Transcript

Transcript for Hayes, John Henry, Reminiscences, [2]

We left Florance [Florence] on the 15 of August in Captain Samuel D. Whites ox train, it being the last company of L.D.S. emigrants of the season. It had about 60 wagons. Bro. Morris's son made it very unpleasant for me crossing the plains, being very harsh, and overbearing with me, but Bro. Morris was very kind to me all the way and took the place of a good kind father for which there has always been a kind warm feeling in my heart, a feeling of love and esteem and the teamsters and emigrants were very kind to me knowing that I had no relatives with me. The teamsters would sometimes give me a ride. I was only ten years of age and very small. They would sometimes take me with them when they went fishing. When we arrived at the last commisary, the family who had been keeping that, their name was Peck, they had some boys and they came with us to Echo Canyon. They had cows and a horse to drive them with. They took kindly to me and the boys liked to have me with them, and we would take turns in riding and driving the cows and they would give me milk which I really enjoyed. The parents wanted me to go and live with them but I wanted to get to Salt Lake City or Zion, as it was called. I saw quite a number laid away on the plains in a shallow grave. The body wrapped in a blanket or sheet lowered into their last resting place with a prayer, no coffin or box, just covered over with dirt. The wagons would rool [roll] on with the loved ones mourning, leaving a unmarked grave. We experienced some quite cold weather on the way. We arrived in Salt Lake City or Great Salt Lake City as it was known then on Thursday evening Oct. 15th, 1863, being just two months crossing the plains and four months and eighteen days from Wingate [England] to Salt Lake City.