Mormon handcart pioneers were participants in the migration of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Salt Lake City, Utah. The Mormon handcart movement began in 1856 and continued until 1860. Fewer than 10 percent of the 1846–68 Mormon emigrants used handcarts.
About Mormon handcart pioneers in brief
Mormon handcart pioneers were participants in the migration of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Salt Lake City, Utah. The Mormon handcart movement began in 1856 and continued until 1860. Motivated to join their fellow church members in Utah, nearly 3,000 Mormon pioneers from England, Wales, Scotland and Scandinavia made the journey from Iowa or Nebraska to Utah in ten handcart companies. The trek was disastrous for two of the companies, which started their journey dangerously late and were caught by heavy snow and severe temperatures in central Wyoming. Despite a dramatic rescue effort, more than 210 of the 980 pioneers in these two companies died along the way. Although fewer than 10 percent of the 1846–68 Mormon emigrants used handcarts, they have become an important symbol in LDS culture, representing the faithfulness and sacrifice of the pioneer generation. They continue to be recognized and honored in events such as Pioneer Day, church pageants, and similar commemorations. The handcarts resembled a large wheelbarrow, with two wheels five feet in diameter and a single axle four and a half feet wide, and weighing 60 pounds. Running along each side of the bed were seven-foot pull shafts ending with a three- foot crossbar allowed the carts to be pushed or pulled. Carts were made entirely of wood ; in later years a stronger design was substituted, which included metal elements which included a pole, pole, and pole.
Five people were assigned to each handcart, with each individual limited to 17 pounds of clothing and supplies. Each round, round handcart housed 20 occupants and was supported by a captain. Five tents were supervised by the captain, with a pole at the center of the tent, and a pole in the middle of the camp. The first year of the migration was 1856, when 2,012 European emigrants, compared with 1,161 the year before, travelled by ship to New York or Boston, then by railroad to Iowa City, Iowa, the western terminus of the rail line, where they would be outfitted with handcarts and other supplies. From 1849 to 1855, about 16,000 European Latter- day Saints traveled to the United States by ship, through the eastern states by rail, and to Utah by ox and wagon. Although most of these emigrants paid their own expenses, the church established the Perpetual Emigration Fund to provide financial assistance for poor emigrants to trek west, which they would repay as they were able. The response was overwhelming – The church established a fund to support the emigrants in 1855. The church began encouraging its converts in the British Isles and elsewhere in Europe to emigrate to Utah. In 1858, the first Mormon pioneers reached Utah in 1847, and in 1859, the last emigrants arrived in the state. The Latter Day Saints were first organized in 1830, and the church moved from Ohio to Missouri, then to Illinois.
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This page is based on the article Mormon handcart pioneers published in Wikipedia (as of Dec. 04, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
