Story of the Week 6-24-2008: Making their way west

Taking only such things as could be taken aboard a steamboat Thomas and Jane Silcock and their two children also turned west. They took a steamer up the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers to St. Joseph, Missouri. They expected to continue to Fort Leavenworth, but while in St. Joseph they learned of the Mexican War. They heard that the government intended to discontinue their improvements at Fort Leavenworth, consequently it would have been useless for them to continue their journey there in search of work. What could they do? Where could they go to obtain employment in order to live and also to get an outfit to cross the plains? This was the great object in view, always. After counseling together Jane proposed to go back down the river to St. Louis. Worn and weary from useless wandering and with a sick child in her arms that had to be nursed on a pillow, they arrived in St. Louis. Here they found food and shelter, but before Thomas could find work, the baby, Elizabeth Jane, died August 17, 1845. Alone in a strange city without friends or work and little money left, they were indeed in sore straights. But they had friends raised up to minister to their wants in time of need. Jane soon found friends who gave her work and in that way she was able to earn enough money to supply their needs until Thomas could get work.

In the fall of 1846 (Oct 20th) they received a letter from a friend in Winter Quarters, informing them of the death of Jane’s mother, Barbara Heath. She and her three sons were in Bishop Hunter’s Company and were on their way west. This was indeed a sad blow and Jane felt that she could not be reconciled to this great loss.

On Sept. 6, 1847, the second daughter was born, Barbara Ann. During their sojourn in St. Louis they had to live on high land away from the river or Jane had chills and fever. Jane was never in good health and could not do hard work. She was a good needle woman, however; and could always get sewing to do and in that way made friends and earned means to help toward an outfit to cross the plains.

At last Thomas went to work at the boat yard and served his time to learn to be a ship carpenter and then he followed the river for some time between St. Louis and New Orleans. Jane would be alone with her children for weeks at a time. All this time she would fill in with her sewing.

On April 10, 1849, their little daughter, Barbara Ann, died very suddenly. She was taken sick at 2 p.m. and an hour later she was laid out a corpse. This was another blow and one from which they thought they could not recover.

The summer 1840 was destined long to be remembered, for during that summer an epidemic of cholera broke out in St. Louis and its surrounding area. There was sickness and on every hand. During this trying time Thomas was out of work. He had been appointed to preside over the six wards in St. Louis and he spent his time among the sick and dying and when the plague was stayed, they found they had need to be thankful indeed and they took courage once more.

After the plague had passed, grandfather (Thomas) got work at a sugar refinery where he worked until the following spring. On December 4, 1849 they had another son, Thomas, born. A few days later Jane took a chill and milk leg set in and she was sick all winter of 1849 and 1850. Bishop Hunter, in passing through St. Louis, called to see them and said to grandfather (Thomas), “you must get her (speaking of Jane) out of this or you will have to leave her here. Get her to the mountains where she can bathe in the Salt Lake and breathe that mountain air.”

About May 1, 1850, they left St. Louis after a sojourn there of nearly four years. They were going to join the saints in the Rocky Mountains. When they started on this journey with their other things they had a small wooden box which contained a zinc coffin containing the remains of their second daughter, Barbara Ann, who had died so suddenly more than a year before. They had buried her out in the country where they had friends living. When the time came for them to resume their journey they took the body along, in order to bury it with her grandmother, Barbara Heath, in Winter Quarters. When they reached Winter Quarters they were unable to find the grandmother’s grave, so this dear child after being carried so far was laid to rest in the Kanesville Cemetery. The reason for them carrying the body with them was that when their first little daughter, Elizabeth Jane, died soon after they reached St. Louis they buried her St. Louis cemetery and measured and marked the spot as best they could, so later they could mark it with a head stone as soon as they could earn the means to do it. To their dismay when they went back to mark the grave they were unable to find it. It was never marked with a stone and that is the reason why they carried the other little body with them when they left St. Louis.

When they were crossing the Platte River the wagon started to sink and they had to unload some of the heavier things in the river. Among them were Thomas’s valuable tools and a fur coat of mole skin. In due time they arrived at Council Bluffs. There had been a very hard winter, dry and cold, and a very late spring and the companies were late starting out for fear of finding no feed for the stock. After waiting for some weeks the drought continued. A special meeting was called by Apostle Orson Hyde who was presiding there at the time. The meeting was called for Sunday afternoon for the saints to exercise faith for rain to be sent, that the grass might grow and the saints might take up their journey. The people assembled and after meeting was called to order, Elder Hyde explained the object of the meeting and told the people to pray with him. Then he led in prayer and it was a prayer long to be remembered by those who took part. After the prayer the services were continued for some time. At the close of the meeting clouds were gathering and before all the people reached their wagons and tents the rain drenched the parched ground. July 4, 1850, Edward Hunter’s Company left for the west and Salt Lake. In the company traveled the Silcock family, as well as a widow and her son. The widow acted as a helper and cook, because when Jane left St. Louis she was unable to walk but very little. Travel improved Jane’s health so that by the time they arrived at the end of their journey she had recovered her health. Abut three days journey from Salt Lake, Jane’s eldest brother, Henry Heath, met the company. He had brought with him a fresh yoke of oxen and by this help they arrived in Salt Lake October 4, 1850, some days ahead of the company.

Taken from a biographical sketch by Martha Silcock Pixton.
Italics indicate text added by Marie Arnold.

Next Week: Settling in Salt Lake & Tooele