Transcript

I was born in a little town called Pleasant Ridge, Lee County Iowa, on November 5, 1850 to Elkanih Andrew and Harriet Elizabeth Card Smith. I was born in a five room frame house that had a long porch on the front on which, as I grew older, I have played many a day.

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In the spring of 1862 my parents and their families and my grandmother Card and three uncles and their families left for Utah. We suffered many hardships while crossing the plains. The Indians were very bad, especially the Black Hawk Indians. They were a very fierce tribe and sometimes came very close to our company. On our way at times we met up with large companies of immigrants and traveled with them until we came to the old Oregon Trail where the course of travel separated.

Camp was usually made in the early evening after traveling for about thirteen miles each day. The men would pull large piles of sage brush to burn and clear a place to dance. After forming our wagons in circles and placing the cattle in the center, for they had to be watched every night from the indians, we had our prayers and then drew around the camp fire, when the day's work was finished, we danced and sang and told stories. Joy came to our little camp on night while we were on the banks of the Platt River. A baby girl was born to my mother's sister Violet. She called her Flora Platt Goodwin. I was a small girl, yet I took part in the Historic Immigration.

We arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah on the 25th of August, 1862.