Overland to Zion

Overland to Zion. . The emigration of Mormon (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-dat Saints) converts to Utah is a fascinating chapter of the overall American westering experience of the 19th century. In search of religious freedom and an end to persecution, Mormon groups traveled to Utah. The Mormon wagon trains were highly organized compared to other west-bound emigrants. , Led by Brigham Young, the first group of Latter-day Saints (160 people, livestock, and 77 wagons_ arrived on the east bank of the Green River on Wednesday, June 30, 1847. , William Clayton described the scene. , "... At 11:30 we arrived on the banks of the Green River, having traveled eight miles and formed our encampment in a line under the shade of the cottonwood timber. This river is about sixteen to eighteen rods wide (297 feet) and altogether too deep to be forded. The banks are well lined with cottonwood but none large enough to make a canoe..." , Amidst bad weather and hordes of mosquitoes, the men worked three days chopping down trees, building two rafts, and floating the wagons across the Green. By Saturday, July 3rd the party was across the river. Three weeks later on July 24th, Brigham Young arrived in the Valley of the Great Salt Lake and the pioneers began a new life. , By 1869, when the completion of the Union Pacific Railroad ushered in a new era of transportation, about 68,000 Mormons had traveled the overland route to Utah.