The Oregon Trail was traveled by emigrants from east since the early 1930s, but mountain men and trappers had followed the trail from the time when Louis and Clark explored a trail to Oregon.
The upper trail shown above was followed by the Mormons after 1846. They traveled a slightly different path to avoid
arguments about grazing and water rights with the Oregon bound emigrants.
In 1849 a whole new group traveled the Oregon Trail part way to the Gold fields in California.
Mormon Trail: The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868.
The Mormon Trail extends from Nauvoo, Illinois, which was the principal settlement of the Latter Day Saints from 1839 to 1846, to Salt Lake City, Utah, which was settled by Brigham Young and his followers beginning in 1847.
From Council Bluffs, Iowa to Fort Bridger in Wyoming, the trail follows much the same route as the Oregon Trail and the California Trail; these trails are collectively known as the Emigrant Trail. The Mormon pioneer movement began in 1846 when, in the face of conflicts with neighbors, Young decided to abandon Nauvoo and to establish a new home for the church in the Great Basin.
That year Young's followers crossed Iowa. Along their way, some were assigned to establish settlements and to plant and harvest crops for later emigrants. During the winter of 1846–47, the emigrants wintered in Iowa, other nearby states, and the unorganized territory that later became Nebraska, with the largest group residing in Winter Quarters, Nebraska.
In the spring of 1847, Young led the vanguard company to the Salt Lake Valley, which was then outside the boundaries of the United States and later became Utah. During the first few years, the emigrants were mostly former occupants of Nauvoo who were following Young to Utah. Later, the emigrants increasingly comprised converts from the British Isles and Europe. The trail was used for more than 20 years, until the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869.
Among the emigrants were the Mormon handcart pioneers of 1856–1860. Two of the handcart companies, led by James G. Willie and Edward Martin, met disaster on the trail when they departed late and were caught by heavy snowstorms in Wyoming.
Trek of 1846 The departure from Nauvoo began on February 4, 1846, under the leadership of Brigham Young. This early departure exposed them to the elements in the worst of winter. After crossing the Mississippi River, the journey across Iowa Territory followed primitive territorial roads and Native American trails.
Young originally planned to lead an express company of about 300 men to the Great Basin during the summer of 1846. He believed they could cross Iowa and reach the Missouri River in four to six weeks. The actual trip across Iowa was slowed by rain, mud, swollen rivers, poor preparation, and required sixteen weeks. Heavy rains turned the rolling plains of southern Iowa into a quagmire of axle-deep mud. Furthermore, few people carried adequate provisions for the trip. The weather, general unpreparedness, and lack of experience in moving such a large group of people all contributed to the difficulties they endured.
The initial party reached the Missouri River on June 14. It was apparent that the Latter-day Saints could not make it to the Great Basin that season and would have to winter on the Missouri River. Some of the emigrants established a settlement called Kanesville on the Iowa side of the river. Others moved across the river into the area of present-day Omaha, Nebraska, building a camp called Winter Quarters.
The Vanguard Company of 1847 on Historic Trail, chosen members of the Vanguard Company gathered, final supplies were packed and the group was organized into 14 military companies. A militia and night guard was formed. The company consisted of 143 men, including three blacks and eight members of the Quorum of the Twelve, three women and two children. The train contained 73 wagons, draft animals, and livestock and carried enough supplies to provision the group for one year.
On April 5 the wagon train moved west from Winter Quarters toward the Great Basin. The journey from Winter Quarters to Fort Laramie took six weeks, with the company arriving at the fort on June 1.
While at Fort Laramie, the vanguard company was joined by members of the Mormon Battalion, who had been excused due to illness and sent to winter in Pueblo, Colorado, and a group of Church members from Mississippi. At this point, the now larger company took the established Oregon Trail toward the trading post at Fort Bridger.
Young met mountain man Jim Bridger on June 28. They discussed routes into the Salt Lake Valley, and the feasibility of viable settlements in the mountain valleys of the Great Basin. The company pushed on through South Pass, rafted across the Green River and arrived at Fort Bridger on July 7.
