Andrew D. Olsen - Follow Me to Zion

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Olsen, Andrew D., author.

Follow me to Zion : stories from the Willie handcart pioneers / Andrew D. Olsen and Jolene S. Allphin ; art by Julie Rogers.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-60907-594-1 (hardbound : alk. paper) 1. James G. Willie Emigrating Company. 2. Mormon pioneersWest (U.S.)Biography. 3. Mormon pioneersWest (U.S.)History. 4. Mormon handcart companies. 5. Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. 6. MormonsWest (U.S.)Biography. 7. Frontier and pioneer lifeWest (U.S.) 8. West (U.S.)History18481860. I. Allphin, Jolene, author. II. Rogers, Julieillustrator. III. Title.

F593.O47 2013

978'.02dc232013019437

Printed in the United States of America

Publishers Printing, Salt Lake City, UT

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

THE NORTH WIND

In crossing the Rocky Ridge, we had to encounter a heavy snowstorm, accompanied by a strong north wind.

-James G. Willie

Paintings

The North Wind Frontispiece

Chapter 1

Let Us Pray

Ministering

The Thornton

Heavily Laden

Friendly Guidepost

Reunion

Chapter 2

Songs to Encourage Us

Devoted Friends

Chapter 3

Gathered in His Arms

Mothers Back

We Knew Him

Chapter 4

Be Brave, My Boy

Day After Day

Family Love

Chapter 5

Work of Salvation

Herding

Chapter 6

Sisters in Zion

First Rescue

Chapter 7

Determination

Chapter 8

Mormon Boy

Chapter 9

The Gathering

Bodil

Chapter 10

Mother, Carry On

Keep Going

Chapter 11

Most Anxious

Chapter 12

Unsung

Mns Klint

Yoke on Her Shoulders

Chapter 13

The Steps We Have Taken

United

Sustenance

Chapter 14

I Asked Gods Help

Veil Crossing

Chapter 15

My Only Son Was among Them

Gather Round

Chapter 16

Reverence at Rock Creek

Looking Forward

Chapter 17

Sacred Sacrifice

Our Journey Home

The Light That Comprehendeth

Chapter 18

They Required My Assistance

Faithful Record

Crossing the Ridge

Hallowed Ground

Chapter 19

The Protecting Hand of the Lord

Christina

Ride to Zion

Chapter 20

The Rescuer

Bring Them In

The Blue Angel

Timely Arrival

Just in Time

Stationed at South Pass

Bringing Them Home

The Pioneer Trail

Preface

The fire of emigration blazes throughout the Pastorate, wrote William Kimball in 1855, while serving a mission to England for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Folks are willing to part with all their effects, and toddle off with a few things in a pocket-handkerchief, he continued. For years, Church leaders had been urging converts who lived abroad to gather to the Salt Lake Valley, where they could unite in building latter-day Zion. By 1855, thousands had already emigrated, but thousands more who yearned to gather with the main body of the Saints were too poor to afford the journey.

In the fall of 1855, President Brigham Young announced the handcart plan to help make emigrating more affordable. Instead of using wagons for the overland journey, these Saints would pull their belongings in handcarts for less than one-tenth of the cost. Millen Atwood, a missionary in England, said that when this plan was announced, it ran like fire in dry stubble, and the hearts of the poor Saints leapt with joy and gladness. He said they had prayed and fasted day after day, and night after night, that they might have the privilege of uniting with their brethren and sisters in [the] mountains.

The handcart plan was so popular that nearly 2,000 people signed up within the first few months, and by March 1856 they began sailing from Liverpool. Most of those who would become members of the Willie handcart company left Liverpool six weeks later, on May 4, 1856. After reaching America, the handcart Saints traveled to Iowa City, the western terminus of the railroad at the time, and from there they began the 1,300-mile trek to Zion.

Five handcart companies left Iowa City that year. The journey was arduous in the best of conditions, but the first three companies completed it more quickly and with no more deaths than a typical wagon company. The last two handcart companies of 1856the Willie and Martin companieshad a tragically different experience. Both ran short of provisions, and both were caught in winter storms while they were still hundreds of miles from Salt Lake City. Some 200 members of these companies died from illness, lack of nourishment, and exposure. While this tragedy should not be minimized, it is also a story of great triumph. The timely assistance of rescuers and the sacrifices the people made for each other helped save the lives of some 800 of these Saints.

Tucked inside a journal belonging to handcart pioneer Thomas Normington are two fabric strips, each about six inches long and one inch wide, that were likely used as bookmarks. Attached to the center of each strip is a piece of cross-stitched fabric with the words Follow Me to Zion. These simple words are an invitation to devote ones life to God and his purposes. They are also an invitation for each person, whether in 1856 or today, to consider his or her path.

The Savior gave a similar invitation when he said, Come, follow me (Luke 18:22). He promised his richest blessings to those who accept this invitation, whatever sacrifices it may require: Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my names sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life (Matthew 19:29; see also Luke 18:2930).

Follow Me to Zion tells stories of members of the Willie handcart company who accepted those invitations with full devotion. In doing so, these Saints made tremendous sacrifices. Most of them left family, friends, property, and homelands so they could answer the call of a prophet to gather to Zion. After they reached the Salt Lake Valley, most of them continued to live by those invitations as they helped build Zion. Many of these Saints helped colonize multiple settlements, starting anew each time, sometimes in remote places where their first dwellings were dugouts.