Heritage Gateways

William Clayton Journals

April 16, 1847

Summary: Names every member of the camp and their responsibilities.

Journal entry: FRIDAY. This day is gloomy, windy and cold. About 8:00 a. m. the camp was called together, and organized. Two Captains of 100' s viz Stephen Markham and A. P. Rockwood were appointed, also five captains of 50' s and 14 Captains of 10' s. There are 143 men and boys on the list of the pioneer company, three women and Lorenzo Young's two children. There are 73 wagons. C. P. Rockwell has gone back to camp with J. C Little, Bishop Whitney, Lyman, Wm. Kimball and J. B. Noble returned from here to Winter Quarters. The following is a list of all the names of this pioneer company.

To wit :

There were 72 wagons, 93 horses, 52 mules, 66 oxen, 19 cows, and 17 dogs, and chickens.

The names of the females in this camp are :

• Harriet Page Young
• Clarissa Decker
• Ellen Sanders

The names of the children are

• Isaac Perry
• Decker Young
• Sabisky L. Young

Making a total of 148 souls who have started to go west of the mountains as pioneers to find a home where the saints can live in peace and enjoy the fruits of their labors, and where we shall not be under the dominion of "gentile government, subject to the wrath of mobs and where the standards of peace can be raised, the Ensign to nations reared and the kingdom of God flourish until truth shall prevail, and the saints enjoy the fulness of the gospel.

The following are the names of the Captains of 50's as appointed at this organization, viz.

• Addison Everett
• Tarlton Lewis
• James Case
• John Pack
• Shadrack Roundy.

The Captains of 10's are as follows:

[For the names of the guard and the gun division see under date of April 30th.]

Stephen Markham was appointed the Captain of the Guard and ordered to select out of the camp, fifty men for guard, such as he had confidence in who are to be considered as a standing guard, to attend to the wagons each night, twelve of them to stand at a time, and to have two sets each night, that is, 12 each watch to stand half the night. In case, where the horses and cattle are tied some distance from the wagons at night, an extra guard is to be selected from the balance of the company or camp, the standing guard not being permitted to leave the immediate neighborhood of the wagons.

After the organization was over, I wrote a letter to Diantha, and put it into the hands of Bishop Whitney, together with the one I received yesterday from father and I. McEwan, also the one from Ellen to James.

Up to 12:00 a. m. I had no place to put my trunk and clothing, and did not know what to do with them. However, soon after Heber told me to put them in Appleton M. Harmon's wagon, which was done. At 2:00 p m. the camp started out to proceed on the journey. I bid farewell to Bishop Whitney and his brother Lyman and son Joshua, who all returned from this place, also Wm. H. Kimball and Joseph B. Noble. We traveled about three miles and encamped in a line about six hundred yards from timber, where there is plenty of cottonwood and some rushes.

This night I slept with Philo Johnson, but having only one quilt, and the night severely cold, I suffered much, and took a very bad cold. The country in the neighborhood of the Elk Horn is one of the most beautiful I ever saw. The bluffs on the east are nicely rolling and beatifully lined with timber, and some very nice cedar groves. From these bluffs is a little above the ferry you can see the meanderings of the Platte River, and the beautiful level bottom on the north of it, about fifteen miles wide for many miles up the river. The Horn is a beautiful river about 150 feet wide and about four feet deep.

Source: William Clayton's Journal

Published by the Clayton Family Association, and edited by Lawrence Clayton. To the best of our research, this contents of this book are no longer under copyright.