General Information

1846: Leaving Nauvoo

Mormon settlers began their trek westward more than a year before they left from Winter Quarters.

Camps West of the Missouri

Saints were anxious to leave Missouri. They created settlements to the west.

Council Bluffs General Area

Mormons stopped at Council Bluffs and Winter Quarters in 1846 and 1847 before beginnig the trek across the plains to the Rocky Mountains.

Emmigration to Utah, 1847-1868, Statistics

Emigration statistics from 1847-1860, including number of wagon companies, PEF companies, arrival date, and number of persons (estimate).

Garden Grove Established

Mormon pioneers built started many settlements.

Genoa, NE, Supply Station and Ferry Boat, Part 2 (Dec 1858-Apr 1859)

Joel Hills Johnson presided over this Mormon Way Station for over a year. This part deals with the construction of a ferry boat and problems associated with apostate members.

Genoa, NE, Supply Station and Ferry Boat, Part 3 (1 Apr 1859-20 Jul 1859)

Joel Hills Johnson presided over the Mormon Way Station of Genoa, Nebraska, for a year. He had trouble with health and apostate Mormons. A ferry boat was built and ferried numerous emigrants in 1859 (Mormon and non-Mormon), but expenses exceeded revenue. (See other references to Joel Hills Johnson, Genoa, Parts 1 and 2, and his treks of 1857 and 1860).

Genoa, NE, Supply Station, Part 1 (Jun-Dec, 1858)

Joel Hills Johnson presided over this Mormon Way Station for over a year. His journal describes the problems associated with its establishment.

Golden Pass Road (Echo Canyon to SLC)

Parley P. Pratt opened a toll road in 1849 from Echo Canyon to the valley that by-passed the difficult trail over Big and Little Mountains. It was dubbed "The Golden Pass Road," though it wasn't very golden and not much of a road. It was used most by California-bound gold seekers looking for any short-cut or advantage over other travellers

Mount Pisgah Established

Mormon pioneers sometimes were called to settl along the trail to help pioneers who would come along the trail later.

Perpetual Emigration Fund (D.U.P. material)

The Perpetual Emigration Fund operated from 1855 to 1887 and became the biggest single benefactor of Mormon immigration.

Perpetual Emigration Fund (Stan Kimball)

Mormon pioneers made loans to each other to finance the trip to Utah.

Pioneer Fort (Salt Lake City), 1848, How Life Was

Thomas Bullock described life in the Salt Lake Valley in a letter to Levi Richards.

Significant Events in and around the Salt Lake Valley (1776-1846)

Significant persons and events in and around the Salt Lake Valley prior to the arrival of the Mormons.

Suggestions for Further Research on the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail

Many resources have been published that deal with the Mormon Trail and its related stories.

Western Migration Highlights (1800 - 1869)

A few important dates and events in the expansion of the US from the Mississippi River to the Pacific coast

Utah Collections Multimedia Encyclopedia

Searchable database for video, audio, photographs, maps, charts, and text about Utah and the Intermountain West.

Springville Art Museum

The Springville Museum of Arts in Springville, Utah, is Utah's oldest museum for the visual arts, housing over 1,500 works of art.

Immigration to Utah

Descripton of the ethnic backgrounds of Utah immigrants.

BYU Museum of Art

Brigham Young University''s Museum of Art houses several pieces of artwork dealing with the Mormon Pioneer Trail.

Utah Museum of Fine Arts - University of Utah

The Museum's mission is to collect, exhibit, interpret, sesearch, and preserve a general collection of art objects selected for quality.

This is the Place Heritage Park

This park includes the 'This is the Place Monument' and 'Pioneer Home and Garden: Old Deseret Living History Museum.'

Smithsonian: 150 Years of Adventure (1846-1878)

Exhibit: Bright Lamps, Bold Adventure: 1846-1878 discusses what was happening in the United States during the time the Mormon Pioneer Trail was in use.

Historical Maps of the United States

Historical maps of United States at the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection located at the University of Texas at Austin.

New Perspectives on the West

Companion web site to the PBS series "The West."

A Pioneer Journal: The Trek West

KSL TV (NBC affiliate) has a reporter on the trek who is filing daily reports.

Oregon California Trails Association - Mormon Trail

Links to several outstanding articles about the Mormon Pioneer Trail including transportation, food, geography (elevation changes etc.), reasoning behind route choices, wagon construction, etc.

National Archives and Records Administration

Photographs of the American West, 1861-1912. A breathtaking collection from the National Archives.

The Illustrating Traveler

Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library has several beautiful images of the old west.

Marriott Library - University of Utah Special Collections

A photography archive dealing with Utah history.

Trail of Hope: The Story of the Mormon Trail

PBS video produced by Lee Groberg.

The Gathering

The Gathering: Mormon Pioneers on the Trail to Zion © Maurine Jensen Proctor and Scot Facer Proctor. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Copies of photos and text may not be made without the express permission in writing by Deseret Book Company.

Ticks and the Diseases they Cause

Scientific discussion on what tick bites do to people.

Trail of Dreams

Original musical about the trek.

Site not affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.