Remembering the Pioneers

            July is an exciting time to be in Utah because there are many events leading up to the big celebration of Pioneer Day. Residents of Utah and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in other areas celebrate Pioneer Day in remembrance of the arrival of the Mormon Pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. The holiday is celebrated for several weeks and includes concerts, rodeos, and marathons as well as the big parade on the 24^th.

            President Gordon B. Hinckley presented some remarks at a Pioneer Day commemoration concert on July 22, 2001. He counsels the people of Utah and particularly members of the Church to never forget the sacrifices and achievements of the pioneers.

I have felt that we must never permit ourselves to lose sight of the great and singular achievements of those who first came to this valley in 1847. They came not for riches or gold, but rather to find a place where they could worship God under the revelations which are the foundation of this work. They were outcasts, driven and hounded, persecuted and peeled. Their reliance was on the God of heaven. When they reached this place, they stopped in spite of entreaties to go on to California or the Northwest. 

As I have said before, they knew nothing really of the climate of the area, of the conditions of the soil, of the crickets or the grasshoppers with which they soon became acquainted. They had learned all they could concerning the Great Basin, but that was precious little. No one before them had ever grown a potato or an ear of corn or moved a plow to break this sunbaked soil.

            In the months leading up to July 24, 1997, members of the Church studied the lives and accomplishments of the Mormon pioneers. There was a huge reenactment of the pioneer trek with a wagon train traveling from Nauvoo, Illinois, to the Salt Lake Valley. My husband’s brother and his wife took part in this event. Their experience had a profound effect in their lives.

            In recent years the youth organizations of the Church started doing “Trek.” The youth and their leaders are divided into “families” who are members of a handcart company. The youth have the experience of walking for several days, pushing handcarts, and living in conditions similar to those of the pioneers. If the youth live near enough to the pioneer trail, they do their trek along the actual path of the pioneers. Other groups reenact the experience in their local areas. All come away from their experience with greater knowledge about their ancestors and other pioneers and stronger faith in Jesus Christ.

            President Hinckley often reminded members of the Church that we are all beneficiaries of the Mormon pioneers whether or not we had ancestors among the Mormon pioneers. In these remarks he shares the following quote made by Brigham Young in 1868 – 21 years after entering the Salt Lake Valley.

We made and broke the road from Nauvoo to this place. … Some of the time we followed Indian trails; some of the time we ran by the compass. When we left the Missouri River we followed the Platte. And we killed rattlesnakes by the cord in some places, and made roads and built bridges till our backs ached. Where we could not build bridges across rivers we ferried our people across, until we arrived here, where we found a few naked Indians, a few wolves and rabbits, and any amount of crickets; but as for any green tree, or any green fields, we found nothing of the kind, with the exception of a few cottonwoods and willows on the edge of City Creek. For some 1,200 or 1,300 miles we carried every particle of provisions we had when we arrived here.

            President Hinckley says that President Young went on to say: “We prayed over the land, and dedicated it, and the water, air and everything pertaining to them unto the Lord, and the smiles of heaven rested on the land and it became productive, and today yields us the best of grain, fruits and vegetables” (quoted in Nibley, Brigham Young, 441-42).

            Then President Hinckley says, “We must never allow recognition of their trials, of their sacrifices, of their tenacity, of their faith and their prayers in establishing this great community to lapse or be forgotten.”

            The Mormon Pioneers arrived in the Salt Lake Valley and began to tame the desert. They built homes and dug ditches to bring water from the mountains to water their crops. They made the desert blossom and the Valley to become fertile. Many of them were barely settled when they were asked by Brigham Young to go to other areas to make more settlements. Most of the cities in the Mountain West were first started by Mormon Pioneers.

            I am a descendent of the Mormon Pioneers. Seven of my eight great-grandparents traveled to Utah with the pioneers. The eighth came after the transcontinental railroad was finished. Pioneer Day has always been an important day in my life as I remember the trials and sacrifices of my ancestors and their associates.  

Pioneer Day

                Pioneer Day has always had extra special meaning to me. Pioneer Day is a holiday for both the State of Utah and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is celebrated widely in the State and commemorated by members of the Church all over the world.

                Pioneer Day was always a family day when I was a child. Our family often celebrated it by going to the mountains. We would arise very early in the morning – usually to the sound of dynamite blowing up a tree trunk – to milk the cows and feed the animals. Then we would haul one load of hay to the pasture for the cows to munch on all day. We would gather picnic supplies and climb into our old truck. On this special day our mother gave us white “Bakers Bread” and puffed wheat, two foods we seldom ate.

                I also celebrated Pioneer Day in Primary. Our meetinghouse sat on a large piece of land, maybe an acre. I remember dressing up in pioneer-type clothes, decorating bikes and wagons, and walking around the property. As we walked we sang a pioneer song. “Pioneer children sang as they walked and walked and walked….”

                There were only a few days each summer that my family did not work in the fields. Those days were usually Independence Day, Pioneer Day, and Labor Day. Of course, we never worked in the fields on Sundays.

                I am very proud of my pioneer heritage as seven of my eight great-grandparents crossed the plains with the pioneers, and the eighth crossed a few years later on the train. I have often wondered how members of the Church without pioneer ancestors feel about Pioneer Day, and I appreciate the counsel of the Brethren who remind us that there are pioneers today.

                The word pioneer is both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it means to go ahead of others to explore or settle a new area, as in the Utah Pioneers. As a verb, it means to be the first to use something, a new method, activity, or area of knowledge. By this simple definition, all converts to the Church are pioneers.

                President Dieter F. Uchtdorf was reared and joined the Church in Germany. He had no ancestors among the Utah Pioneers, but he still loves and honors “the faith and courage of those early pioneers of the Church. My own ancestors were living an ocean away at the time. None were among those who lived in Nauvoo or Winter Quarters, and none made the journey across the plains. But as a member of the Church, I claim with gratitude and pride this pioneer legacy as my own.

                “With the same joy, I claim the legacies of today’s modern-day Church pioneers who live in every nation and whose own stories of perseverance, faith, and sacrifice add glorious new verses to the great chorus of the latter-day anthem of the kingdom of God” ("Faith of Our Father" Ensign, May 2008, 70).

                Today I honor all pioneers, my ancestors and others who crossed the plains to Utah as well as those who are forging new paths today. Happy Pioneer Day to all of you!

Builders of the Nation

                Since July 24^th marks the anniversary of the arrival of the Mormon Pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, I thought I would write something about pioneers.  I began thinking about the pioneers on Sunday when our congregation sang a hymn entitled “They, the Builders of the Nation” (Hymns #36, written by Ida R. Alldredge with music by Alfred M. Durham).  I was so touched by the words to this hymn that I could not get it out of my mind.  This presentation of “They, the Builders of the Nation” by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir with music provided by the Orchestra at Temple Square is beautiful and touching.  I appreciate the brief addition depicting the Mormon Pioneers as they crossed the plains.

                They, the builders of the nation, Blazing trails along the way;

                Stepping-stones for generations Were their deeds of every day.

                Building new and firm foundations, Pushing on the wild frontier,

                Forging onward, ever onward, Blessed, honored Pioneer!

                Service ever was their watch-cry; Love became their guiding star;

                Courage, their unfailing beacon, Radiating near and far.

                Ev’ry day some burden lifted, Ev’ry day some heart to cheer,

                Ev’ry day some hope the brighter, Blessed, honored Pioneer!

                As an ensign to the nation, They unfurled the flag of truth,

                Pillar, guide, and inspiration To the hosts of waiting youth.

                Honor, praise, and veneration To the founders we revere!

                List our song of adoration, Blessed, honored Pioneer!

                I decided to research the hymn and found the following information about hymn and its writer. Ida Romney Alldredge is the aunt to former Michigan Governor George W. Romney and great-aunt to former Massachusetts Governor and presidential candidate Mitt Romney.  She was born on January 7, 1892, in Colonia Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico, to Catherine Cottom and Miles Park Romney.  She married Leo “Lew” Alldredge on August 26, 1911; the next year Lew and Ida moved to Douglas, Arizona, along with other members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  The group “decided to leave Mexico due to the disruptions caused by the Mexican Revolution.”  Lew began working as a merchant in Arizona, and the couple established their home in Mesa, Arizona.

                Allredge wrote more than 30 poems in the 1920s and 1930s and “more than 400 poems in total as well as many musical works and a few dramatic works.”  She wrote many poems that were published in the Relief Society Magazine and the Juvenile Instructor.  The lyrics of her poems were put to music by “such contemporaries as George Careless, B. Cecil Gates and William Clive.”  Although her best-known hymn is “They, the Builders of the Nation,” Allredge “had songs sung in General Conference, in the Salt Lake and Arizona Temples, and at the Arizona Temple dedication of 1927.”

                One of Allredge’s “last big moments” took place in 1940 when a chorus gathered on the roof of the Arizona Temple to present an Easter sunrise services.  “They sang a cantata written by Allredge and composed by B. Cecil Gates called “Resurrection Morning.”

                Allredge passed away on June 14, 1943, in Mesa, Arizona.

                President Thomas S. Monson spoke about the pioneers:  “That first trek of 1847, organized and led by Brigham Young, is described by historians as one of the great epics of United States history.  Mormon pioneers by the hundreds suffered and died from disease, exposure, or starvation.  There were some who, lacking wagons and teams, literally walked the 1,300 miles across the plains and through the mountains, pushing and pulling handcarts.  In these groups, one in six perished….

                “These pioneers remembered the words of the Lord:  `My people must be tried in all things, that they may be prepared to receive the glory that I have for them, even the glory of Zion’ (Doctrine and Covenants 136:31).

                “As the long, painful struggle approached its welcomed end, a jubilant spirit filled each heart.  Tired feet and weary bodies somehow found new strength.

                “Time-marked pages of a dusty pioneer journal speak movingly:  `We bowed ourselves down in humble prayer to Almighty God with hearts full of thanksgiving to Him, and dedicated this land unto Him for the dwelling place of His people.’ …

                “Such were the trials, the hardships, struggles, and heartaches of a former day.  They were met with resolute courage and an abiding faith in a living God…” (“Come, Follow Me,” Ensign, July 1988). 

  

                I stand in awe of the Mormon Pioneers and the other “builders” who made our nation great.  They had trials, hardships, struggles, and heartaches, but they met them with “resolute courage and an abiding faith in a living God.”  They acted on faith, had positive attitudes, and left our nation better for having been there.  We can learn much from the “builders of our nation.”  Happy Pioneer Day!

               

                

Pioneer Day

In the early spring my two granddaughters called to ask me a favor: They had been selected to ride on a float for the children's parade in Salt Lake City, and they wanted to know if I would make some pioneer outfits for them. Of course, I said yes. I sewed the outfits and delivered them in April. Their mother reported that the girls looked cute in their outfits and had fun riding the float and throwing candy to the people along the route.

The Days of 47 Celebration or Pioneer Day is a huge event throughout Utah, and many different communities hold special events. There are many different categories to the celebration including concerts, parades, picnics, games, rodeos, and royalty. Families enjoy sharing historical stories together and joining in groups to share the special holiday.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints celebrate July 24 each year as Pioneer Day. Brigham Young reached the Great Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, and declared, "This is the place. Drive on." Brigham Young later said that he had seen the valley and Ensign Peak in a vision and recognized it when he saw it. The Mormon pioneers believed that God led them to the Great Salt Lake Valley in order that they would have a refuge from the violence of mobs and other people who did not like them.

God prepared places of safety for His people at numerous times in history. He still helps those who love Him to find the right place to live and work. "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9).

President Gordon B. Hinckley said, "The future is ahead. As great things were expected of the pioneers, so are they of us. We note what they did with what they had. We have so much more, with an overwhelming challenge to go on and build the kingdom of God. We are engaged in a great consuming crusade for truth and goodness" (Stand A Little Taller, 216).

Pioneers are people who lead the way and prepare a place for those who follow them. The Mormon Pioneers left civilization and moved into unknown territory in order to escape persecution and to make a new home. They worked diligently and made the "desert blossom as a rose." It is fitting that there is a day to remember the pioneers who settled our nation, but it is more important that we are pioneers in making life better for those who will follow us.

Pioneer Day

Families become stronger when they celebrate important days and traditions together. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints celebrate July 24 each year as Pioneer Day. Brigham Young reached the Great Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, and declared, "This is the place. Drive on." Brigham Young later said that he had seen the valley and Ensign Peak in a vision and recognized it when he saw it. Pioneer Day is marked by parades, picnics, games, etc. by members of a church. The Mormon pioneers believed that God led them to the Great Salt Lake Valley in order that they would have a refuge from the violence of mobs and other people who did not like them. God has prepared places of safety for His people at numerous times in history. He still helps those who love Him to find the right place to live and work. "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). President Gordon B. Hinckley said, "The future is ahead. As great things were expected of the pioneers, so are they of us. We note what they did with what they had. We have so much more, with an overwhelming challenge to go on and build the kingdom of God. We are engaged in a great consuming crusade for truth and goodness" (Stand A Little Taller, 216). Parents can help their families grow stronger by sharing historical stories of their family and church and celebrating holidays. Families can celebrate their own important days whatever they may be and thus strengthen their family.

Mormon Pioneers

The history lesson for this week is the Mormon Pioneers. The Mormon pioneers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who migrated across the United States from the Midwest to the Great Salt Lake Valley in the Utah Territory in search of freedom to practice their religion as they chose. The journey from Illinois to the Great Salt Lake was taken by approximately 70,000-100,000 people and started in April 1847 and ended when the First Transcontinental Railroad was finished in 1869. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was founded in April 1830. Members of the church were often harshly treated by non-members, partially because of their religious beliefs and partly as a reaction to prejudices and misunderstandings. The body of the church moved from Palmyra, New York, to Kirtland, Ohio, and then onto Independence, Missouri, under the direction of the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Mormons were forced to leave Missouri in 1838 by the state militia who were under orders from Governor Lilburn Boggs to either expel them from Missouri or exterminate them. The Mormons then moved to Illinois where they built a new city on the banks of the Mississippi River and named it Nauvoo. In 1844 Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were brutally murdered by a savage mob while they were in the custody of the governor of Illinois. A mob broke into the Carthage Jail and shot Joseph and Hyrum on June 27, 1844. Tensions between Mormons and non-Mormons continued to grow with mobs burning Mormon homes and destroying property in outlying areas. Mormon leaders finally decided they would have no peace until they left the civilized areas and moved to the Rocky Mountains. They left Nauvoo on February 4, 1846, crossing the frozen Mississippi River and slogging through snow to the Omaha, Nebraska, area where they spent the rest of the winter. Mobs burned the Latter-day Saint temple in Nauvoo in 1848. A vanguard company organized and led by Brigham Young left Winter Quarters, Nebraska, on April 5, 1847, and headed to the Great Basin. They were looking for a place that no one else wanted. The camp was awakened each morning at 5:00 by a bugle and was expected to be ready to move out by 7:00 a.m. Travel ended each day about 8:30 p.m. with the travelers in bed by 9:00 p.m. The company traveled six days each week but rested on Sunday to observe the Sabbath. On July 24th, Brigham Young first saw the Great Salt Lake Valley from the back of a wagon where he lay sick. He expressed his satisfaction with the area and declared, "This is the right place, drive on." A monument now marks the spot where Brigham made his declaration. Brigham later said that he had seen the valley, including Ensign Peak, in a vision and recognized the spot when he saw it in person. The Mormon pioneers traveled to the Salt Lake Valley in the Great Basin in covered wagons, handcarts, and walking. Their trail is now known as the Mormon Trail and leads along the Platte River and over the Sweetwater River. The wagons were usually pulled by oxen. Provisions included two to three yoke of oxen, two milk cows, other livestock, arms and ammunition, fifteen pounds of iron, pulleys, and ropes, fishing gear, mechanical equipment, cooking equipment and at least one thousand pounds of flour plus other assorted foodstuffs. Some of the wagons had to be lightened by discarding book collections, furniture, china, etc. Pioneers with handcarts could take considerably less than those with wagons. Even though most of the Mormon pioneers moved westward to the Great Salt Lake Valley, a group Saints living in the eastern United States boarded the ship Brooklyn on February 4, 1846 - the same day that Mormons left Nauvoo - to sail to California. The ship sailed south from New York, around Cape Horn, stopped in the Juan Fernandez Islands and the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) and finally docked in Yerba Buena (San Francisco) on July 29, 1846. Many of these travelers stayed in California, but some traveled east to the Salt Lake Valley. I am grateful for my great-grandparents who followed Brigham Young to Utah. Some of them went westward in covered wagons, and some traveled eastward from California. Some were among the first to travel to Utah on the newly build railroad.

Brigham Young

Brigham Young is ranked as one of the most important colonizers of the American west. His great leadership abilities and pioneering efforts helped him to lead approximately 100,000 people to the mountain valleys of Utah, Idaho, Arizona and other western states. He was a great colonizer and builder of a great commonwealth as he led the founding of more than two hundred cities, towns, and villages and the establishment of many schools and factories. A statue of Brigham Young stands in Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C. to represent the state of Utah. He was the second President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a devoted husband and father. He was a faithful disciple and Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. Brigham was born in Whittingham, Widdham County, Vermont, on June 1, 1801, the ninth of eleven children of John and Abigail Howe Young. His father was a farmer and was one of the soldiers who served in the Revolutionary War under George Washington. In 1804 the family moved to the state of New York, and Brigham grew to manhood on the heavily wooded lands there. Brigham attended school for about twelve days; therefore, his classroom was basically the family home and the surrounding land. His parents were poor. Brigham later stated, "We never had the opportunity of letters [formal education] in our youth, but we had the privilege of picking up brush, chopping down trees, rolling logs, and working amongst the roots, and of getting our shins, feet and toes bruised." Brigham worked hard to help clear the land, farm it, and help with the chores of the household. H always remembered the strict moral training of his father and the teachings of his mother who "taught her children all the time to honour the name of the Father and the Son, and to reverence the [Bible]; she said, Read it, observe its precepts, and apply them to your lives as far as you can; do everything that is good; do nothing that is evil; and if you see any persons in distress, administer to their wants." Brigham's mother died when he was fourteen years old. Brigham was an apprentice carpenter, joiner, painter, and glazier by age 16. He took pride in his craft and said he considered "honest, reliable work, such as would endure, for those who employed me" to be "a part of my religion." Brigham was a tireless worker with a strong will, engaging personality, and deep convictions, all of which made him an outstanding leader. At age 23, Brigham married Miriam Angeline Works. The couple was blessed with two daughters. Brigham supported his family by making and repairing chairs, tables, and cupboards and installing windows, doors, stairways and fireplace mantels. Miriam contracted tuberculosis. Brigham carried the burden of her care and nursed her through the final weeks of her consumptive illness. She died in September 1832. On 18 February 1834 Brigham married Mary Ann Angell. Six children were born to this couple. Brigham and his first wife Miriam joined the Methodist Church during their first year of marriage, but Brigham continued to wrestle with religious questions. He searched for a church organized according to the pattern Jesus Christ established with a "system of ordinances" and all the gifts of the gospel. Two copies of the Book of Mormon were given by Samuel Smith (brother of the Prophet Joseph Smith) to the family of Brigham Young in April 1830 one month after the book was published. Some of Brigham's siblings read the book and accepted it as the truth, but Brigham did not immediately accept it. Brigham wanted to know the doctrine of the book and if the doctrines were the ones taught by Jesus Christ. He studied the book and prayed about it for two years and stated, "I examined the matter studiously, for two years, before I made up my mind to receive that book. I knew it was true, as well as I knew that I could see with my eyes, or feel by the touch of my fingers, or be sensible of the demonstration of any sense. Had not this been the case, I never would have embraced it to this day." Just as Brigham had to know for himself, he later taught the Saints that God did not intend them "to be led entirely by another person, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith upon another's sleeve…." At another time he said, "It is my duty to know the mind of the Lord concerning myself." He added, "It is your privilege and duty to live so that you know when the word of the Lord is spoken to you and when the mind of the Lord is revealed to you." Brigham believed that he had found the religion that he had been searching for and was baptized on 15 April 1832, a cold and snowy day, in his own millstream; he was confirmed and ordained an elder on the same day. All of Brigham's immediate family members were baptized and remained faithful Latter-day Saints. Brigham felt a great desire to meet the Prophet Joseph Smith and so traveled to Kirtland, Ohio, with his brother Joseph and close friend Heber C. Kimball. The travelers found Joseph Smith chopping wood with his brothers. Brigham stated that his "joy was full at the privilege of shaking the hand of the Prophet of God" and receiving "the sure testimony, by the Spirit of prophecy, that he was all that any man could believe him to be, as a true Prophet." This experience was the beginning of one of Brigham's most important relationships. Brigham became a strong supporter of Joseph Smith and served a series of missions as one of the Church's most successful missionaries. He moved his family to Kirtland, Ohio, in order to gather with other Saints in September 1833. There in Kirtland Brigham met and married his second wife, Mary Ann Angell. In the spring of 1834, Brigham volunteered to march with Zion's Camp, a group of 205 men who went with Joseph Smith to take aid and provisions to the Saints in Jackson County, Missouri, who had been forced out of their homes. It was a journey of two thousand miles and was performed on foot. This difficult journey strengthened Brigham's loyalty to Joseph Smith and taught him the importance of obedience to God and His prophet. Brigham was one of nine veterans of Zion's Camp to be selected as members of the first Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at a special conference on February 14, 1835. Brigham left in May 1835 to serve a four-month mission to the eastern states. He returned to the same area as a missionary during the summers of 1836 and 1837. Brigham supervised the painting and finishing of the Kirtland Temple and was present when the Prophet Joseph Smith introduced preliminary ordinances there. He also attended the March 1836 dedication services with hundreds of other Saints who had greatly sacrificed to build the first temple in this dispensation. Several dissenters tried to take the leadership of the Church from Joseph Smith, and Brigham Young confronted the apostates in the Kirtland Temple: "I rose up, and in a plain and forcible manner told them that Joseph was a Prophet, and I knew it, and that they might rail and slander him as much as they pleased, they could not destroy the appointment of the Prophet of God, they could only destroy their own authority, cut the thread that bound them to the Prophet and to God and sink themselves to hell." Brigham's support for Joseph was so uncompromising that the mob turned upon him and forced him to flee. He left Kirtland to join Joseph Smith and other Church leaders in western Missouri. As large numbers of Saints moved to western Missouri, older settlers there became concerned and fearful about the political and economic domination of the newcomers. Tensions grew until they erupted in the summer and fall of 1838 and culminated when the governor of Missouri ordered the state militia to drive the Latter-day Saints from the state or to exterminate them. Joseph Smith and other leaders of the Church were imprisoned while still others either died or apostatized. New leadership responsibilities were thrust upon Brigham who was President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Brigham and his good friend and fellow Apostle Heber C. Kimball were the only leaders available to guide and assist the Saints as they fled Missouri in a difficult winter exodus. Brigham and Heber led the Saints in a covenant to help the poor, to bring every Latter-day Saint out of the state, and to prepare to gather once again. The exiled Saints built a new city in Commerce, Illinois, and renamed it Nauvoo. Brigham was in Nauvoo only a few months before Joseph received a revelation calling the Quorum of the Twelve to serve missions in England. Brigham and his family were all ill in the fall of 1839 as he left on the mission. Eight members of the Quorum of the Twelve served missions in the British Isles during 1840 and 1841 under the direction of Brigham Young, the President of the Quorum. The missionaries "baptized between seven and eight thousand, printed 5,000 Books of Mormon, 3,000 Hymn Books, 2,500 volumes of the Millennial Star, and 50,000 tracts and emigrated to Zion 1,000 souls…. And have left sown in the hearts of many thousands the seeds of eternal truth, which will bring forth fruit to the honor and glory of God, and yet we have lacked nothing to eat, drink or wear: in all these things I acknowledge the hand of God." Brigham and his fellow Apostles shouldered new responsibilities and improved their personal capacities as well as the capacity of the quorum to work unitedly and effectively for the Church. Joseph Smith trusted the "united wisdom" of the quorum. In August 1841 in Nauvoo, Joseph announced "that the time had come when the Twelve should be called upon to stand in their place next to the First Presidency." The Twelve received greater responsibilities that included preaching the gospel, settling new immigrants, purchasing land, and building the Nauvoo Temple. Before the completion of the Nauvoo Temple, Joseph gathered the Twelve and privately introduced them to temple ordinances, including baptism for the dead, the temple endowment, and family sealings. He anticipated that the Twelve would then teach the ordinances to other members of the Church. The Prophet met again with the Twelve in the spring of 1844 and conferred upon them all the keys and authority necessary to carry forward the work of the Church. The Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were murdered within the next three months. As President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Brigham stood next in line to lead the Church. Through nearly a decade of service as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, Brigham Young learned the ways of the Lord. He was prepared to preside over the Church, first as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and after December 1847 as President of the Church. Brigham's willingness to work hard, be obedient, sacrifice, and accept responsibility as well as his capacity to receive and act upon the promptings of the Spirit prepared him for his new responsibilities. Mobs forced the Latter-day Saints to leave Illinois in 1846 in mid-winter. Brigham led his followers across the frozen Mississippi River and on a long journey through Iowa to the area near present-day Omaha, Nebraska. Knowing that there could not be any lasting peace for the Saints until they were completely separated from the gentiles, Brigham led an advance party of 148 Mormon settlers west to a previously planned refuge in the Great Basin. Upon arrival in the Great Salt Lake Valley (Utah), Brigham declared, "This is the right place. Drive on." Under Brigham's direction, thousands of other Mormons came to the valley and prospered in Utah. They developed irrigation techniques that helped parts of the barren dessert to blossom into rich and fruitful land. The U.S. government established the Territory of Utah in 1850 and made Brigham its first governor. He continued to direct missionary work and led the development of hundreds of Mormon settlements in the West. Non-Mormons came to Utah and caused more problems for the Saints. Gentiles circulated false reports that the church was in rebellion against the federal government. An alarmed President James Buchanan in 1857 replaced Brigham with a gentile governor and sent troops to Utah. The Mormons prepared to defend themselves, and the Utah War - or Mormon War - followed with no actual battles. The hostilities ceased in 1858 when Brigham accepted the new governor and President Buchanan gave full pardons to all concerned. Even though Brigham was no longer governor, he remained the most powerful man in Utah until his death. Brigham's life was centered on teaching the gospel and building up and sustaining the kingdom of God. He said, "The Kingdom of heaven is first and foremost with us." Apostles serving with Brigham at the time of his death described him: "During the thirty three years that he has presided over the Church, since the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph, his knees have never trembled, his hands have never shook; he has never faltered or quailed. However threatening the surroundings or prospects may have been, he has never been dismayed; but at those times he has exhibited such serene confidence and faith, and uttered such words of encouragement, as to comfort and sustain all the people, and to call forth their love and admiration. The Lord, however, not only blessed him with valor, but He endowed him with great wisdom. His counsels, when obeyed, have been attended with salvation, and as an organizer and administrator he has no superior…." They added, "His labors the Lord has crowned with most remarkable success, his words he has honored and fulfilled, and those who have obeyed his counsel he has blessed and upheld. The time will yet come when his presidency over the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be pointed to as an epoch of wonderful events." Facts and quotes for this post came from an article in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young, pp 1-12.