Pioneer Day

On this day, July 24, in 1847 the pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley where Brigham Young declared, "This Is the Right Place".

The early Mormon pioneers made great sacrifices to cross the plains to escape persecution and be able to worship as they wished, in peace. Some of them are my ancestors.

I will paraphrase from my great great great grandmother, Mary Powell Sabin's autobiography.  She is great grandpa Elmer Sabin's paternal grandmother.

 

She was born in Wales in 1844.  When she was a child her father Joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Her mother joined later.  They left Wales for the United States on the ship "The Enoch Train" sailing out of Liverpool. The ship carried 537 Saints to America.

From Mary Powell's autobiography:

"When we had been on the ocean almost three weeks Old Lady Deveraux died. They sewed her up in a sheet and buried her in the sea. In starting on our voyage she had remarked to mother, "I will go on board the ship and start my husband to Utah. If I should die he will journey on, but if we do not begin this journey together perhaps my husband and children will never reach Zion and I want them to go to Utah more than I can tell you." "

They landed at Boston Harbor where they met the apostle John Taylor.

"Then Apostle Taylor spoke to the saints and asked God to bless us in our journey to Utah. Again we started on our way. This time by rail to Rock Island, Illinois. Our train was to cross the Mississippi River at eight o´clock, but we were fifteen minutes late. The bridge had broken with the train just ahead of us, and a terrible wreck had occurred. So we had to stay at Rock Island from Saturday morning until Monday morning. On Monday morning we crossed the Mississippi in a boat. It was a mile wide. On the other side of the river from Tock Island, we boarded a train of box cars. We reached Iowa City late at night. Then, we walked four miles from Iowa City out to the camping place of the Saints." 

"We remained in Iowa six weeks as all the men were busy making hand carts."

"It became necessary for mother to dispose of some of our things. She sold a little flat iron that I had carried with me as one of my prize possessions. Oh how I cried when it was sold! I think this was the only time I cried on our whole long journey. I was so worried about how we would iron our clothes when we got to Salt Lake City." 

"At last the hand carts were all made. Our family had two hand carts. My brother pulled one of them all the way from Iowa City to Salt Lake City. Father and I took turns pulling the other one. When I was not pulling father´s cart I was helping to pull someone else´s. I walked every step of the way. I was lighthearted and glad and had no self pity. Being almost thirteen years old I felt quite responsible for my younger sisters." 

"Some days we traveled more than thirty miles to reach water."

"Sometimes when father or mother weren´t well, I worried. I did not want them to die by the way side. We hadn´t been long on the march when Bro. Kettle died. We took the last lumber in the company to make him a coffin. We buried him beside a mulberry grove."

"That afternoon we arrived in Salt Lake Valley. We camped on the square in the sixteenth ward and stayed there from Friday night until Monday morning. President Young came and spoke to us. He told us we had fulfilled prophecy. He also said that although we had endured privations and hunger on the plains we should never again feel the pangs of starvation if we would do right and live right."

"Father took his tools and put in a day´s work on the Temple. Thus the promise made to him by the Elder in Wales that he should go to Utah and work on the temple was fulfilled. Exactly two weeks after our arrival in Salt Lake City, Father died. I had been home to see him only once during those two weeks. He died Friday afternoon and was buried at noon Saturday. "

There are many more stories I could share from her autobiography but I didn't want to make this too long. I just wanted to give a glimpse of some of the things my own ancestor went through on her journey to the Salt Lake Valley.

Fittingly, the youth in our stake, including my niece, were able to experience a three-day pioneer trek that ended on the eve of Pioneer Day. The youth in my ward who attended trek bore their testimonies this morning about what a wonderful experience it was and how it strengthened their own testimony and gave them a better appreciation of their forebears.  Many of them said it was the best experience of their lives and one girl even said she would have sacrificed anything to have that experience. Needless to say, many lives were changed for the better. I wish my two nephews who were eligible would have gone.  Trek is only every four years and most youth only get one opportunity to attend. I'm so happy my niece, Chanelle, took the opportunity.

I'd like to share a quote I stole from Lisa's blog.

"How can we pay our debt of gratitude for the heritage of faith demonstrated by pioneers in many lands across the earth who struggled and sacrificed so that the gospel might take root? How is thankfulness expressed for the intrepid handcart pioneers who, by their own brute strength, pulled their meager belongings in handcarts across the scorching plains and through the snows of the high mountain passes to escape persecution and find peaceful worship in these valleys? . . .The descendants of these pioneers can partially settle the account by being true to the cause for which their ancestors suffered so much to be part of." -James E. Faust

I'm grateful for my Pioneer heritage and my ancestors and others who sacrificed much to escape persecution and build Zion.  May we all honor them by being true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

That's my two cents.