Transcript

Title: Allen Russell reminiscences, undated

Call Number: MS 1649

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Whare we pleased but we must cary our arms with us.) In the winter of 1854 my 2 boys John & William died in the month of February which was a sore trial to us in the Fall of 1854. I think it was my Wife Harriet who went to Salt Lake City with an ox team, and got our endowments. In 1856 I Raised wheat Barley oats, & Rye until 1894 I think It was when I sold (my farm) to John Kelley & James A. Melvil, Excepting in times, of grasshoppers, or drauth. Some years more than others one year, Abe Kimbal thrashed for me 1300 Bushel, small grains. Generally about from 400 to 1000 T 1855 I think (it) was. I halled logs from the canyan, & got them Riped at the mill. & Put me up a log house on my City lot & moved onto it & done my Farming besides in the old field & same at the sink Farm from the time, that my first child was. Born, until the last one was born was about 24 years. Allen ( Jun.) was Born March 10 1848, & Jennett was born Mar. 12 1872 In those 24 years, for me, it was a Season of many hard work I built 4 log houses, in Potowatamie Co State of Iowa. to live in before I crosst the Plains, & came to Utah. & 3 after I got to Utah. & opened up 2 New farms. & helped Build other Public Buildings. after geting to Utah. I served as Road Supervisor. 10 years. & City Marshal, Several years. I do not recollect, how many. & served as City Councillor one term, 2 years. & Served in the Indian War, for Several years & helped make roads into the Canyons & Crossing the Plains. I served as Captain of ten. & in hawling Hay. in the first settling of Fillmore, we had hawl it from 25 to 30 miles. & at the Time Johnsons, Army Came to Utah we had to Pay $5.00 pr bush. for wheat to live on. & Sometimes could not get it for that. or any Price.

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In the year, of 1880, or about that, (my wife Margret & her children) I went to St. George. & Allen & Flora, & Floras, mother, went with us from Beaver City. & (done) some Temple work. for my Father, & Mother & Some other relatives and some, for the Ashley Family. & about that time, either before, or after That Time I Baught the Brick House that I lived in after wards, that I got of Nephi Prat. (400 on trust & $400 down) & gave him 800 dollars for it. & Borrowed, the money of Alman Robison. with an 18 per cent per monts, & then I got a Job of hawling Supplies, for L.S. black, & Co. & in a fiew days, Started out on the Road. with 4 horse team, & 2 wagons. & went up Spanish forke, to the Depo, on the D.& R.G & there we Loaded. with supplies. & Started out for Thompson Springs. Barney. hawled Supplies. all Summer & in that way I paid for my Brick house. Mostly, that summer was gon from home 8 months, did not get home till into January.

& from That time on, I worked on my Farm some of the time & some of the time, I was Frieghting, some of the time & hawl ing oar at Bristol, & Pieoch, & other Places. & during the time time from 1860 until 1892 I keep no (daily) Journal or diary so that dates that I have mad, may not all be, exactly correct. But as near as my memory would serve me. The Most of this History. I have been Eye witness to. & some of it, I have got from others Records, & Sayings of other people. But, that my children & others, might know whare I was Born, & who my Parents, were, I thought to make this short History. that others might know, that I have had to Pass through many, trials, & hards hips, & that my life has not all, been a Flowery Bed, of {torn page} {torn page} mixed up with unpleasantness. But Thanks be to

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And finding that the French trader wanted some work done such as Building, granary to put their Corn in to keep it from the Indians & puting up hay & a scaffal to dry their corn upon, we all went to work for them, we Plowed up Some new land for them & sowed Some Buckwheat, & turnips, But we got nothing for that, for it (was) destroyed by Stock. We soon (made) a corall for our stock to corall them nights. I was appointed to herd the stock and take care of it in the fore part of the Season. When Haying time came on I was set to making. Hay racks. & the traders (heired) us to build them a grainery to put their corn in when it got Ripee. By Cuting soen large Cotton wood trees & hewing them on Two Sides, About 30 (ft in length) & 8 ft wide & about 10 feet high. with a small door in one End. So that a man could get in it thalerable comfortable & covered with split timbers, & hay & dirt for a cover. during the summer, we went hunting Buffalow & in that got ready meat We put up with Considerable hay for the traders & some for for the Company which was very good. we bought some of the French and Indians our selves & put a good sallied fence around it, And in the fall, it got a fire & all Burnt up such, was lost. In the fall & winter we keep our stock in a {illegible} Bottoms, & they fed an Bushes grass, &Peauines, & some other brush of different kinds. In the Fall or latter part of the Summer Emmett went back to Nauvoo P {illegible} to get council what to do & whare to go, When he retu rned Br. Sherwood ( if I remember right) & Fullmar, came with {work struk out} him, & Staid, with us a fiew days & talked to us considerable & returned & John Butler went with them, & staid until Spring & when he Returned, James Cumings. Came with him. With instructions, to come down the Mis souri River to meet the main Coompany of the Saints. {paper torn} was leaving Nauvoo. This was in 1846 {corner of page torn}Butler & Camings came to us. we had good in {paper torn} garden. & was preparing to Put in more.

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During the winter there, While John Butler, was gon we Kep our Stock in the Bottoms, whare their was plenty of Bushes Peavine, & other __ark, & some grass in places, So our stock done very well. & was in tolerable good condition to travel. Also we killed Deer Turkeys Ducks, Prarrie Chickens, Elk & other game to help us out, with our Provisions. Dureing the winter of 18__ I now go Back to the Time that we ware camped on Iowa River, in the fall of 1844 & State that as I was traveling up the river with [word illegible] Stewart while crossing a stream of water his wagon upset & all his goods went into the water & I with him, & others had to go into the water waist deep to gather out his things & we staid there over night, & I had to lay down all night in my wet clothes & it being a cool night I took cold & was very sick with Fever & Ague, which lasted me a long time. in so much that I could not work much, & I continued poorly all winter, and that to up to the Spring of 1845 when John Butler, & James Cummings, came to us from Nauvoo.

Now when Br. Butler and Cumings Came & tolds us what was wanted [paper torn] ent to work with Energy to fix up our wagons, & ox yokes [paper torn] that Ever was necessary, to prepair for traveling & when Every thing was ready we started. Although we had but little to Eat or to ware we ware hapy to think that there was a prospet of geting back to the main Body of the Church again. Even if it was traveling in the wilderness toward the Rockey Mountains. I must Say that it, (Seemd to) put new life into the people At that Period, the grass had got up a little So that our (Amimals) could get a little green grass with the dry. We had to cross streams quite often, Some on rafts & Some on Bridges, & Some we forded, But the farther we traveled the Better was the grass for our animals. It has always appeared th{paper torn} the hand of (a kind) Providence, was over us, So much so that we in all our travels, when we ware a traveling in our {paper torn} Company we never met a war party of Indians, So

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as Indians was concerned we ware not troubled, excepting in the Fall of 1845 while we ware living at fort varmillian The Indians came in from their Hunting trip, & for some cause I never new what, The Indians took it into their heads to kill us all off. on one occasion one of the war Chiefs said to one of the wives of one of the French Traders, who was a Squaw, that He was going to do Bad, She wanted to know what it was that he was going to do, he said he was going to kill of all them (white) People. & She Beged of him not to be so cruel, & She went, & see [etters struck out] the others wives of the Franch Traders who ware Squaws. & they all, with the Traders them selves, pled for the white People, that they would not kill them. They told the Indians that the white People had done them no harm, & they should let them alone, And so after a fiew day they gave up the Idia of kilng us, So I have always felt to acknowledge the hand of the Lord, in Preserveing us from the hands of the (Savages). I will now return to our travels, from fort vermillion to Council Bluffs. When we got within a day or twos drive of Council Bluffs we came to a Stream of water & Stoped for the night, & it set in Raining & it Rained terable all night So much So that we could (not) cross it in the morning, on account of high water. So we concluded to lay by until the water went down; & that day after it Stoped raining, the sun came out & was plesent over head. & the women concluded that they would wash up their clothes, For they expected to see some Strangers in a fiew days. (And the men concluded to divide up their Property & Each one have his own, & do with it as he Pleased for from the time that we came to gather in the Fall of 1844 on the Iowa River, We had had all things(common) & no one caled any thing his own. So a commita of 3 was appointed [torn page and letters struck] the company to divide [word struck out] the Property that was left accor ding to the best of their Judgement, to Each Family, according to the Size of the Family. So the most of the Propperty was div ided up that day, before dark. & what fiew traps that was

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left, undivided, that day was divided, after wards when we ware camped again, down {word scratched out} on the line of Missouri) So the next day the Stream had Lowered So that we could cross & when we had all crossed the creek, we started on our Journey again feeling pleased that we had got our Property divided with out any Dissatisfaction, all Expressed Satisfaction in that regard. & I think we reached Council Bluffs the next day. & there we ware Enabled to get a little corn meal to make a little Bread, which was very Exceptable. Then we moved on down to the line of Missouri, whare we Camped for 2 or 3 weeks. And their we get more corn meal, which was very acceptable, For we had been living on Rations, for about one year, & a half, & had not had one good meal of Bread, of any kind. our rations was generaly 1/2 pint of Corn per day, Now there was not much grumbling in our Camp, For we Entered into an agreement, before we started that we would not grumble But would divide with one another, if the worst came to the worst, To the dividing of the last Coons foot. And that agreement Br. Stewart & I caried out, for we caut a Rack Coon one day, & dressed it & divided {letter struck out} One of his feet & et it after we had cooked it. After we had been camped there a fiew days, we got news that the main Camp of the Saints, with Pres. Brigham Young at their head, ware nearing the Missouri River And if I Remember right, James Emmett, & John Butler ware the men that went & See Pres. Young, and got orders for our Company to fit our selves up the Best we could & Join Bishops George Millers Company and travel with his Company to the west. While we ware there camped near the line, between Iowa, & Missouri, The Main Camp of the Saints arrived near Council Bluffs, & Stoped to rest, & to recruit their teams, & other Stock & fix up for Crossing the Missouri River.

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to go west, When Colonel Allen, a United States Officer came to their camp, & demanded, five hundred of their best men to go & (help) fight the battle of the United States in the Mexican war, which demand was filled promptly by volenteers, from the main body of the Camp of the Saints. [MAS the next two sentence was written upside downand and along the side of the page and squeezed into the document] This I wrote in the fore part of Jun. 1899 & continued on from from time to time as I had opertunity And about the time we got redy to start, we herd that Bishop George Millar was redy to cross the Missouri River, at or near Council Point, as it was called at that time. And we traveled on up to Council Point and when we got there, Bishops Millers Company, which consisted of 3 fifties, ware mostley, Ferryed over and we did not have to wait long before we got Ferryed over, & the next day we Started out on to the Prarie for the west. And we traveled on & Crossed the Horn & traveled {on} up the Loop fork of the plat River, until we came to the Pawnee Station. The day before we got to the Station, James Emmet & 2 or three men went on a head to the Station (on horse back) to See if all was friendly at the Station, with the Indians, and when they got there they found that the Pawnee Indians had al gon of on their Buffalow hunt, and there was only a fiew, goverment men there, who had been Sent there by goverment to learn the Indians how to Farm & to School their Children. And when James Emmet & Company got there in the afternoon, There Came into the Fort 8 or 10 Soux (Indians) & a small war party, which frightened the goverment men that ware ther, and they counciled with Br Emmett what was best to do. for the men that ware living there was afraid that this little war party of Soux Indians would rob & plunder what they desired to, & then Burn the Fort. So they decided that it was best for Emmett & one of his party to go back to the

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Main Camp & get 20 or 30 good men well armed & come back that night, & get there if posable by day brake, as war party was tired, they thought they would do no mischief until after daylight. So they came back & got 25 or 30 men well armed, & started back to the Station, & got there, at daybrake, & found all quiet. & the Indians asleep, & when it was farley daylight we all marched in, in dauble file, and the Indians when they saw us came in to the fort, well armed they arose & ware very friendley & came & Shook hands with us all, & when they & when they got redy they left in Peace and when the Main Camp Came up about 2 or 3 OClock in the day, all was quiet. and the Company formed a half circle near the Fort, and there was a small creek runing between the Fort, & the Camp which afforded water for culinary purposes, & for Stock. And while the Camp remained in that place, for the safety of our Stock, we coralled them nights, in a large, & Substandial corall that the goverment men had built for their Stock when necessary. and after we had been(there) 3 days, about midnight one of the guard, that was watching the Corall Saw and Indian Cralling up toward the fence & the guard Shot at him, & that Stampeeded all the Cattle & horses, that was in the Corall, and they bursted through the Barrs, & run down through the Creek & up through the Camp, & fun over 3 wagans & brake 2 of them, bad, & ingered the other considerable & hurt one women quite bad, but She got over it in a fiew days. and it took us 4 or 5 days to gather them up again. They got so badly frighten In a fiew days after this, there came to the Station as near as I can remember 8 or 10 Indians from the.

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Punckaw nation or tribe, & they stayed with us about 5 or 6 days, & they asked many questions, with regard to why we ware there, & whare we are doing, and there being a frenchman in our company, that had been an Indian trader up & down the Missouri river for an interpretor for our leading men, of the company And when these Indians found that we ware calcula lating to cross the Rocke mountains, they told our lading that they ware to late to cross the Rockey Mountains that Season, & that we had better Stop & wait until the next Spring for they new that we could not posably get through that season. Then our leaders asked whare would be the best place to winter our Stock, & they told us that their country was a good country for Stock to winter in & if we would go their & winter we Should be welcome Now while we ware there, at the Pawnee Station, our Leaders kept up communication with Pres. B. Young & the twelve, & they had came to the conclusion that it was to late, to undertake to cross the Mountains that season & thought that they had better turne aside Some whare, in a place that they could winter their Stock & prepair to go on in the Spring. And though the influene of the (Punckaw) Indians & the council of Pres. B. Young, we concluded to go cross to the Runing Water, which empted into the Missouri River, whare these friendly Punckaw Indians lived. So as Soon as this move was agreed upon by vote, of the whole company, which unaimous We gathered up & started these Punckaw Indians Pilating the company, over the Praier & water & (water), good feed for our stock all the way. When we got fairley

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Started. these Indian guides sent 2 or three of their men on ahead to inform, their chief of our coming to their country to winter. Their being three organized fifties each fifty made a road for themself & left a good Road leading them, about 4 to 5 rode (apart) After we got fairley underway, Bishop George Miller told James Emmitt, that he wanted a man to act as captain of the herd, to look after all the Stock and see that none was left behing nor Strayed off Br. Emmitt asked me, Allen Russell, if I would accept of that position & I told him I would if it was desired. So by the request of all the leading men of the Company, I started in and took charge of all the stock of the 3 fifties, which kep me busy Early & late, until we got to the river caled the Running Water, about 2 or 3 miles from the mouth whare it emptied in the MIssouri River After we had got there, & our teams turned out on the grass, which was about noon, the Old Chief & Some of his best men came, I with our leading men, Sat down on the grass, & had a good talk, The old Chief asking many questions, as to why we were there, his questions being answered, principaly by B. P. George Miller, through our interpreter John Battees. After matters had been explained satisfactorily, the Old Chief made us welcome to go whare we please. It surely was a butiful country for Raising Stock & to all appearance a goo grain growing Country. After looking around a while the next day, B.P. Geo Miller & and the other Breathran, decided to Locate their camp, (for the winter) across the river, (on the West)upon a beautiful bend or Table land, whare there was an abundance of Prairie Grass to cut for hay. But the first work to be done was to build

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Cabins, or log houses, to live in during the winter, & get our stock located whare they could be herded, & recruit for the winter .& cut hay as oppertunity offered. Along up & down the Runing water River, & on the Missouri River there was plenty of Cotton wood timber, for fire wood & making log cabbins, corrals, &c. As much as was practable Each fifty, herded their Stock, by themselves. one of the fifties took their Stock up the Running water, & another up the Missouri River; & myself, Jude Allen, & Jessee Nabran, took the Stock of George Millers fifty, down the Missouri River. And the stock of each fifty, done well during the winter. for their was great quantaties of Prarie grass Peauines & Rushes, for the stock to feed upon whare we ware camped, for the winter was about 100 miles (up) the Missouri River from Winter Quarters. during the winter some of the (Breathran went with their )teams down to winter quarters and got provissions and other necesaries, to go on in the sSpring, with to the Rocky mountains. But same time in the latter part of othe winter We got news that Pres. Brigham Young had received a Revelation from the Lord, concerning the camp of the Saints, that ware traveling westward, & the Revelation was Sent by some of the Bretheren, to us in the Punck aw Camp, as it was then called. & the People of the camp ware call together to see if they would accept, the revelation, as being from the Lord. And after some explanations ware given there was a vote taken of the People of Punckaw Camp. And they unanimously, Sustained it. And after that came word that a first Presidency was organiz ed, & their council was for the people of the Punck aw camp to move down the Missiouri River to winter quarters, & recruit up a little, until the could

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go west. to the Resting place of the Saints when they found one. So accordingly when the Spring opened & the Grass began to Start a little [KB=words crossed out] Brigham Young was sustained as the first President of the Church, Dec. 27, 1847 the camp gathered up their stock & and other things & we started for winter quarters, (this was in 1848) we got thare in time to put in Spring Crops, Such as garden seeds, they found one. So according when the spring opened & the grass began to start a little corn, Buckwheat & Potatoes, and the Punckaw Camp Settled on a little creek about 2 miles west of the winter quarters, whare the main body of the Saints ware located. Before we got there, The Pioneers had started for the west, with Brigham Young at their head. We the Punckaw Camp, or a part of the camp, Stoped there & raised our crops , & Some to other places. We raised good crops, of what little seed we had to put in, & in the summer we cut our hay for the winter, & hauled logs, & put up cabins to live in during the coming winter. In the begi ning of the winter, [KB=word crossed out} I started back, (on the old Mormon Trail), to go to the Dese Maines [Des Moines] River to get my Father, & My Brother Horace. & got as far as Pisga, & and when I got there, I heard that, my Father and horace had gon on to the Bluffs on Winter quarters, & I Suposed I had missed them on the (desemain) [Des Moine] road, (but it was a mistake, they ware still living on the olmstead ) road, While I was in Pisga, I stayed with Moses an old Neighbor of mine, in the State of Michigan, & had a good visit, with the Family. After visiting with them, one day, I returned home to winter quarters. & it was their my first child was born, Allen on the 10 of March, 1848 Spent the winter there, in the Spring of 1848 I with Jude Allen left winter quarters, & crossed the River, & built us long cabins near Kainsvill, & rented some land of Henry W. Miller, & put in corn, & potatoes, & raised a fair crop that summer, After I got my crop in, I again started after my Father, at the desemains [des moines] River in the State of Iowa. (Kanesvill was also in the State of Iowa

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When I got there, I found my Father, & my Brother Horrace, in good health, & we had a good time of rejo-- icing when we met. And they ware willing to come with me. So as soon as they could Settle up their affairs, we started and came to Kainsvill, my team was one (yoke of) oxen, & wagon. after being gon about one month my corn bag got quite weedy, & I went to work, & cleaned the weeds out of my Corn. & then I thought I would like to have a farm on the Missouri, Bottoms, & I went, & staked out a piece of ground on the Bottoms, below Kanesville, & put me up a log house, on it & cut me some hay for the winter, & moved there, & lived there dureing the winter. My Father & his wife, that he maried after he got to Kanesvill, & my Brother Horace, all lived in one(room). The next Spring, which was in 1849, Myself, & Jude Allen not being fulley satisfied, to stop there, in the vecinity of Kanesvill went up North, & took up, each of us a farm, & built, Each of us a house, on our Claims, & com-- menced puting in Corn & Potatoes, & garden seeds, & moved there, & made us quite comfortable homes, & calcula-- ted to stay there, until we got, enough around us to Emigrate to Salt lake reasonably comfortable for we had traveled nearley all the time since 1844, & had not much to make our Families comfortable. But in the fall or winter of 1851 orders came for all the Saints to leave, Iowa, & come to Salt lake valley. And Orson Hide & Ezra T. Benson ware to organize companys, of fifties, & Tens, & place Captians over Each Company, for the Conveinence of travel-- ng. So dureing the winter of 1851 we ware prepare-- ing, to move west in the Spring. So when Spring came, all that could get redy gathered near the Ferry. & ware organized into Companies.) & crossed with Captins of fifties, & of tens

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The River, & Started for Salt Lake valley. Benjamin Gardner was appointed Captain of the fifty that I traveled in, & I was appointed Captain over one of the tens in Capt. Gardners Company. & we traveled on without much dificulty, until the Colera broke out among us. Then we had a terable time with that awful Diseas. There was 16 that Died in Capt. Gardners company. My Father, & his wife, My StepMother. & My Brother Horace, traveled with me. We traveled on until we Came near the, Black hills, to a Stream Called deer Creek, & there we lay over a day for the women to wash, & straiten up a little, & myself Jude Allen, & Jessee Hobson went out on a hunt, & it being a very warm day, I got very thursty, & came very near dying, by drinking, to much alkaly water. we killed one Buffalo, & returned to Camp in the night the next day the Company Started on, & I had to get another man to drive my team, & I suffered terably all that day, & all that night, & was not able to take Care of my team. The next Came, & I was still worse & I told Capt. Gardner, that I could not travel that day, & they could go on, & If I lived I would come on, & if I died I might be burried there as well as any whare, & he said they would lay by that day, & perhaps, I would be able to travel the next day. And I suffered terable that day, & they kep giveing me Grees vinegar, and Sour bull berries, until they got the Strength of the alkaly killed, & then I began to feel a little better, & the next day, we travel on, & I kep geting better, & in a fiew days I got so that I could drive my own team. That was the first time in my life that I thought I was going to die.

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We continued traveling on, & on the 24 day of september we arived in Salt lake City. And by Enquiring a little I found, my wifes Brother Wm. B. Hutchens. & we stoped with him a fiew weeks, & I thrashed out some wheat for him with my oxen & borrowed a Fanning mill, & Clean(ed) it up & he gave it to me. and I worked for Some others & got Some more wheat, & then I & my Father, and his wife & my Brother Horace, Started for fillmore. While I was stoping in Salt lake City, one of my oxen died & it put me out considerable, but I managed to travel on to Fillmore. When I got there I found a Small Settlement of 17 Families, Namely, Anson Call Josiah Call. Peter Robison, N. W. Bartholomew, Geo. Black Tho. R King, S. P. Hait. Tho. Charlsworth, John Webb, Orang Warner, Geo. Catlin, and his Father. Orson Tyler. Leman Brunsan. Janvrin H, Dame.[Janvarin Hayes Dame] Loren E. Kenney. And Alfred P. Safford. About the 1st of Nov. Pres B. Young organized, these 17 Families into a Branch, & Anson Call, President, with Peter Robison his first, and Tho. R. King, his second Councillar. Noah W. Bar-- thalamew, Bishop, and Saml. P. Hayt his Councillor'\ Which had came here, on the 28 of Oct, 1851 Pres. B. Young Came with them, & also Br Jessee Fox surveyor. & Surveyed the City Plot. When I & my Father, & Brother Horace, Came to Fillmore I went to work for Provisions a short time to live upon & rented one of the Lumber Cabins that the hands that had been laying the Foundation of State house had built to live in, & lived in it until the 24 of Jan. 1853 when Ihad got me a log house built & moved into it. & Then I went to cuting fencing to fence in some land that I had taken up for raising a crop the coming Summer.

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And I raised some wheat, & Corn, & Potatoes, nearley. Enough to live upon the Coming Season. Aand on the 3rd of July 1853 (word) Came that war had broke out between the Mormons, & the Utah Indians, in utah valley near the utah lake, & for the People in Fillmore to Fort up & defend themselves, the they could in case of an attact by Indians. & Immediatily (we) began making prep(o)rations to defend ourselves. The People That first came to Fillmor, ware at this time Mostley living in their little three Cornered fort, that they built near (whare) Barthalamews Old Grist mill now Stands that he Commen-- ced building (in the Spring of) 1853 & but 2 or 3 had built out on their lots. & those that had built on their lots, was required to take them down, & move them inside of the little 3 Cornered Fort. I for one, took my log house down, & put it up inside of the little Fort & lived in it dureing the summer Same time in the fore part of July Geo. A. Smith, & Jesse Fox, Surveyor, Came to Fillmore & Surveyed out a larger Fort. & the People, took up lots inside of the big Fort, & built their Houses so as to form a part of the Fort, their houses being as a general thing about 16 ft apart, & the back part of Each house was on a line with each other & the Space between the houses was built up with, rock & mud, or Pickets, So as to have the fort fulley Enclosed, to defend ourselves against an attack of the Indians, in case of necesity. And dureing the Summer, we had to go in Companies to water our Crops, or to hawl wood, or to harvest our grain. & to hawl it from the field .& Stand Guard Every night in our turn. I the fall, (of 1853) Captain Guneson & party, of 7 men, ware killed on the Sevier River near whare, Deseret now stands. In 1854 Ans Call, was released, from the Presidency, in the Fillmor Branch. And John A Ray placed in his stead.

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in the Fall, of 1854 the walls of the State house ware put up. In 1854 Indian Chief, Walker Died. near meadow Creek in Millard County. In 1855 The grasshoppers destroid the Crops in Fillmore. it was called the first grasshopper war. In 1855 myself, Allen Russell, & Ephraim Thomkins-- on, A. P. Safford, Orson Tyler. Tho. Charlsworth. & Wm. Pane. Plowed up 12 Acres of land, & sowed it to wheat. On the Beaver River, whare the City of Beaver, now Stands. We wate-- red it twice & it grew nicely, & looked well, but was kill-- ed by frost, on acct. of being put in late. in July. In 1855, my Father, Jonathan Russell, Died in Fillmore {City}. In 1855 myself & Hyrum [Hiram] B. Bennett plowed the first, furrow to make the Ditch to carry the waters, of Chalk Creek to the Sink, Farm, & I plowed up 5 acres of land & sowed it to wheat. But the season, was so dry that the wheat did not come up until the next Spring, in 1856. & from that year, forward, Praised grain at the Sink Field until, I sold my Farm to John Culley (in the year 18) & James A Melvil. & this was in 1894 as near as I can Remember. Or their abouts.

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When myself. & Family, & my Father, & his wife, & my Brother Horrace. got to Fillmore in 1852 the State House. Foundation was about, 3 or 3 1/2 ft high. & the walls ware not Put up, until a year or to afterwards. & as my Father was Crippled up with Rheumatism, he could not work much. & he being a Shoemaker, he worked at his trade Makeing, & Mending Shoes. which helped him to make a living. & my Brother Horace, & I went to the Canyon. & cut logs to Build our Cabins of. & we got some land out side the Field & Cut, & hawled it, & Enclosed the field, & made it a little Larger. & in the Spring of 1853 Put in some, {wheat} & Corn, & Potatoes & C. besides we rented some land in the Old Field. & we got our Crops gorwing Nicely (a Runner Came from S. L. City. & told us that war had commenced Between the Indians, & the white People. in utah vally near the Utah Lake. & to make ourselves safe we must fortify ourselves and we had no time to delay for the Indians Might come up-- on us at any time. & we had our crops to take Care of & water & harvest when Ripe. Captain Henry Standage was our military officer. & we ware all Put under military law & we had to go in Companies. & our arms. & Amuntion with us to get our wood. & water our grain, & Harvest it. We ware not allowed to go off single anywhare. I with the rest Pulled down my house, & took it into the little three cornerd fort & Put it up, to live in. dureing the Summer. & dureing the Summer of fall.) Pres. B. young, & surveyor, Fox come, & Surveyed out a fort. When the New fort was surveyed of in lots, Each one drew for their lots to live on. & drew my let on the(Side near the) west gate. & moved my house their & Put it up, & lived in it that winter it being the winter of 1853 & 1854 and in 1854 Indians became more quiet. & we could go, when, &