By Deseret News Jul 22, 2008, 12:05am MDT. [Oregon, Mormon, California]? [2], As the senior apostle of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles after Joseph Smith's death, Brigham Young assumed responsibility of the leadership of the church. Omissions? In June 1845 the leader of the Mormons, Joseph Smith, was murdered. Time Frame. They followed the Platte River on the north bank to avoid contact with the travelers on the busy Oregon Trail that followed the south bank of the river from near Kearney westward. Latter-day Saint settlements were being attacked by mobs who burned crops, destroyed homes and threatened the people. The effects of differing cultures on the Mormon Trail Summary This lesson will make the students aware of the hardships and trials that the pioneers faced, particularly those that were caused by the people coming from different countries. the Mormons were fleeing religious persecution while those following other trails were primarily searching for profit or land What was the biggest difference between people who followed the Mormon Trail and those who followed other trails west? By December 1847, more than 2,000 Mormons had completed the journey to the Salt Lake Valley, then in Mexican territory.[2][12]. Finally, with the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, future emigrants were able to travel by rail, and the era of the Mormon pioneer trail came to an end.[18]. This journey for the Mormon immigrants began in 1846 in Nauvoo, Illinois and ended in Salt Lake City, Utah. Wagons collapsed, people died from exposure, and it took 131 days for the Mormon convoy to travel 310 miles to relative safety on the banks of the Missouri, … From Council Bluffs, Iowa to Fort Bridger in Wyoming, the trail follows much the same route as the Oregon Trail and the California Trail; these trails are collectively known as the Emigrant Trail. Therefore, an irrigation system was designed and the land was flooded before plowing, and the resulting system provided supplemental moisture during the year. [14], In 1856, the church inaugurated a system of handcart companies in order to enable poor European emigrants to make the trek more cheaply. The incident helped spur passage of a bill establishing the Oregon Territory (1848) and contributed to the Cayuse War between Indians and settlers, which did not end until 1850. Mormon Trails. This wagon trail length was about 1,300 miles. On November 18, 1978, the trail route was established by Congress as a part of the National Trail System. The first death along the trail occurred on March 18 at Richardson’s Point, Iowa, where a man succumbed to illness and exposure. The Mormon Pioneer Trail connects Winter Quarters with Salt Lake City. Answer: (A) Brigham Young led a group of religious pioneers west along the Mormon Trail in 1846.. While not the first to use handcarts, they were the only group to use them extensively. They were seen as a faster, easier, and cheaper way to bring European converts to Salt Lake City. The three women were the only three women in that first wagon train. The first segment began in Nauvoo and ended in Winter Quarters, near modern-day Omaha, Nebraska. A little farther up the trail, today’s traveler can see Rebecca Winter’s grave; a member of one of the later companies, she died in 1852, and her grave is one of the few known of thousands of Mormon graves along the trail. It followed part of the Ox-Bow Trail, the Oregon and California Trails and the Hastings cut-off into the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. He would later be sustained as President of the Church and prophet. The economic status of the participants 3. The Mormon people faced severe persecution from other settlers near their communities, and it caused significant hardships for them. [1], Although the movement had split into several denominations after Smith's death in 1844, most members aligned themselves with Brigham Young and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their first real way station was at Garden Grove, where 170 men cleared 715 acres in three weeks, for the purpose of providing shelter for those coming behind. Two of the handcart companies, led by James G. Willie and Edward Martin, met disaster on the trail when they departed late and were caught by heavy snowstorms in Wyoming. Where did the Santa Fe trail end? Brigham Young became the new leader of the Mormons. The Mormons were persecuted for … Known as Winter Quarters, the camp became a deadly location. Under Young's leadership, about 14,000 Mormon citizens of Nauvoo set out to find a new home in the West. Rain or shine, twice each day she started her campfire and baked, cooked, roasted and broiled enough food to satisfy whomever was under her care. The winter cold, most mormons were forced out in the middle of the night and they left in hand carts, not wagons. A new route on the north side of the Platte and North Platte rivers was chosen to avoid potential conflicts over grazing rights, water access, and campsites with travelers using the established Oregon Trail on the river's south side. The Mormon Trail covers about 1,300 miles from its starting point Nauvoo, Illinois, to its end in Salt Lake City, Utah. [9], The journey from Winter Quarters to Fort Laramie took six weeks; the company arrived at the fort on June 1. The Mormon Trail ©1995 by Beverly Whitaker, Genealogy Tutor. Yes!!! Mormon leader Brigham Young and his followers were forced to leave Nauvoo, Illinois. From there the first wave of settlers followed the Platte River west across Nebraska and into Wyoming, at which point the Mormon Trail frequently coincided with the Oregon Trail. Mormon Trail Map - Path of the Mormon Pioneer Trail Mormon Trail Map Information The Mormon Trail or the Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868. Mormons and the Environment Mormon pioneers were careful of the environment because they know other members of their faith would follow along the same trail. The Mormon Trails of northern Kansas and southern Nebraska started from the following points mainly: Independence and St. Joseph, Missouri; Leavenworth and Atchison, Kansas, and quite a number crossed the Missouri River at Brownsville and Nebraska City. Among the emigrants were the Mormon handcart pioneers of 1856–60. Young organized a rescue effort that brought the companies in, but more than 210 of the 980 emigrants in the two parties died. These staging areas were moved farther west as the ability to travel up the Missouri River or by rail improved. On April 5, the wagon train moved west from Winter Quarters toward the Great Basin. Almost 3,000 Mormons, with 653 carts and 50 supply wagons, traveling in 10 different companies, made the trip over the trail to Salt Lake City. • Between 1846 and 1869, some 70,000 Mormons traveled west on the trail. This early departure exposed them to the elements in the worst of winter. At this point, the now larger company took the established Oregon Trail toward the trading post at Fort Bridger. Mormon Trail facts. . The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or the Mormon Church was founded by a young man named Joseph Smith, Jr. in April 1830. The initial party reached the Missouri River on June 14. For the next two decades, wagon trains bearing thousands of Mormon immigrants followed Young’s westward trail. Brigham Young became the new leader of the Mormons. All along the Mormon trail, and during the years that the pioneers traversed this great trek west, hundreds of Saints of all ages, especially the young and elderly, died from hunger, cold, sickness, disease, and exhaustion. Pratt and Snow became the first two members of Brigham Young's wagon train to enter the Salt Lake Valley when they arrived as scouts on July 21, 1847. The small sick detachment lagged behind the larger group, and a scouting division was created to move farther ahead on the designated route. After the first Mormons started the original trek in 1846, it would be used for trade and transport for about 20 years before the construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869. Route of the Mormon Trail. They discussed routes into the Salt Lake Valley and the feasibility of viable settlements in the mountain valleys of the Great Basin. One Governor in Missouri even called for the extermination of all Mormon people, eventually leading to them abandoning their settlements in Nauvoo and heading West. The students should be able to locate a map of the Mormon Trail … Perseverance and tenacity were the essence of the Mormon pioneer woman. • The first wagons left Nauvoo and crossed the Mississippi River on Feb. 4, 1846. Today, the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States National Trails System, known as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail.. [5] To try to meet this deadline and to get an early start on the trek to the Great Basin, the Latter-day Saints began leaving Nauvoo in February 1846.[6]. Salt Lake City. Routine, Rules Discipline, Constitutions Description of a typical day on the trail. With the discovery of gold in 1848, thousands upon thousands of emigrants starting making their way through present day Nevada along the California Trail. You must travel west as you take the role of a Mormon pioneer in the 1800's. However, they were targeted by other Christians who disagreed with Mormon practices such as polygamy. [3], Young now had to lead the Saints into the far west, without knowing exactly where to go or where they would end up. The Mormons were a religious group who practised a type of Christianity. Corrections? Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. During the winter of 1846–47, the emigrants wintered in Iowa, other nearby states, and the unorganized territory that later became Nebraska, with the largest group residing in Winter Quarters, Nebraska. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-the-mormon-trail.html It was blazed by trappers and traders. About the same time, they were joined by 12 more members of the sick detachment of the Mormon Battalion. The Mormon Trail broke south just to the west of the Continental Divide , and it terminated to the southeast of the Great Salt Lake, in what is today Salt Lake City . The Mormon Trail is the 1,300-mile (2,100 km) long route from Illinois to Utah that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled for 3 months. In many places these trails closely followed each other, but they were not the same trail. Due to the hostility shown towards the Mormons, he decided they needed to move somewhere safer. The Quincy Convention of October 1845 passed resolutions demanding that the Latter-day Saints withdraw from Nauvoo by May 1846. Due to the hostility shown towards the Mormons, he decided they needed to move somewhere safer. Figure 1 gives a map of these posts and the dates they were used. Under the leadership of Joseph Smith, Latter Day Saints established several communities throughout the United States between 1830 and 1844, most notably in Kirtland, Ohio; Independence, Missouri; and Nauvoo, Illinois. Hundreds died of cholera, scurvy, dysentery and from the effects of severe weather. Although the Mormons, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, did not actually blaze the trail and did not travel it exclusively, their improvements and extensive use … Answers: 3, question: answers The Santa Fe Trail, a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Independence, Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Stories from the Trail Stories from the trail. They met severe winter weather west of present-day Casper, Wyoming, and continued to cope with deep snow and storms for the remainder of the journey. The trail passes through the states of Utah, Nebraska, Illinois, and Wyoming. • The first pioneer s reached Garden Grove on April … Mormons did not employ professional guides 4. The trail was used for more than 20 years, until the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869. They could carry about 500 pounds (227 kg), most of this weight consisting of trail provisions and a few personal possessions. [16], All but two of the handcart companies successfully completed the rugged journey, with relatively few problems and only a few deaths. Non-frontiersmen were quickly transformed into pioneers 5. On July 23, Pratt offered a prayer dedicating the land to the Lord. Which trail would you take to gold and silver mines? In this paper we examine mortality along the Mormon Trail, from the staging areas where the wagon and handcart companies were formed to arrival in the Great Basin. The Mormon Trail extends form Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah. Death and Hardship on the Mormon Trail . Today the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States national trails systems, as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. Known as the Southern Route, or Mormon Road, it became an important corridor to the Pacific. Which trails followed routes through land purchased from Louisiana? After crossing the Mississippi River, the journey across Iowa Territory followed primitive territorial roads and Native American trails. [The pioneers] marked the path and led the way. Mormons were once persecuted and forced from their homes. TRAVELING THROUGH THE TRAIL From 1846 to 1869, around 70,000 Mormon people traveled westward along the trail due to religious tension. The Mormons, due to persecution and suffering, left Nauvoo in 1847. Contents. The 1838 Mormon War, also known as the Missouri Mormon War, was a conflict between Mormons and non-Mormons in Missouri from August to November 1838, the first of the three "Mormon Wars".. Members of the Latter Day Saint movement, founded by Joseph Smith, had gradually migrated from New York to northwestern Missouri since 1831, mainly settling in Jackson County, where tensions with non-Mormon … 1899, Utah. While at Fort Laramie, the vanguard company was joined by members of the Mormon Battalion, who had been excused due to illness and sent to winter in Pueblo, Colorado, and a group of Church members from Mississippi. Farming the uncultivated land was initially difficult, as the shares broke when they tried to plow the dry ground. Today the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States national trails systems, as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. [8], In April 1847, chosen members of the vanguard company gathered, final supplies were packed, and the group was organized into 14 military companies. The company consisted of 143 men, including three black people and eight members of the Quorum of the Twelve, three women, and two children. The Mormon Trail is the 1,300-mile (2,100 km) long route from Illinois to Utah that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled for 3 months. The Mormon Trail began in Nauvoo, Illinois, and ended in Salt Lake City, Utah, covering around 1,300 miles of wilderness. The Bozeman Trail was an overland route connecting the gold rush territory of Montana to the Oregon Trail. The Mormon Trail ©1995 by Beverly Whitaker, Genealogy Tutor. A religiously motivated migration 2. Young, and 148 Mormons, crossed into the Great Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. The trail lies north of the Platte River through Nebraska and along the North Platte River in Western Nebraska and Wyoming to Casper. Furthermore, few people carried adequate provisions for the trip. Santa Fe. The Mormon Trail converged with the Oregon Trail at Fort Laramie, Wyo., where Brigham Young's party crossed to the south side of North Platte River, and cut off to the Salt Lake Valley at Fort Bridger. 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