The Mormon Pioneer Trail / Tragedy along the Trace - Chariton, Ia. - Wagon Roads and Trails on Waymarking.com

This stand-up marker is located on the southwest lawn of the Lucas County Courthouse. The left side of the marker is a general description of the Mormon Trail and the right side describes a specific incident along the trail.

Text of the left side:
The Mormon Pioneer Trail

Beginning in February of 1846, the vanguard of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) struggled across southern Iowa on the way to their "New Zion" in the Rocky Mountains.

The trek from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Kanesville (Council Bluffs), Iowa, tested the endurance of humans, animals, and equipment. The frozen landscape of an Iowa February soon turned into a thawing mixture of nearly impassible mud and muck. Their unshakable faith and determination sustained them, however, and thousands of men, women, and children arrived at the Missouri River having completed this first portion of the journey west under extremely difficult conditions.

After wintering in the present day Omaha/Council Bluffs district, the Saints continued across Nebraska and Wyoming to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. Today, a marked 1,624 mile auto tour route closely parallels this historic route.

(map of the trek)
(map of the US with the states that the Saints trekked through highlighted.)
Caption

The Mormon Pioneers struggled across Iowa prairies, traversed the Great Plains of Nebraska, climbed the backbone of the continent at South Pass, Wyoming, and descended the Pacific slope of the Rocky Mountains to the Great Slat Lake Valley of Utah.

Text of the right side:
Tragedy along the Trail

West of the city of Chariton, one of the scenic roads of Lucas County passes down through an area known as Grave Hollow, a declivity between the wooded hills, gradually sloping down to the Whitebreast River. Grave Hollow came by its name by an unfortunate accident.

A family named Gabbut was making the long trek along the Northern Trace of the Mormon Trail in October, 1846. After crossing the Chariton River, Sarah Gabbut tried to get back into her wagon but slipped and fell. Startled, the oxen bolted and the heavy wagon ran over her abdomen. She lingered for an hour and then died. The company carted her body until the end of the days' travel and buried her at their camp in Grave Hollow.

Accidents with wagons and stock were common along the trail. Such events were usually not fatal for pioneer families, but they did cause many unfortunate injuries during the trek west.

(map of the Counties of Iowa with the Mormon trail and with Points of Interest highlighted)
(Map of Iowa with the Counties that had the Mormon Trail go trough highlighted)
Caption:

The arrow indicates your present location and the dots mark the sites of other interpretive panels across the State. For a brochure with more detailed route information, contact the nearest tourist information office.

(picture of accident along the Trail)
Caption:

Although oxen moved very slowly, there was no quick way of stopping them. Many women were injured because their long skirts got caught, dragging them under animals or wagon wheels.

(Journal pages on far right side of marker)
Thomas Bullock October 30, 1848

"... his wife Sarah Gabbut attempting to get back into the Wagon, laid hold of a churn dasher which being cracked, gave way, and she fell against the Oxen, which so startled them, that they started off at a full run. She fell to the ground and the Wheels of the Wagon passed over her loins or kidneys. She exclaimed "Oh dear, I am dying." She lingered until 5 min. to q and breathed her last. We continued over hill and dale until we came to one of the tributaries of the "White Breast"... Laid Sister Gabbut out in her robes, and part prepared her grave."

Harriet Kellog, Recollections
"... passing through a fearful gorge named Grave Hollow deriving its name from a circumstance which illustrates the hazards through which the pioneer was obliged to pass, it being the last resting place of a Mormon woman who was killed in making a descent (incorrect) of a hill."

This project was co-founded and produced by the Iowa Mormon Trails Association.

Road of Trail Name: The Mormon Trail State: Iowa County: Lucas Historical Significance: From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormon_Trail "The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300-mile (2,092 km) route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868. Today the Mormon Trail is a part of the United States National Trails System, as the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. The Mormon Trail extends from Nauvoo, Illinois, which was the principal settlement of the Latter Day Saints from 1839 to 1846, to Salt Lake City, Utah, which was settled by Brigham Young and his followers beginning in 1847. From Council Bluffs, Iowa, to Fort Bridger in Wyoming, the trail follows much the same route as the Oregon Trail and the California Trail; these trails are collectively known as the Emigrant Trail. The Mormon pioneer run began in 1846 when, Young and his followers were driven from Nauvoo, leaving to establish a new home for the church in the Great Basin. That year Young's followers crossed Iowa. Along their way, some were assigned to establish settlements and to plant and harvest crops for later emigrants. During the winter of 1846–47, the emigrants wintered in Iowa, other nearby states, and the unorganized territory that later became Nebraska, with the largest group residing in Winter Quarters, Nebraska. In the spring of 1847, Young led the vanguard company to the Salt Lake Valley, which was then outside the boundaries of the United States and later became Utah. During the first few years, the emigrants were mostly former occupants of Nauvoo who were following Young to Utah. Later, the emigrants increasingly comprised converts from the British Isles and Europe. The trail was used for more than 20 years, until the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869. Among the emigrants were the Mormon handcart pioneers of 1856–1860. Two of the handcart companies, led by James G. Willie and Edward Martin, met disaster on the trail when they departed late and were caught by heavy snowstorms in Wyoming." Years in use: 20 - 1849 - 1868 How you discovered it: Accident mainly - found the marker on the Lucas County Courthouse Lawn. Website Explination: http://www.mormontrails.org/Trails/Summary/trailsum.htm This is a really nice website that goes in depth about the trail Why?: The followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had been persecuted in western Missouri at Far West and at Nauvoo. The decision was made to emigrate west to the valley of the Salt Lake beyond the control of the United States to establish their own colony. Directions: Southwest corner of the Lucas County Courthouse Lawn. Book on Wagon Road or Trial: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
To post a log for this Waymark the poster must have a picture of either themselves, GPSr, or mascot. People in the picture with information about the waymark are preferred. If the waymarker can not be in the picture a picture of their GPSr or mascot will qualify. There are no exceptions to this rule.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.