Q&A with Don Smith and Mark Austin, authors of Bring Them to Zion: The 1856 Handcart Emigration Organization, Leadership, and Issues August 04 2025

Greg Kofford Books recently chatted with Don H Smith and Mark C. Austin, creators of Bring Them to Zion: The 1856 Handcart Emigration Organization, Leadership, and Issues, about their experiences in writing and editing the book.

Greg Kofford Books: What initially drew each of you to dedicate years of your lives to researching and compiling information about the 1856 handcart companies?

Don Smith: Family history drew me to the 1856 handcart emigration because my children are descendants of James G. Willie, the captain of the fourth company. Three of my ancestors were members of the Walker Wagon Train that carried extra luggage belonging to members of the Willie company who had money to pay for the transport of their extra luggage that could not be carried on the carts.   

Mark Austin: I knew that if I didn’t volunteer to help Don, the publishing of the results of his many years of research and experimentation would be lost; it would never be published in our lifetimes. I could not stand to let that happen; all of the work that had been done would just disappear. Don was always driven to check out “one more thing” or to try “another handcart experiment.” He was not going to stop and prepare his work for publication. He was not getting any younger. I have been helping him prepare the book for publication for five years.

GKB: Your preface mentions the challenging editing process to “whittle down a mountain of information to a single book.” What was the most difficult aspect of this process?

Mark: I volunteered to help Don prepare his manuscript to be published. He consented. Little did I know what my volunteering would lead to. Here was a mountain of information that needed to be whittled down to form a single book. That process was at times particularly painful, especially for Don, cutting out parts that he had a close attachment to and had spent so much time gathering. After making painful cuts, there were immediately more cuts to be made. When the publisher recommended making even more cuts, I was hesitant but eventually agreed that they should be made. There were many details related to the preparation and execution of the trek that ended up only being summarized in the book. There was such a large amount of detailed information of people, events, and construction experiments that was deleted; that was painful. One deletion was a chapter containing the stories of those who chose to stop in Florence and what happened to them. Fortunately, much of the information that was cut from the original manuscript was able to be salvaged and formed the basis of a separate self-published book (We Are Going to Zion: Pioneers of the Willie Handcart Company). That book contains stories of the members of the Willie Handcart Company. Those stories cover the time before, during, and after the pioneer trek.

GKB: The book aims to clarify “erroneous misconceptions” and “questionable claims” surrounding the 1856 handcart emigration. Could you elaborate on one or two of the most significant misunderstandings you sought to correct, particularly concerning the organization and leadership of the companies?

Don: One gets the impression from printed accounts that the main leaders of the fourth handcart company were ignorant, inexperienced, uncaring individuals otherwise they would have stayed in Florence during the winter. Millen Atwood had crossed the planes four times and Willie two times. Willie had encountered winter weather on September sixth 1847 in the same area where many of his company died in October 1856. Both men had spent the winter in the Florence area during 1846 and were aware of the many people who were buried on the hill above (Winter Quarters cemetery), during that stay. They did not want a repeat performance, knowing they had not the shelter, clothing, or food supplies needed for such a stay.  

Mark: When something goes wrong, people are quick to assign blame. Sometimes circumstances align that lead to unfortunate results, where no one is at fault. I believe that is the case with the suffering of Willie and Martin handcart companies and their associated leadership. If a few things had been different, the end result would have been entirely different—contracting all of the handcarts to be made using dry hubs, not losing 30 oxen in a thunderstorm, better weather, reliable rail service. The leaders were doing their best—they didn’t have all the best answers. There were many causes of delay, some that they had no control over; others it was a learning process—not negligence.

Who were these men, and what were their strengths and devotion? They were honest, intelligent, experienced, trusted, dedicated leaders at every level. They were faithfully committed to follow their leaders and dedicated to the gathering to Zion process. They deserve praise not criticism. When you examine the handcart emigration operation, the need was clear for unity and dedication to the objective of the gathering of Israel. 

• Daniel Spencer had considerable experience—mayor of Nauvoo, stake president in Salt Lake City (where he also handled civil disputes), counselor in the European Mission Presidency. He effectively used delegation.
• Franklin D. Richards was responsible for organizing and executing the emigration in Europe, gathering of funds for the PEF [Perpetual Emigrating Fund], second time being the European Mission President.
• James G. Willie—respected by those in his charge, demonstrated by testimonials given to him by the Saints on the Thornton and by the ship’s captain and doctor.
• John Taylor—church leader of the eastern part of the United States. His was a voice of reason and practicality. He stated, “Men differ in their judgment in many things, and he that does the best that’s in his power, does well; angels can do no more.”

There were many other dedicated agents at every station, helping the PEF Saints and also the “regular and through” emigrants. They were not in the game for monetary gain.

Why were the tents not ready when the pioneers arrived at the Iowa City camp. In a letter from the Liverpool office to Daniel Spencer, the outfitter at Iowa City Camp, Franklin D. Richards said, “I was unable for the reason named in my last to give Brother Willie a plan to make the tents by. He will therefore merely cut the material into lengths on the passage and deliver it to you in that manner.”

An important point often missed in studies on the handcart emigration is that Brigham Young requested tradesmen from among the emigrants’ ranks to make the carts as a cost-saving measure. Many authors write about the problems of using green wood in the construction of the handcart because they were in such a hurry. They fail to state where the green wood was used. Green wood was used to make some of the hubs of the handcarts. Green wood was not used because of haste, but because Brigham Young instructed them to use green wood for the hubs: “Drive the spokes in bracing while the hub is green so it will tighten while seasoning, the same as chairs are made—line the inside of the hub with good sole leather for boxes.”

Undoubtedly, Young did not anticipate that the green hubs would tighten on the axle as they cured and continue to crack as they did so, thus defeating the very tightening of the spokes which he sought. The shrinking hubs caused the wheels to move away from the shoulder of the axle. This created open passageways for the entry of dirt. When the dirt was added to the grease, the mixture appeared to mimic a valve-grinding compound and facilitated increased wear. The shrinking hubs also drew the spokes away from their place in the rim causing the wheels to become loose and weak.

Some claim that the camp leaders were unaware that two more ships were coming with pioneers, to be in the later handcart companies. They claimed that their unexpected arrival required the camp workers to hurriedly build more handcarts using green wood and arrange for supplies and cattle for those two handcart companies. That was not true; they were expected. Everyone in Salt Lake City who had access to the Deseret News knew when and how many were coming in the last two ships—Thornton and Horizon. Daniel Spencer wrote a letter on June 19, 1856, to Brigham Young, detailing the number of emigrants coming across the Atlantic (published in the Deseret News, August 6, 1856).

GKB: Mark, how did your personal experiences, such as serving as a missionary at the Mormon Handcart Historic Sites or your great-great-grandfather being James G. Willie, influence your approach to researching and presenting this historical narrative?

Mark: While serving at the Handcart Historic Sites in Wyoming, I became very familiar with the area of Sixth Crossing, Rocky Ridge, and Rock Creek Hollow. I realized there were numerous conflicting stories of the handcart struggles, both what happened and where it happened. The details of some of the stories did not make logical sense to me, including where events took place. I was motivated to learn what the facts were, and I wanted to help clarify them. Working on this book allowed me to gain additional knowledge about who did what and what the result was, and helped me to gain a clearer view of what really took place.

GKB: The book delves into the factors causing delays for the handcart companies. Beyond the well-known challenges, what lesser-understood issues, such as specific economic conditions, cartels, or unforeseen weather phenomena, significantly impacted the emigration’s timeline?

Don: In the published accounts, little mention is made of many important details that faced the leaders of the 1856 handcart companies. The instructions for the use of handcarts in the 1856 emigration plan were late arriving at church headquarters in Europe. This did not allow the European leaders with sufficient time to overcome the challenges that were needed to carry out the project in a timely period. Because of the emigration debts of the previous year, little or no money was sent from Utah to pay for the 1856 emigration, and the shortened time frame made it difficult to raise the needed funds locally as needed. The ships required to bring veterans home at the close of the Crimean War reduced the availability of ships for emigration purposes. Severe weather caused both the delay of ocean shipping and the loss of vessels both on the ocean and on American rivers which made planning difficult. The loss of river boats and the heavy demand for transport caused the shippers to form cartels and rase prices. 

Mark: The late arrival of the letter to Mission Office in England, informing them of the handcart system, delayed the early efforts of informing potential candidates of the new system and requirements, affected the selection of emigrants, and hindered the selecting and contracting of sailing ships.

Availability of money was a major issue. There was a lot of pressure to reduce expenses. Because of that, the Saints were expected to build/assemble many of the handcarts at the Iowa City Camp. They ended up economizing by assembling about half of the carts (200) and building some of the parts; the time required for that major work contributed significantly to the delays; it took significant time that was not available. There was competition with other wagon trains for animals and supplies which affected their costs and availability. Severe weather also affected the supply, cost, and delivery of the animals. These factors delayed their readiness to begin the trek.

Disruption in new, unreliable railroad service delayed timely arrival of supplies and equipment and slowed personnel travel required to conduct business transactions. The new route with an additional outfitter site, selecting a new appropriate campsite and building necessary facilities, a new method of trekking, and new suppliers all contributed to delays

The Willie Company lost 30 oxen during a thunderstorm where stampeding buffaloes took them away. Those oxen were needed to pull the supply wagons. A few days were lost looking for the oxen. They ended up using other weaker beef cattle and milk cows to pull the supply wagons which resulted in slower travel. The total effect of losing the oxen may have been a loss of about two weeks; otherwise, they may have been able to reach Ft. Bridger by the time they were rescued.

GKB: You highlight Brigham Young’s initial handcart design and later adjustments. What were the key flaws in the original design that became apparent during the 1856 emigration, and how were these addressed in subsequent plans?

Mark: The first year was considered to be an experiment with the handcarts, as to what would work best. The major design flaw turned out to be using green wood to make the hubs. As the hubs dried, they caused critical problems: binding of the hub and axle spindle (making lubricants ineffective), pulling the wheel away from the axle shoulder (allowing dirt to enter between the hub and spindle which allowed grinding away of the axle spindle), pulling the spokes away from the rims (making the wheel loose and weak). All of the handcarts did not have the same problem as the handcarts made with hubs of green wood, in particular, the ones built in St. Louis most likely were made with seasoned wood. The following years, the instruction was to make the hubs with seasoned wood. The hubs were to have cast iron sleeves and the axles were to have iron or steel tapered thimbles. These changes eliminated the 1856 problems. In 1856, Brigham Young instructed the Saints to build their own handcarts. The following years, the construction of the handcarts were contracted out. In future years, the very aged and infirm were transported in wagons of a separate train.

GKB: The journey from Liverpool to Salt Lake City involved multiple stages and various Church agents. Can you describe the logistical challenges faced by European Church leaders in gathering and preparing emigrants from diverse regions like the British Isles and Scandinavia for this complex undertaking?

Don: The late arrival in Europe of the handcart plan and its numerous unknowns caused many of the selected Saints to decline the emigration which then forced the leaders to find replacements on short notice This problem caused spending extra time in the mission office and in some cases slowed down the process. The replacements who were found had still shorter time available to get ready. Those who were selected and accepted had to end their employment and sell their homes and belongings; at that point there was no turning back. A new Scandinavian mission president who was unfamiliar with emigration was thrown into the mix. To make matters worse he was not familiar with the language. Many of the emigrants were illiterate which meant all instructions had to be made in person. Some of the emigrants had to be accompanied to their departure points by their leaders.

Mark: The contents of the handcart assignment letter were first presented to the British Saints in the December 22, 1855, edition of the Millennial Star with requirements for the 1856 emigration. After its publication, the European Church leaders had twelve weeks to plan for this new mode of emigration, to meet the stated frontier departure date. Ship contracts had to be made for shipping the emigrants with a specified number of people. There was only a short time available to let emigrants know of their selection and of sailing times. The amount of money the European Mission leaders could raise determined how many emigrants could participate. As part of their instructions, leaders were requested to send forward some of the poorest European Saints who had been in the Church for fifteen years or longer but had been unable to emigrate earlier. These impoverished Saints could provide little to help finance their own passage. Raising funds for the Perpetual Emigrating Fund was dependent on the leaders in England

Local leadership (mission presidents; conference leaders; and branch leaders, who were generally missionaries) coordinated with the Mission leadership in Liverpool via telegraph and made lists of the Saints who had been selected to emigrate. Information was passed to local leaders to keep proposed emigrates apprised of their status, the requirements and needed preparations pertaining to emigration, and the timing of sailing. An emigration circular detailed the steps to be taken by the English emigrants in preparation for their journey. Local leaders then passed information to leaders in Liverpool regarding the circumstances of the proposed emigrants, including their financial situation and readiness, and provided letters of recommendation for the emigrants, stating that they were members of good standing. A short time before  sailing, sometimes just a week, the proposed emigrants received notice that they were expected to report to Liverpool. Local leaders kept watch over the emigrants’ preparations for departure, including the selling of their possessions (homes, furniture, and other items) to help fund their journey to Zion, and they would coordinate a collection of money to help fund the emigrants’ travel expenses. In addition, these leaders would also often shepherd the emigrants for some part of their travels to Liverpool. 

Extra attention was given to the Scandinavian Saints. By February 16, 1856, leaders in Denmark were making lists of Saints who intended to emigrate. On April 11, a telegram was sent to Hector C. Haight (the new Scandinavian Mission president), informing him that the Thornton had, that day, been engaged and was scheduled to sail on the second or third of May for New York. That same day, an emigration circular was also sent from the Liverpool office to President Haight. The circular detailed the steps to be taken by the English emigrants in preparation for their journey; it may not have been completely applicable for the Scandinavians.

Apostle Richards gave Haight instructions regarding the route of travel and timing to arrive at Liverpool and requested that he telegraph the Liverpool office immediately after the passengers left Copenhagen and update the Liverpool office during the journey. He was also requested to send a list of all the emigrants, stating their names, ages, occupations, sex, and nationalities, and to immediately notify the Liverpool office if any changes in the list should occur. Upon receiving the information from the Liverpool office, Haight sent letters to local leaders informing them that the emigrants must arrive in Copenhagen by April 20. Finally, Haight went to the pier on April 23 to see the Saints off on a steamer. When the Liverpool office was notified that the Scandinavian Saints were on their way, the British government’s emigration office was immediately informed of the pending arrival of these emigrants and of their intention to transport them to Liverpool en route for the United States, thus avoiding import duties. Two elders of the Liverpool office staff met the Scandinavian Saints as they arrived by ship and escorted them to where lodging arrangements had been made until the time for boarding the Thornton.

GKB: The narratives include both positive and negative contemporary accounts from emigrants. How did you balance these differing perspectives to present a comprehensive and nuanced view of the handcart experience?

Don: In my research I found memory accounts written by members of the Willie and other companies that cover the same event but give different versions of the same happening. If they were written years after the event took place, I put more faith in the ones that were presented closer to the event because age, experiences, and the influence of others tend to make changes in stories. My access to contemporary newspapers and many other local resources also helped me to choose. The background of the individual writers involved also played a role in the choices.   

Mark: The most trusted sources of historical information come from contemporary writings at the time of the event or shortly after. These include personal journals and other writings. Several years or many years after an event, some writers’ memories may start to fade and become mixed with suspect information from others. There are some writers who became separated from Church fellowship and others were excommunicated. Their memories sometimes were shaded by unkind feeling toward Church members and the Church, sometimes causing them to have a biased view of what happened in the past. Stories from pioneers who were young children during the trek had faint actual memories of the events. As the children grew older, their memories became combined with stories that they heard from others, which resulted in faulty combined memories of past events. Many of these stories resulted in family hand-me-down stories that are cherished family memories. These stories are great for families, but they may not make good sources for history. In many cases, they contradict stories from other families. So, what do you do? You seek and select the most trusted sources of information available, and give less credibility to faulty information sources.

GKB: The question of whether the companies should have continued from Florence or wintered there is a central theme. Based on your research, what were the most
compelling, perhaps overlooked, arguments for continuing the journey, despite the
known risks?

Mark: Answering the question of whether the handcart companies should have continued on or should have stopped depends on many points of view. As time continues, the perspective tends to change. The Church leadership associated with the outfitting site in Florence were familiar with the physical and spiritual dangers that existed in that region for the handcart pioneers, if they were to remain. Those dangers were related to apostate influences and to the anti-Mormon sentiment there and also to the political unrest that was caused by the current hostile slavery environment. Also, what were the conditions in general to sustain them if they stayed—food, clothing, shelter, support groups, and employment? These conditions were bleak, especially for the large number of pioneers involved.

As the trek continued, the pain and suffering were huge. The quick action of Brigham Young and the immediate response of volunteers and contribution of supplies from the Valley Saints made the difference between life or death to most of the individuals in the two handcart companies. The view of the ordeal at the time was great suffering, death of dear ones, despair, and bitterness. At the end of the trek, there was considerable finger-pointing and blame being passed around for the disaster; it even continues to this day. As time continued, many had lasting physical disabilities and suffered due the loss of family members. Later, the survivors and their families were blessed because of the strength of their convictions; still later their posterities were strengthened.

We know what happened to many of those who stopped in the Florence area. Some stopped who were ill and elderly; those decisions probably preserved their lives; some of them came to the Valley later. The ones who stopped had trials and suffering themselves—surviving the best they could as they pursued shelter, clothing, food supply, and employment and dealt with severe weather; some dealt with breaking up of family and early deaths. Had all the handcart pioneers stopped in the Florence area, those difficulties would have been greatly magnified for such a great number. Many did continue on to the Valley in the following year and later, but there were many who did not. Those who stopped and remained chose a variety of paths different from their original plans, affecting them and their posterity. 
 
The blessings that resulted from the struggles of those handcart pioneers have continued to grow with the passage of time. Many today are thankful that those pioneers continued on their trek. The beginning objective was to gather those European Saints to Zion. Among those of the Willie Company who stopped (about 80), only thirty-nine are known to have come west. Brigham Young’s counsel was, “God requires us to help these out, and bring them to Zion.” That did not happen for those who stopped in the Florence area and then remained.

GKB: The book details the significant loss of life during the trek, particularly on Rocky Ridge. What specific circumstances and challenges converged on those “most disastrous days” that led to such a high mortality rate?

Don: As we study the 1856 Willie Handcart Company’s experience, some events require additional careful analysis. A noted observation relates to Levi Savage who joined the company in Florence, Nebraska. Perhaps his experiences, in the Mormon Battalion, made him try to convince the company not to cross the plains to Utah so late in the season. He suggested the tribulations the company would encounter on their journey if they should continue. Students of the company’s history find his predictions came true; however, they fail to notice that his personal actions helped his predictions to be realized. Perhaps, because of his background in the Mormon Battalion, Levi Savage was placed in charge of the company’s wagon supply train. When any company arrived in the plain’s buffalo country, wagon leaders were told, by early church leaders, to tie up their draft animals. Levi Savage went off hunting buffalo instead of seeing to the proper care of the draft oxen under his charge (tying them up). He left their charge to inexperienced emigrants under his leadership, and in a thunderstorm many of their draft animals ran off with the buffalo. This forced the emigrants to spend valuable days searching for the lost animals, which were never found. Their beef animals and milk cows were forced to become draft animals, and much of their food and other supplies were loaded on the handcarts because the weight of the wagons was too much for the weaker untrained animals to pull. The rate of travel was much slower which took them longer before they met the rescuers. The extra weight on the handcarts placed extra strain on the pioneers which caused them to burn up additional calories.  They were already on reduced daily rations which made the problem worse. Their reduction in food, summer clothing, extra work in drawing heavier laden carts, and an uphill climb in a snow storm offered ideal conditions for their demise.

Mark: By the time that the Willie Handcart Company pioneers were rescued at Sixth Crossing, many were near death’s door. They were exhausted, starving, and freezing. Many were not able to recover even though they were “rescued.” As they continued moving the next couple of days, the severe weather and difficult traveling condition helped seal their fate. As the rescuer Daniel Webster Jones stated when he and other rescuers reached Sixth Crossing, “They reported their company in a starving condition that would stir the feelings of the hardest heart. They were in a poor place, the storm having caught them where fuel was scarce. They were out of provisions and really freezing and starving to death. The morning after our arrival nine were buried in one grave. We did all we could to relieve them. Soon there was an improvement in camp, but many poor, faithful people had gone too far—had passed beyond the power to recruit. Our help came too late for some and many died after our arrival.”

GKB: In articles written about James G. Willie over the years, his middle name has had two different spellings—Gray and Grey. Which one is correct?

Mark: When selecting the spelling of a person’s name, I give preference to the spelling used in the earliest available record of that person, usually the christening record. For James G. Willie, his earliest known record was created at his christening. He was christened on 15 January 1821. On that record his name is given as James Gray Willie.

GKB: How would you expect James G. Willie to feel about your book?

Mark: On January 10, 1879, James G. Willie sent a letter to then President John Taylor. This was shortly after Brigham had passed away; apparently Brigham Young did not favor public discussions about the tragedies of the two handcart companies.

James G. Willie wrote, “Reading in the Salt Lake Herald a statement purporting to be an account of the travels of the fourth Handcart Compy from Liverpool to Salt Lake City in 1856, over which I had the honor to preside, I thought I would write you; for the priveledge of giving a full and correct statement of its travels and sufferings that if thought proper, it could be inserted in ‘Church History’ or published as you may deem advisable. Many years has transpired since that eventual year, and as I am fast approaching three Score and ten years I should like to leave on record a true statement of events and scenes, that then transpired, and of which I was an eye Witness; as a correct statement has never been written.”

I am not sure what John Taylor’s response was to James G. Willie’s letter. I believe that James G. Willie would be pleased with our book, and would feel that it provided a good insight into what happened before the trek, on the trek, and the conditions associated with the trek. Hopefully, he would feel that the book met his desire to “leave on record a true statement of events and scenes, that then transpired.” Note that he states, “a correct statement has never been written.”

Bring Them to Zion: The 1856 Handcart Emigration Organization, Leadership, and Issues is available in both paperback and ebook.