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Foreword

There is something about beginnings that never grows old. In this the 150th anniversary of the coming of the Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley, there is much to remember and to celebrate. The arrival of Brigham Young and his loyal followers in the summer of 1847 was a defining moment in the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the West. Likewise, it laid the foundation for the modern history of the state of Utah and left an indelible imprint on the larger history of the American West.

The essentials of the story are well known. Several important histories, musicals, pageants, and dramas have been written, composed, and produced through the years to mark this episode in American history. So much has been written, in fact, that one wonders if there is really anything more to say.

Now to add to this list, Richard E. Bennett has prepared a definitive new history that is refreshingly different from most earlier works on the topic. Author of the previous award-winning study on the history of Winter Quarters-Mormons at the Missouri, 1846-1852: "And Should We Die"-Dr. Bennett has written an essential sequel to his earlier work, an exciting, intimate study of the Mormon exodus.

Using an abundance of archival sources not seen before, Richard Bennett relies not only on the writings of the Mormons themselves but also on their many fellow overlanders on their way to California and Oregon. In the process, this modern historian of the trek tells a fascinating, well-documented, highly readable account of the internal workings, trials, and struggles of the early Latter-day Saints. From the moment of their departure from Nauvoo in February 1846 to their earliest Thanksgiving celebrations in the Salt Lake Valley in late 1848, this balanced account of the Exodus is well worth both the casual read and the careful study.