Admin Table of Contents
What was the effect of the Mormons moving west?
The Mormons, as they were commonly known, had moved west to escape religious discrimination. After the murder of founder and prophet Joseph Smith, they knew they had to leave their old settlement in Illinois. Many Mormons died in the cold, harsh winter months as they made their way over the Rocky Mountains to Utah.
What is the significance of the Mormon Trail?
Mormon Trail, in U.S. history, the route taken by Mormons from Nauvoo, Illinois, to the Great Salt Lake in what would become the state of Utah. After Mormon leader Joseph Smith was murdered by a mob in 1844, church members realized that their settlement at Nauvoo was becoming increasingly untenable.
When did the Mormon Trail move west?
1846
For over 20 years, beginning in 1846, Mormon pioneers migrated through the mid-section of North America in hopes of finding a new home in the west. This is part of their story.
Was the Mormon Trail successful?
The whole Mormon trail movement that spanned 20 years was a really successful endeavor.” Bashore and Tolley analyzed 56,000 records of pioneers who traveled to Salt Lake City between 1847 and 1868. Handcart pioneers died at a rate of 4.7 percent, compared to a 3.5 percent mortality rate for pioneers with wagons.
What were the dangers of the Mormon Trail?
The journey along the Mormon Trail (as it later became known) was treacherous, and many pioneers were met with disaster. Rattlesnakes, blizzards, confrontations with Native Americans, and starvation were just a few of the challenges they faced.
Where did the Mormon Trail End in Utah?
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 route was designated a national historic trail by the U.S. National Park Service. Mormons on their trek from Illinois to Utah, 1846.
When did the Mormons come to the west?
Migration of the Mormons to the west continued in organized companies along the Mormon Trail until 1869. Afterward, they came by railroad, continuing the resettlement until 1890. Upon arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, the Mormons publicly announced the practice of plural marriage, which Smith had instituted in secret some years earlier.
Why did the Mormon Trail become a legend?
Perhaps this was caused largely by the state of feeling that existed between them and the general public.
Where did the Mormons cross the Missouri River?
The few Mormons that crossed the Missouri River at Brownville and Nebraska City followed the trails that other travelers had established over the prairies, the lower one joining the Oregon Trail, on the Big Sandy River, in Jefferson County, and the Nebraska City Trail joining it a few miles east of Fort Kearny.