple years later, the family returned to New Jersey for a visit and returned home to Utah in 1856. Further research is needed to identify the name of the companies they traveled with in 1853 and 1856.