Day in the Life

May 31, 1847

Journal Entry

May 31, 1847 ~ Monday

31st There are many portions of this country vary barren we travel
over several miles at a time of level prairie with little or no grass upon
it in this ground we find great quantities of the Prickelly pair &
they are an excellent plant to eat though coverd with thorns like
needles which have to be carefully paired off with A knife & fork
they are quite delicious have A little tart but vary plesant

we had A plesant morning, our cattle was strayed so far it
took about 2 hours to get them up & get ready for starting
we however started at 8 oclock & travled 9 1/2 miles & nooned on a
green flat most of the ground through the day was vary barren
grass is again getting vary scarce Br Pratt took an observation,
& found the Lattitude to be 42º 4' 30" we travled in the After-
noon 7 1/4 miles & camped upon the bank of a creek about 15 or
20 miles below Laramie the Hunters brought in one long tailed
deer saw several Elk & Antilope but got none of them I went
forward to pick out the road through the day I felt some unwell
with teeth ake & canker in my mouth. distance of the day 16 3/4

I would here mention that which belonged to the mornngs Account
that there was A crust of frost over the grass the Thermometer
stood at 35, At 5 oclok, we passed to day A grove of large
cotton wood but the Sioux had wintered in it & cut down
the most of it for brows & wood. we are begining to
come to wood more plenty but the camp has had much
difficulty to obtain wood to cook with for the last
weeks as we had neith[er] timber nor Buffalo chips. the
men would follow the river bank all day & Islands
to pick up any wood sticks barks or chips that might
chanced to have lodged on the bank by the flood or
that the Indians may have left, but it is now
to be readily obtained it is supposed that the creek
we camp on to night is the rawhide

People

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Pratt, Orson
19 Sep 1811 - 3 Oct 1881
1082 mentions
Apostle

Places

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Fort Laramie, unorganized U.S. Territory
Platte River, unorganized U.S. Territory
Rawhide Creek, Nebraska Territory

Quotes

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May 30, 1847 ~ Sunday 30th Sunday we set this day apart for Prayer & fasting, in the morning I shaved & washed all over & anointed my head & put on clean clothing, read a chapter in the Book of Mormon & humbled myself before the Lord & poured out my soul in prayer before the Lord & his spirit desended upon me & I was blessed.
~ Wilford Woodruff

Events

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May 31, 1847