Transcript

 

A Short Biographical History and Diary

of

William Moore Allred

1819-1901

. . . While living at this place [Kanesville, Iowa] I worked with Samuel Wood at wagon work and after I left the shop, I made the first wagon I ever owned from Bottom to Top (excepting the iron work) and painted it.  I made my yokes and bows.  I raised a yoke of steers and broke them to be quite handy, then I got a yoke of oxen of Orson Pratt, and then I had two cows I yoked up, and that completed my team.  While living here on the 20^th of December 1850, the day Adaline was 6 years old she finished piecing and joining a quilt, and going to school at the same time it was too much for her eyes.  A film commenced to grow over her eyes and we had to keep her in a darkened room, and I got two or three of the best Doctors I could get, but nothing seemed to do much good.  When we crossed the plains I lined my wagon cover with green calico to make it as dark as possible.  In the spring of 1851 we started and crossed the plains arriving in Salt Lake City on the 7^th day of Oct. after a toilsome journey.  On the 30^th of July my wife [Orissa Angela] had a little girl, Second Daughter, still born on the Loop Fork.  Elder [Orson] Pratt told us to name it so we called her Amelia Lorinda.  My wife was quite poorly the rest of the way.  I had a very hard time on the road, altho I had a gentle team and I did not have to work ten minutes on my wagon all the way.  I did not even Brake a bow key, but some one that unyoked my cattle lost one, but I had some extra ones in a little side box so that did not hinder.  Many times I would have to drop my whip when we drove in to camp and go to work on a wagon or something else, and let some one else unyoke my team.  I had charge of all of Elder Pratts teams and they were mostly wild cattle that never was yoked till he started.  He had only enough of broke cattle for leaders, and the teamsters were about as bad.  When I would get across a bad place, I would give my whip to Lansing, (he was not quite nine years old) and he would drive my team, and I would help all the others across and then run till I overtook my team again.  When we got into the City I heard Br. S. W. Cummings (captain of hundred) tell Br. P. H. Wells that he would not go through what I did crossing the plains for five hundred dollars.  For fear some might think that Elder Pratt put to much on me, I will say he has always done well by me.