Transcript

THE TEXAS COMPANY OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS

Edward Stevenson was appointed Captain of the S[eth]. M[illington] Blair Company June 22, 1855. Many of the company were dying and Elder Blair asked to be released. (Written Verbatim)

June 11th, 1855. This afternoon I arrived at Atchinson 5 miles from Mormon grove with a company of Saints comprising souls mostly of the CHIMBORAZO Company that came with me over the sea from Liverpool “via Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and St. Louis, Mo.” My company has diminished from 532 souls to the present No. but thank God not by death as only two deaths of infants on the sea and one lad 8 years old who fell overboard in the Ohio River. I rec’d a note from Elder McGaw teams would be forth coming in the morning to remove us to camp Grand up to the Grove or farm therefore we put 20 wagons that I brought up from St. Louis and covered them in which we passed the night which seemed like Mormon Life. On the 12th we arrived near sunset at the Grove in a rainstorm nearly worn down with fatigue as our toils have been arduous; the cattle are the wildest I ever saw and most of the drivers equally wild being from the old country where men do not toil as here. Two wagons tipped over and one broke the tongue but no one hurt. Notwithstanding the scene of wagons, tents, farms, lowing of cattle and the busy scenes of the several companys preparing to Emigrate with the meeting of old and long parted friends seemed to Revive the Wearied Tabernacle. Here I remained in charge of my company assisting other companys. Pitching in the farm and company until the 23rd inst.

Bro. E[dward]. W[allace]. East, clerk of the company, gave a day by day account of the trip, only when he had sickness in his own family and was unable to write.

They arrived in Great Salt Lake City September 11th. There were 30 deaths in the camp from the time the company left Mormon Grove—29 died of cholera and one [William Mark Middlemass] (a little boy of Bro. [Edward] Middlemass) of cancer. Of the 29, 16 were of the Texas Company and 13 were of those that joined the company at Atchison.

One sick man wandered from camp and was never found.

Much time was spent in digging graves and selling possessions of the deceased

CADDIE L. WATSON
TOQUERVILLE, UTAH