From Nauvoo to the Unknown

The Mormon Trail was a 1,300 mile path from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City Utah, used between 1846 and 1857 by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). Under the leadership of Brigham Young, the first group of Mormons set out from Nauvoo, to an undetermined destination somewhere in the Great Basin. Young hoped to find a place sufficently isolated and undesirable so that his people would not be bothered and could worship without persecution. When the settlers finally reached the Salt Lake Valley, Brigham Young is documented to have said , "This is the right place, drive on." Over the next 11 years, more than 13,000 Mormons poured into northern Utah.

Next Stop: Nauvoo, Illinois

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