Elizabeth Whittear Sermon found herself in a struggle for her very life in the fall of 1856 as she walked toward Utah Territory with her family, pushing and pulling a two-wheeled cart. An English convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 37-year-old Elizabeth had prayed for the opportunity to follow her Mormon faith to America, though her husband, Joseph, 54, was not so certain the move was best choice for the family.
Prior to leaving England, the Sermons had a comfortable home and Joseph steady work. But at Elizabeth’s insistence they sold their property, packed up their children (Henry, 5, John, 8, Robert, 6, and Marian Elizabeth, 3) and in February 1856 traveled to the United States on the sailing ship Caravan. They were among the more than 1,200 Mormons bound for America that year. Once in New York they purchased tickets on a westbound train. Ultimately they reached Florence, Nebraska Territory, site of a previous Mormon encampment and still known as Winter Quarters by the Mormons. At first they rented a house, but when money grew tight, they bought and moved into a tent.
