May 1853
| The third of May we traveled overland without timber. We had to haul our wood and water. We saw several Indians, but they were peaceable. | ||
| On the fourth of May it rained very hard in the morning. We passed some Indian dwellings. Miss Olivia Cockrill and I went to see the Indian dwellings. They were very well fixed in their houses. We traveled half the day and camped on the bank of a little Branch. We was invited to a candy pull in the evening, but none of us went. | ||
| The fifth of May we camped on Bull Creek. Several Indians came to our tent to trade. On 5th, we camped near Caw River. | ||
| On the 6th of May we crossed Caw River and camped on the Caw. | ||
| On the 7th traveled about 3 miles, camped together with our stock on a lake. The Indians came to our camps with horses to sell. We bought some of their ponies. | ||
| The 8th we came to a store on a little creek where there was a toll bridge, we camped on a small creek; it was a beautiful place. We saw a great many ladies going to Church. I wanted to go but the train wouldn't let me go; there (was) some very pretty ladies. | ||
| The 9th we camped on a small Creek by some Indians. We pass a house where a white man lived. He kept a Toll Bridge. We camped in the open. It was cold, the water was frozen over in the buckets. We traveled a very broken country, some very pretty scenes, we passed several graves. Then we camped on the bank of a small branch the 11th. It rained and was very cold. | ||
| We crossed the Black Vermillion, there we had to let our wagon down the bank with ropes it was so steep. | ||
| The 12th we camped on the Big Blue. | ||
| The 13th it rained very hard in the morning. It cleared up about 12 o'clock. One of the children in our train got run over with the wagon. It happened that the wagon was very light loaded, it hurt him but very little. | ||
| May 14th was a very pretty morning, we had to haul wood and water and camped out in the open prairie. | ||
| May 15th. It was raining and it blew so hard that it had to stop raining. I thought it would blow over our wagons, it was impossible to walk or ride. About 2 o'clock I witnessed a parting scene of man and wife; there was several of our train that shed tears but I laughed and shouted. The man went back and she went on with her father. | ||
| We camped on the Little Blue the 16th. We camped on Sunday. Two of the boys got to playing and fell out and one of them stabbed the other. It was not serious very much. | ||
| The 16th we camped on the little Blue. It rained very hard and in the evening it was a very short storm, it hailed some hail as large as bird eggs and in the night it stormed and rained until our tents (was) all filled with water. | ||
| The 17th was a dismal morning we traveled on up the Little Blue and camped. The Creek raised very high. | ||
| The 18th was a cold blustering morning the wind was from the North. We had to leave the road on account of the high water. We (have saw) a great many antelope and buffallo but the boys thought they would have some but they did not. | ||
| The 19th (May) we traveled around the head of a creek. I had to pilot the train through the wilderness. We camped on a lake near the main road. | ||
| The 20th (May) we traveled on over a broken and hilly country, camped on the South Platte bottom in sight of the river. | ||
| The 21st we had some time of it in the morning for the cattle was stolen by the Indians. There was four of us went after them and found the Indians with them. We got into camp in the night just before a storm. Our tents was flooded with water. We camped on the South Platte, it was a dismal looking stream. | ||
| May 22 we traveled on, all on the trains left but myself and two others went back after some stray cattle, we overtook the trains about two o'clock and we camped in the open plains and guarded them on the bank of the river one mile from camp. | ||
| May 23 We traveled up the Platte, camped on the Platte. I went out and got some bufalow from a train, our folks eat till they foundered. The 22nd when we passed Fort Karney there had passed some 31 thousand cattle and up wards of a thousand wagons and people. | ||
| May 24th We made a long drive and camped on the South Platte. We got our meals without wood, we used buffalo chips for wood. | ||
| The 25th we started and left the road, if ever I was vexed it was then for there was several loos horses and all riped and romped sow I undertook to drive them but it was as hard to do as to drive a drove of buffalow. It made me mad. If I had to of had a gun I would of shot the last one. So we camped in a holow there. There was sum wood but no water. We had to cary water about too miles it was a cold rainy day. | ||
| May 26th the train started on but I went back about fifteen miles after sum of our cows. I found them, then started to overtake the train but did not. I had to stay on the road with another train. The next morning I started on after the train overtook it about ten o'clock, then they had camped for the day to wash etc. I was nearley dead with fatigue, that was the 27th. | ||
| May 28th we camped on the South Platte, the 29th we camped on the same. | ||
| May 30th we crossed the South Platte and traveled up the river. It was a rainy morning but very pleasant in the afternoon. | ||
| We camped on South Platte for the last time the 31st of May. Some of the train went ahunting beaver, killed a large buffalo brought sum of it in camp sum killed some antelope. We have plenty of fresh meat at present. | ||
| May 31st we traveled up
the river till noon then left it
about three or foar o'clock it
commenced clouding up in about a half our it commenced raining, then it hailed as large as bird
eggs. We camped in the big open plains without wood, we used buffalo chips to
cook with. |
she went on with her father Trail Divorce, Rachel Guthridge? or Martha Adams?
four of us went after them There is a family story about these indians being killed by the recovery party.
This page created on 05/19/01 22:02.