My way opening up for me to emigrate, I embraced that opportunity and left the Liverpool Docks Sept 7th 1848 [p.42] on board the sailing ship Erin's Queen and after a voyage of seven weeks experiencing some calms & not much storms, we arrived in New Orleans October 28th and remained there until the following June 1849 during which time that dreadful scourge cholera carried away many victims. After leaving New Orleans we made our way to St. Louis, Missouri and arrived there the day after the great fire which burned up 23 steamboats and about one third of the business part of the city. The cholera had been raging before the fire broke out, but when the excitement caused by the conflagration was somewhat abated, the cholera broke out again with redoubled fury, until its victims numbered over 1000 in a week; all labor seemed suspended except coffin making and grave digging. My wife suffered much during the summer with intermittent fever. During the raging of the cholera many of our folks [p.43] the Latter Day Saints were called to lay their bodies down. I was many times called onto assist in waiting on the sick and assisted in preparing for burial the bodies of those who were called away, but escaped myself from any attack of that fearful scourge. Soon after arriving in St. Louis I joined Captain Ballo's Brass Band and continued with it until it was disorganized, (over 20 years), the trombone being my favorite instrument. I also took part in the Orchestra in the St. Louis Theater for the period of five years commencing with its opening. In the Spring of 1850 May 8th in company with Captain Ballo & Band I left St. Louis on board the steamer "Pocahontas" for Council Bluffs, Iowa, intending to cross the plains that season. We arrived at Council Bluffs on the 20th, being 12 days on the way. We expected to make an early start on our western journey, but we waited a long time for our cattle. The St. Louis Branch of the church having engaged two men [p.44] to go up through Missouri & Iowa and purchase all the cattle we needed. When the cattle did arrive they were about double the price we were told they would be. This caused quite a disappointment and a great deal of hard feelings owing to these and other obstacles. Quite a number were unable to cross the plains that year, myself with the rest. Seeing that I could not get to the Valley, I joined with a Brother (G. Cannon) and purchased a farm of Brother McKenzie paying in clothes, watches, pictures &c, but very little money. The claim was about 1
00 acres including about 12 acres cleared the balance being covered with timber. We worked hard, dug a well & raised about 12 wagon loads of squash & pumpkin, some melons, cucumbers, corn &c and big lot of mosquitoes & living mostly on corn dodger. Seeing no prospect of doing any thing through the winter I made up my mind to go down to St. Louis [p.45] again and was preparing to leave when Brother Joseph Robinson & wife came to my place and prevailed on my wife to stay with them through the winter. She had been sick for some time with chills & fever and after I left she took what was called Black Canker & consumption. I found employment in St. Louis in two weeks after my arrival at the Union Printing Office - during the winter I sent several letters to my wife but received no answer. I heard that high water & bad roads (no railroads that time) was the cause the mail was not carried. I learned after, my wife felt very bad because she got no letters from me. I was anxious to send some money to her but was afraid to do so until I heard from her. After a while Apostle Orson Hyde came down to St. Louis and by him I sent some money to my wife but it came too late to do her any good. But it came just in time to pay the funeral expenses for she had died just before Elder Hyde [p.46] returned. She died January 5th 1851 & was buried in Kanesville. Brother Robinson with whom she was staying sent me a letter giving me particulars of her sickness & death but I did not receive it for over a month after her death. It was a sad blow to me, for I was preparing to have her come down to St. Louis again as soon as the river was open. I realized I had lost a faithful partner and a loving wife. She was a faithful latter-day Saint - a little while after her death she appeared to me in the night and asked me with a frown on her face why I did not write to her. I told her I had, but had not received any answer. I also showed her my mem book giving an account of all I had done, many earned and spent & what
I was doing to prepare for her coming. She appeared to be satisfied and with a smile and a kiss she left me. I kept my place of work and thought it best to stay in St. Louis another year. After a few months [p.47] I had the misfortune to fall in company with a young woman name Margrett Jones or Wilkinson with whom I had a very slight acquaintance in Manchester by report. She talked as though she was willing to go to the Valley &c. After a while we were married and in a short time my eyes were opened. I happened to hear her say to a visitor that she would not go to the Valley herself and would not be one cent in my way toward going. My mind was made up at once. I took care of my money giving her ample to keep house with. We did not get along very well together knowing that she was trying to hinder me from going to Utah & I was very sorry I had ever anything to do with her. But I was soon to be relieved of her, for she met with a lady acquaintance who wanted to go back to England and they two agreed to go back together [LAST LINE OF THE PAGE CUT OFF DURING MICROFILMING] [p.48] could induce me to follow but my face was set westward and as soon as the spring opened I set out for the Valley. The following year after I arrived in the Valley she wrote a letter to President B. [Brigham] Young asking him to have me send her some money. I told him the circumstances and he told me to go to and take another wife which I did. She returned to St. Louis - Married John Holdin and died there. But to go back a little in the Spring of 1852 in company with a number of others I left St. Louis on the 4th of May 1852 and on board the "Saranac" took passage for Council Bluffs and after a pleasant voyage of seven days we arrived at Council Point and as we left the boat many of us had to sleep on the ground without tents. The heaviest dew fell that night that I ever remember sleeping under. The next day moved up to Kanesville where we had to wait for about one month before our company was organized [p.49] came up by land buying their teams on the way having bought their wagons & outfit before they started. I joined teams with a Brother Peck. I was pretty well fixed up for a single man having nearly as much for myself in some things as Brother Peck had for his family, but we all shared alike. Their's was a good family to travel with & we got along first rate together. We did not cross the Missouri River until the 14th of June, and then there were only four companies ahead of us. . . . [p.50]
. . . The last night out we slept on the top of the big mountain. After breakfast on the morning of the 5th of Sept. (Sunday) [p.51] we set out for the city where we arrived a little before noon. . . [p.52]
BIB: Sansom, Charles. Autobiography and journals (Ms 8372), pp. 42-52. [Acc. #33914] (CHL)
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