The Mormon Migration

The Mormon Migration (1846-47)

• The Mormons were a religious group that were shunned by Christians because of their practices, for example polygamy (marrying multiple people at once). The Mormons struck out for a new destination away from the Oregon Trail.
• They went to escape persecution, but they could fail, as they'd have to detour from the trail.
• Persecuting enemies tried to kill them. The governer and mobs drove out the Mormons. The first leader of the Mormon church was murdered. Brigham Young became leader of the church, and wanted to go to the Great Salt Lake. He was called the American Moses- he was responsible for properly building and settling a new place. At the West Bank of the Missiouri river, they stopped at Winter Quarters, a makeshift town, where 700 died of freezing. You could not drink the water as it was too salty, so they dug a freshwater irrigation trench to get drinking water.
• Before they left, Young organised a count of all the Mormons and the available wagons, finding there were around 3000 familes and 250 wagons that enabled him to plan the logistics of the migration.
• Young consulted with trail guides and experts to find out as much as possible about the Salt Lake Valley. He wanted the Mormons to be as prepared as possible to make a success of their new home.
• The migrants were divided into manageable groups, each with a leader. This mean that even if groups were separated on the journey, everyone would still know what to do.
• Young insisted on strict discipline, giving everyone a specific role. As a result, there were none of the arguments and splits that had caused the Donner Party such problems. Also, each group had the right mix of skills for survival.
• Young taught the migrants how to form their wagons into a circle at night. This meant that they kept…