William Pekin Duncan (1840 - 1905) Profile

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William Pekin Duncan

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First 100, report

First 100, report, June 1848.

First 100, report.

Phineas W. Cook reminiscences and journal, 1843-1886, 52-56

Phineas W. Cook reminiscences and journal, 1843-1886, 52-56.

A few days before we got ready to start about this time the camp at Summer Quarters moved in. the oxen were drove in from the farm[.] my cattle was thin and I was affraid they would not stand the journey. but I said nothing about it for fear that they would think that I was finding fault[.] the 1st camp was 5 miles out whare we camped a week or 10 days waiting for Brigham and the rest[.] when he came we all started out for the Elk horn[.] we built a raft and crosst the river on it with our wagons[.] this river was about10 or 12 rods wide and 10 or 12 feet deep[.] we camped on the west side of the river—till sometime in June when we took up our line of march after moviying ourselves into companies of 10s. 50s &amp; 100s each company with their respective captains[.] Alen Tailer [Allen Taylor] was captain of our hundred and John Harvey of our 50 and Alva hanks [Sidney A. Hanks] of our 10 which was 1st hundred 1st 50 and 2nd 10



The 1st day after starting from the Elk horn river about 5 miles from starting point Sister Elisha H Groves [Lucy Simmons Groves] fell out of the waggon and was run over by the wagon forward wheel and broke her leg.



We traveled on guarding ourselves nights by takeing our turns[.] My turn came once in 5 or 6 days[.] the fateagues of this journey was vary great, watching our cattle against the Indians and herding them <s>cattle</s> [.] We stopt near chimney rock to rest our teams, and while there. we heard that William Weeks had gone back to the states from the valley[.] he was the Architect of the Nauvoo temple[.] he also worked with me in the mill under F. Kesler[.] they had the spirit of apostasy in them while there[.] they said much against the authorities of the church in my presence and it troubled me and I had a dream[.] I thought that a number of us ware standing in a pan of ice about four rods square which was hard and round and all round it the ice appeared thin and rotten. on the South and East we could see no land but in the North and West we could[.] I did not mingle with them in conversation, but I saw that I had on a beautiful pair of scates and I looked all around to see if anyone else had any but found none, and stoping short began to look at them and I saw them going off to the south and south East and after they got off about 40 or 50 rods they would fall through the ice and that was the last of them I saw till all had gone but myself and Weeks and Fredrick Kesler and they two stood yet talking. finely, sais [says] Kesler,. some boys let us go whareupon he started. Weeks hesitated a little and turning to me sais come brother cook lets go. No sais I. I cant go that way. then he started on and left me alone[.] I stood still and watched them and saw them both go through the ice one after the other[.] I then began to think how I should get to the land in safety, finely I continued to take a circle around to get under headway and then strike off into the rotten ice in a west direction toward the shore which I did and as I struck the rotten ice I could feel it crack and give under my feet which on mad [sic] my hair rise, but as I turned my face to the west I came to another hard piece of ice like the one I had left and it became wider and wider till it came to land, and I went so fast without any question that it nearly took my breath till I landed at the top of the mountain and awoke[.] This made me think that sooner or later they would apostatis and I must not fellowship the spirit they had. About 3 or 4 days drive from fort Laramie one of my oxen was taken sick at night and died before morning. this was an ox that Brigham had let me have in place of the one that George had sent to the mountains the year before. This caused me much trouble but they let me have another to fill the place of it[.] The next day I found my leaders were failing as I had before thought they would do the next day[.] in the morning one of them had hard work to get up alone[.] I went to Brigham and asked him what I should do[.] he told me to leave him and if he got better some of the brethren would drive him along and if he died it would be all right, and I could have another yoke in their place[.] This was hard for me to do for he was a favorite ox but Brigham had told me too and it was law. when we started out he got up and followed on[.] he kept up to the company with a little urging by the brethren till within two miles of the camping place for noon[.] he then turned out of the road and laid down tired out. Charles Keneda was in the company behind and he came along in about half an hour after our company and saw him and knew him. he started him up and drove him on and overtook us at camp at the crossing of Laramie river, he came up to my waggon and said, look, I have picked up your ox, and if you will give him to me I will take him through[.] I told him what the president had told me in the morning and if he was a mind to give him to him I had nothing to say, but for my part, I should not give him away for I did not consider it would be right to give him away. He then went to the president and told him I had given him the ox. He told him he could care [for] him and he would take him along if he said so, he then said that he might take him[.] He then came back to me and asked me again to give him the ox[.] he said the president had given him his claim on him and told him to take him along. well sais I if he has given him to you I have nothing to say. A few days after—while camped at horse shoe creek the ox came along and I was with Brigham and as he passt by I said to Brigham [St..] is getting better, yes, sais he, Charles &lt;sais&gt; you gave him to him. No sais I, I did not, but he told me that you did. he then said I must get you and Charly together, sais I that would just suit me. but it was never done, and Kinada left the ox and sold him in the valey, saying &lt;to others&gt;, that if I would not say any more about the ox, he would give me the 12 dollars I owed him for wintering my oxen in winter quarte[r]s.



I told him after we arrived in the valey that I wanted my rifle and I asked him to bring it home. he said he would do so the next day, the next day and the next week passt away but I saw him not nor the rifle, One day as I was passing by his waggon, I calld and he was away, I told her I wanted my gun[.] she then handed it to me out of the waggon. I took it and went away, but when he came home and found I had got it, he said he wished he had took it with him and then he should got pay for takeing care of the cattle, which he knew was unjust. after lyeing to me, to and to Brigham, and takeing my ox wrongfuly. and then not satisfied I thought he was an oppressor,



We crosst the Platt[e] about ½ a days below fort Larimie [Laramie] that day Ann Eliza turned over her teapot and scalded her foot which was vary sore till Mother Angel gave her some camphor, which soon healed it and stop the pain immediately[.] this is an oulent remedy for a burn if it is not so raw that a person cannot bear it[.] When I was in winter quarters Brother Brigham had an orphan boy by the name of William Dunkin[.] his father and mother had died about a year or 15 months before[.] he was about 7 years old before his father gave him to Brigham in his will before he died[.] Brigham wanted me to take him and when he was old enough he wanted me to teach him the carpenters trade which I promised to do[.] he came and lived [with] us for 7 years which brought him to 14 years. I then began to try to bend his mind to the trade but this was of no use[.] he did not like it and from that time he sought an excuse[.] all he seemed to think or care about was a horn or something of the kind, he was a dull scholar as to learning for I sent him to school enough that he might have had a decent education if he had improved his time, he was an enemy to hard work but he was as smart both mintaly and piviuly as commen boys, but he was not to be trusted, he at last got mad for a trifling thing and that was I would not consent to his bringing home puppies to rais. so one night he went out and did not return, I had the trouble of boarding him and sending him to schools till he was large enough to think he could take care of himself[.] then he was off, which is generally the case with the most of such boys in these days



When we got to the head of Sweet Water or near it in the neighborhood of independance [Independence] rock we came to lakes of the Saleratus where we gathered large quantities of it, formed in a crust from one to 6 inches thick, when we got to the last crossing of the sweet water we camped about two weeks waiting for help from the Valey[.] While we ware camped in that place many of our cattle died[.] I lost one out of my team and another was sick. I board their horns, and took a syrring [syringe] and forced red pepper tea into them[.] but one was so stubborn I could not hold him to do it neither could I do any thing for him, Brother Brigham told me that if I did not do something for him he would die, I told him I had tried my best to docter him but I had not been able to do but little for him, but I would try it again[.] I got two or three of the brethren to help me to put some tobacco down him roaled up in meat balls, but he acted so bad that we ware obliged to give it up[.] in the morning he was dead[.] they all said I had done my duty in trying to cure him[.] he was one that Brother Brigham had furnished me which made me more anxious to save him, the other one that was sick was near one that I had of S.C. Hall in Michigan[.] this left me with ounly one well ox[.] Kenadda had one and one was in the valley. One sick which left me at the mercy of the brethren, but the Lord had made a way for any passage[.] A man by the name of Orin Porter Rockwell a stranger to me but well known in the church as an old friend of Josephs, he told me that he had four mules to hitch to some ones waggon and take it to the valey with a man to drive it. I went and asked my Captain Alva Hanks to let him hitch to my wagon which he did and took it through to the valley[.] I drove a team with luggage for Brother Brigham to goun [sic] river—after which I drove Sister Augusta [Adams] Cobbs [CobbYoung] wagon (a woman belonging to Joseph Smith) the rest of the way to the valley



Ann Eliza had a hard time with her little ones, the mules ware quite practious [precocious] in bad places but the wagon was good and lightly loaded[,] oanly about 14 or 15 hundred bisides the family[.] I tied a circular saw to the reach of my waggon under the base hopeing to have it when I got to the valley[.] Brother Brigham told me that I might have any thing that I could find among the old irons which had belonged to the church in Nauvoo, but I did not find much but that. Which I thought was worth takeing <s>but that.</s> it had an iron shaft in it

Transcript for Phineas W. Cook reminiscences and journal, 1843-1886, 52-56

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