| The Annals of Iowa, Vol. VIII, No. 4 (Jan.
:1908) PP 304-310, contains the 1852 overland
diary of Lafayette SPENCER. The group with which
he traveled left Van Buren County, Iowa on May
11th and reached Portland, Ore. on Oct. 26th. |
| Members of the party were: |
| BRATTAIN, Paul & family of 7 adults |
| NEWMAN, William |
| SPENCER, Lafayette |
| SPENCER, Charles, wife & 2 children |
| NEWMAN, Henry |
| GIMPLE, George |
| SMITH, Michael, wife, 2 sons, 1 dau. |
| HAMMONDS, George |
| HAMMONDS, Henry |
| WHETSTONE, Jacob & family |
| TAYLOR, George & family |
| CARTER, Robert & family |
| BARNES, Adam & family |
| MITCHELL, Oliver & family |
| HITTARY, John & family |
| BAKER, Napoleon |
| HOWARD, Wm. & family |
| ADAMS, Charles & family |
| CLARK, Thomas & family |
| WHETSTONE, Thomas & family |
| BOLEY, Nicholas & family |
| BOLEY, John & family |
| WATSON, James & family |
| WATSON, Hill & family |
| ANDERSON, Iradel |
| ANDERSON, Mathies |
| EBERT, George |
| EBERT, James |
| EBERT, William |
| KECK, Henry |
| KECK, Sloan |
| There were a number of deaths among these
people. Nancy SPENCER, apparently the wife of
Charles, died June 10, 16 miles west of Prairie
Creek and 16 miles east of Wood River. Note that
on BLODGET's death list, the date is given as
June 3, with her being from Wisconsin. Robert
CARTER died on June 18, five days west of
Kearny, Neb. (party traveled the North side of
the river). Michael SMITH died Sept. l8th, ten
miles beyond Burnt River. Charles SPENCER died
Oct. 27, the morning after the party arrived in
Portland. |
| This Was Submitted to the ANCESTREE by Mrs.
Mary Nelson of Holdrege, Neb. |
| I'm sure someone in your group may have this
but sometimes these little bits & pieces are
hard to track down. |
| Yours, |
|
| Charlotte St. Clair |
| Recording Secretary of the newly formed, OLD
FORT GEN. SOC. |
| Ft. Madison, Iowa |
|
| In the spring of 1852 there was organized
among the citizens of Cedar Township, Van Buren
County, Iowa, an emigrant train of about
twenty-five wagons. Each wagon was drawn by from
three to five yoke of oxen. In the company.were
Paul Brattain and family of seven adult persons;
William Newman; Lafayette Spencer; Charles
Spencer and wife and two children; Henry Newman;
George Gimple; Michael Smith and his wife, two
sons and a daughter; George Hammonds; Henry
Hammonds; Jacob Whetstone and family; George
Taylor and family; Robert Carter and family;
Adam Barnes and family; Oliver Mitchell and '
family; John Hilary and family; Napoleon Baker;
William Howard and family; Charles Adams and
family; Thomas Clark and family; Nicholas Boley
and family; John Boley and family; James Watson
and family; Hill Watson and family; Iradel
Anderson; Mathies Anderson; George, James and
William Ebert; Henry and Sloan Keck. |
| Paul Brattain was best known to the Iowa
public of any in this train. He had served in
different official capacities, the most
important being as Treasurer of the Des Moines
River Improvement Board of Public Works. |
| To assist his brother, William, who expected
to follow in 1853, Lafayette Spencer kept a
diary of his trip to Oregon, which he
transmitted with a letter after the journey
ended. This letter and the diary are in the
quaint diction and orthography of the writer. It
is herewith presented with no more than
necessary alterations. |
| December 27, 1852 |
| Dear Brother: |
| I now embrace the present opportunity of
writing a few lines to let you know that I am
well at the present time, hoping that these few
lines will find you all well. I have not much to
write about at the present time. I have traveled
a good deal in Oregon. We started from John
Newman's near Oregon City the eighth day of
November for the Rogue River Gold mines. We
traveled some two hundred and fifty miles, to
South Umpequa River. It rained so much that the
roads got so bad that we could not travel with
our wagons. We stopped on Cow Creek to wait for
the waters to run down and prospect for gold,
but could not make it pay very well We lacked
some seventy miles of getting to Rogue River but
it commenced snowing and snowed for fifteen or
sixteen days in succession. The snow is over two
feet deep and still snowing. I do not know what
will become of our stock for the people have no
feed to give them. The pack mules are beginning
to die now of hunger. I will stay here until the
winter breaks up then I will go to Rogue River.
I have traveled all through the Willamette
Valley. It is about 20 miles wide and is cut up
with hills and mountains. All the land that is
worth anything is cleaned up. The Umpequah
Valley is not as good as the Willamette Valley,
nor half as big. All of the best of the claims
are taken up. I shall advise you to stay where
you are, but if you want to come you must start
by the first of April with six or seven yoke of
oxen to the wagon and as much as one or two
hundred dollars in cash. You will find it a
long, tedious journey to travel. I send you my
journal that I kept on the road through to
Oregon. Mr. Newman is gone on to Rogue River. I
am staying here in Umpequa with the team and
provisions until I get word from him what to do.
I live fat and saucy. Direct letters to
Kanyonville, Douglass County, Oregon. |
| William
Spencer Lafayette
Spencer |
|
| LAFAYETTE SPENCER DAY BOOK |
| May 11th, 1852. Started from home. Pass
through Birmingham and camp on the East fork of
Lick Creek. |
| 12th. Pass through Libertyville and Ashland
and came at the Agency. |
| 13th. Pass through Autumwa. Cross the Des
Moines River and camp 8 miles west of Autumwa. |
| 14th Camp on Colt Creek 2 miles west of Albia,
the county seat of Monroe County. |
| 15th. Camp on the 14 miles between Albia and
Charidon Point in Lucas County. |
| 16th. Camp on Grave Creek 4 miles west of
Charidon Point. |
| 17th. Camp on Camp Creek in Clark County. |
| 18th. Camp on Seven Mile Creek in Union
County. |
| 19th. Camp on Twelve Mile Creek. Cross Grand
River at Pisga, the old Mormon Town. |
| 20th. Camp on Medawa Creek in Adams County. |
| 21st. Camp in a grove one mile west of the
Road. |
| 22nd Camp on a creek six miles East of Indian
town. |
| 23rd. Camp near Nesyynabetany. |
| 24th. Camp on Silver Creek in Potawatimy
County. |
| 25th. Camp at Council Bluffs 2 miles below
Kanesville on the Missouri. |
| 26th. Lay by. |
| 27th. Lay by. |
| May 28th Camp on Missouri River 10 miles above
Kanesville at the upper ferry. |
| 29th. Lay by. |
| 30th. Cross the Missouri River in the night
and Camp on the west bank |
| 31st Travel 18 miles. Camp on Pappea Greek.
Good grass. |
| |
| June lst Travel 10 miles. Cross the Elk
Horn River and camp on Bridge Creek. Good grass. |
| 2nd Travel 15 miles. Camp on a lake to the
left of the road. Good grass. |
| 3rd Travel 15 miles. Camp on Shell Creek. Good
grass. |
| 4th Travel 24 miles. Camp on Loup Fork near
the Ferry. Good grass. |
| 5th Lay by. Nancy Spencer taken sick. |
| 6th Travel 4 miles. Cross the Loup Fork and
camp on the Plaines. |
| 7th Travel 18 miles and camp on Loup Fork.
Good grass. |
| 8th Lay by for Mr. Smith to get up with us. |
| 9th Travel 22 miles and camp west of the Cold
Spring. Good grass. |
| 10th Travel 16 miles and camp near Prarie
Creek. Nancy Spencer died. at 9 o'clock P.M. and
buried at 8 o'clock A.M. the next morning. |
| 11th Travel 16 miles and camp on Wood Greek. |
| 12th Travel 15 miles and camp on the Plat
River. Good grass. |
| 13th Travel 24 miles. Camp on Plat River
opposite Fort Kenney. |
| 14th Travel 16 miles. Camp on Buffalo Creek.
Grass fair. |
| 15th Travel 15 miles. Camp on Plat River near
Willow Lake. Grass fair. |
| 16th Travel 15 miles. Camp on the Plat River.
Good grass. |
| 17th Travel 15 miles. Camp on the Plat River
near Skunk Creek. Good grass. |
| 18th Travel 7 miles. Camp on a small creek.
Robert Carter died with Colrhea. |
| 19th Travel 18 miles. Camp on Plat River. No
more timber for two hundred miles. |
| 20th Travel 15 miles. Camp on Plat River. Good
grass. |
| 21st Travel 20 miles. Camp on Wolf Creek and
Spring. |
| 22nd Travel 10 miles. Camp on Rattle Snake
Creek. |
| 23rd Travel 8 miles. Camp on Plat River near
Cedar Bluff. Good grass. |
| 24th Travel 22 miles. Camp near Castle Creek.
Good grass. Their is a postoffice kept their. I
wrote back. |
| 25th Travel 20 miles. Camp on Plat River. Good
grass. |
| 26th Travel 18 miles. Camp near Ancient Bluff.
Good grass. |
| 27th Lay by on the account of sickness. |
| 28th Travel 16 miles. Camp near Chimney Rock.
Good grass. |
| 29th Travel 18 miles. Camp on Plat River near
Scott Bluff. Good Grass. |
| 30th Travel 25 miles. Camp at Blue Stone Cliff
on Plat River. |
| Read section two of the Lafayette
Spencer Journal |