Stoker, Davis Co. Feb. 17, 1857. Elder W. Woodruff, Knowing that you desired a brief sketch of what we know about last year's emigration induced me to commence this brief note. I left Liverpool on the 19th of April on the ship "S. Curling" bound for Boston. A ^with a^ company of saints numbering about 703 souls under the Presidency of Dan Jones, John Oakley & David Grant. We arrived at Boston on the 23rd of May ...

Our company were Americans, English, Irish, Welsh, Scotch, & Scandinavians. As we passed thro. Iowa many of our company left us to live with the Gentiles. Our handcarts were of a very poor kind some of the axels almost wore thro' before we arrived at Florence. We arrived on the Banks of Missouri River August 11th & crossed the river same day on the steamboat^ferry^boat Nebraska. Several of our company considering the journey too tedious left our company at Florence. When we started for the plains ...

Some of the causes that our people got weak was they had not enough to eat. From Iowa City to Florence, we had 10 ozs of Flour per day & little or no groceries. When we left Missouri River we had not quite enough provisions for sixty days at 1 lb pr head each pr day. We issued 1 lb of flour to each adult & 8 ozs. to each child per day. About 8 miles west of Laramie we issued flour as follows 14 ozs ...

[in red ink] Feb 17, 1857 Wm Woodard to W. Woodruff [end of red ink] Independence Rock in search of the rest of the. Handcart companies, crossing the rocky ridge we had a tremenduous snow storm the next morning we buried 13 souls. Some six wagons came to our assistance at this place on the Sweetwater; we travelled on & crossed Green river; the day we left Green River about 10 wagons from Fort Supply came to our assistance. From this time ...