Letters from the Oregon Trail, 1862–1863

Louisa Cook

INTRODUCTION

It was in the summer of 1962 that two Oregon women, former students, Mrs. Stella Burke, of McMinnville, and Mrs. Lois Hoggard, of Carlton, brought to the editor of this set of books a bundle of aged letters. What they amounted to were letters in diary form written by Mrs. Hoggard’s ancestor, Mrs. Louisa Cook, and written while she was traversing the Oregon Trail in 1862–1863. Mrs. Hoggard had discovered the letters while examining the contents of her grandmother’s trunk. The two women had made typewritten copies of the yellowed sheets, including a copy for me. At that time the publication of such records of American history was not even a dream as yet. However, the discovery of the Cook letters became a motivator for the eventual project of Covered Wagon Women.

The writer of the letters was Louisa (pronounced Lo-EYE-sa) Cook of Cook’s Corners, Huron County, Ohio. Her birthplace was New York State. As a girl she had moved with her family to Ohio. We do not have her birth date, but Mrs. Hoggard said Louisa had been born in 1833. Her parents were Elisha and Eunice Fuller Cook.

There were born to the Cooks two more daughters, Emma and Sarah.

It may seem strange, but Louisa Cook had a daughter, a little girl named Mary, who appears on many of the pages of the letters. Why did Louisa use her maiden name? The story is that she was married to a German man, Gottlieb Johlin, by whom she had given birth to daughter, Mary. The tradition is that the wedding took place in 1850 or 1851. There is no record of Mary’s age at the time of the journey, but a good guess would be six or seven years. Johlin deserted mother and daughter. We had so many more questions to ask her, but Mrs. Lois Thankful Hoggard died on August 19, 1966.

Although Louisa Cook planned to go to Oregon proper, she stopped off at Fort Walla Walla from January to June 1863. She and Mary lived with Lt. Col. Reuben F. Maury and his wife and taught the children of the officers of First Oregon Cavalry for one school year. She taught in the Idaho mining communities from 1864 to late in 1865.

In an undated letter, written probably near the end of 1864, Louisa told of her prospect for marrying a young man named D.M. Walters, “a thoroughgoing Christian,” who was also superintendent of the Sunday school at one of the Placerville churches. They were married about Christmas 1864.

The marriage led to oft-expressed happiness for Louisa, but she was not to live long. It was about Christmas 1865, that she took seriously ill and died in her new husband’s arms. He wrote to the family back east telling them of her death, but not listing the date on which it had occurred.

Mr. Walters worked out a way for little Mary to go back to her grandparents with friends who were returning to the east. There are several letters in the Cook collection from him discussing this journey. Thus ends the story of Louisa (Cook) Walters.

There needs to be a word about Mr. and Mrs. Hiram Smith. He was the guide and “captain” of the wagon train with which Louisa and Mary traveled west. He seems to have been a most dynamic man in Louisa’s eyes. We have not been able to sort out the several Hiram Smiths in Oregon. In fact, it is difficult to sort out Smiths of any pioneer venture.

There also needs to be a word about the oft-mentioned “omnibus.” An omnibus in those days was a vehicle that was longer than a typical stagecoach, seating ten or twelve passengers. According to Seymour Dunbar, in his History of Travel in America, Volume III (Indianapolis, 1915), p. 1017, “The American omnibus was a modification of the previous stage-coach, and first vehicle used in connection with the periodic transportation of city populations. Adopted by many large towns during the period between 1835 and 1855.” There is no indication in Louisa Cook’s letters of what happened to the omnibus.

THE AMERICAN OMNIBUS

After the death of Mrs. Hoggard, the family sold Louisa Cook’s letters to a prominent New York manuscript dealer. They are now in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library of Yale University. We are grateful for that library’s permission to publish the six letters in that collection that have to do with the overland journey.

It was while browsing through Andrea Hinding’s Women’s History Sources, I (N.Y., 1979), Item 1432, p. 866, that we learned of another collection of Louisa Cook letters in the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, Toledo, Ohio. Most of them have to do with Louisa’s Walla Walla and southern Idaho years, but one of the letters in this collection was written “On the plains near Boise River,” on October 12, 1862, and is included below as Letter V with appreciation and permission of that library.

LETTER I

On the plains of Nebraska 230 miles from
Leavenworth City June 11th/62

My Dear Mother & sisters

Though far far from home not many hour[s] pass that I do not think of you & as I have a few leisure moments I will occupy them in writing to you & as usual will refer to my journal I wrote to you and Emma1 from Leavenworth City2 just before we left there which was the morning of the 3rd of June. The first night that we camped at Leavenworth two of our mules strayed away and we were hindered for some time by that event though two men were out constantly in search of them they were gone for over a week.

June 3rd. The mules which strayed away a week ago were brought in having been found 70 miles from here on the Kansas river. After an early breakfast we broke camp & came out about 13 miles from Leavenworth where we camped near a creek for the night. Our train consists of an omnibus drawn by 4 mules a coach & 4 2 baggage wagons drawn by 4 each & 1 wagon drawn by 2 mules & 3 men & one woman (Mrs. Smith) who ride in the saddle. Our road is hard & smooth but is over a constant succession of hills.

June 4th. Drove about 15 miles & camped on a side hill. Was obliged to get our water for cooking and the teams from a well only 60 ft deep.

June 5th. Left camp at an early hour. Traveled 17 miles & camped out on white water creek near an excellent spring. Went out & gathered some strawberries for tea the finest ones I ever saw. Made our bed on the ground & slept in the open air for the first time.

June 6th. Rose at ½ past three. Got breakfast & started out very early. The country to day is a rolling prairie & with a few exceptions entirely destitute of timber. Traveled about 22 miles & camped away from wood or water of which however we had a supply on hand.

June 7th. Our supply of water fell rather short this morning & we had to put our dishes away without washing. About 10 we passed through the village of Seneca [Kansas]. 2 small stores a blacksmith shop shoe shop 1 tavern & a few houses constitute the town. The great scarcity of timber must be a great obstacle in the way of a rapid settlement in this part of the country.3 At 11 we stopped on the bank of a creek where we rested about 3 hours. Gathered a cup of strawberries to eat with our lunch. A family on their way to Fort Kerney [Kearney]4 with their oxen & cows were camped near us & the woman kindly gave us a good supply of milk the first I had tasted in a long time. Traveled about 24 miles & camped on the open prairie.

June 8th. To day is sabbath day but at an early hour we were on our way as usual & with the exception that the ladies have laid by their knitting & sewing &c there is nothing to remind one that it is Gods day. About noon passed through Marysville [Kansas] crossed the Big Blue river & about ½ mile up the river found a beautiful camping ground & in less time than it takes me to write it the mules were unharnessed hobbled & eagerly feeding on the rank prairie grass which is so abundant on the plains. Some of the party were bathing in the river some reclining under the shade of the trees & others who thought the whole of the sabbath might as well be put in were washing fishing & hunting for berries or game.

June 9th. The country to day is as usual only still more so one vast ocean of land. About once in from 10 to 20 miles we will cross a creek or small river. These are invariably lined with bushes & forest trees but with the exceptions of these there is not a bush shrub or tree to be seen. The country is not as level as one might suppose but very ridgy. Some times there will [be] 25 or 30 ridges one after the other so that no sooner are you down one hill than you commence to rise up another. Our road is smooth as a house floor & as wide as a street in a city for the last day or two. It is getting to be quite dusty nor can we expect any change for the better on that score. Carried our wood & water 4 miles & camped for the night on the open prairie after traveling about 25 miles.

June 10. After 8 miles traveling this morning we came to plenty of water. Occasionally we pass by a house built of poles or small logs & covered with earth or turf. Sometimes there will be a three rail fence round a patch of ground but generally where you find a patch of plowed ground it is all open. About 1 oclock we crossed & camped on the Little Sandy. The water is very clear & sandy & most of us improved the opportunity & had a general wash up. We made 25 miles to day.

June 11th. Crossed the Big Sandy in the forenoon & rode at a pretty good rate till about 2 P. M. We passed several companies some with horses but most with 4 to 6 yoke of oxen on the wagon. After making some 26 miles camped on the Little Blue. Had some Buffalo meat for supper which Mrs. Smith had purchased on the road. We have a guard out every night & to night an extra one was put out on account of guerillas but we were not disturbed. I was up from ½ past 11 till one to see the eclipse which was a total one.

June 12th. Was on the road at an early hour & passed 5 or 6 emigrant trains who had not got started yet. Saw a great many Antelopes to day on the hills but our boys could not get near enough to get a shot at one. Traveled 30 miles to day & camped on the little Blue.

June 13th. Left camp at 6. Traveled 9 miles & camped on the little Blue for the boys to have a Buffalo hunt as they have been almost crazy since we arrived in the Buffalo country. But I must close now for we are just nearing an office. I must close. Good bye.

LETTER II

June 20th On the plains 90 miles from Kearny.

Dear Mother & sisters

At my last letter I left off very abruptly as [we] came to an office & I will begin my journal where I left off there.

June 13th. Left camp at 6 & traveled 9 miles when we laid by on the Little Blue to give the boys an opportunity to hunt Buffalo as they have been almost wild with excitement since they came into the Buffalo country. About 10 A.M. they started off with a good supply of powder shot & ball & great anticipations but poor fellows their feathers looked sadly drooping as they came straggling into camp near night fall foot sore & weary & having secured among them all one small Antelope. There are thousands of Buffaloes in this part of the country but it is said they herd near the Antelopes upon which they depend for warning of danger & as there is nothing to screen the hunter from their sight it is next to impossible to get near them unless he is well mounted. 4 California travelers who have camped near us for a few nights were out also on their horses & 2 of them shot at Buffaloes but as they were about 15 miles from camp they saved only the choicest parts & left the rest on the ground.

June 14th. At ½ past 3 our camp was astir & as soon as our breakfast of potatoes buffalo meat bread & coffee was dispatched & dishes washed & stowed away we were again on the road. Traveled 18 miles & camped on a side hill at the foot of which was a small pond of water & 3 or 4 elm trees in the shade of which we set our tables & had our tea about 4 oclock. About dusk the wind which had been blowing hard all day increased to a perfect gale & preparations were made for what is called a Platte river storm which by the way is an event not to be trifled with. The wagons & carriages were drawn up side by side chained together & the outside ones staked down. The stoves camp kettles frying pans camp stools & every thing moveable was made as secure as they could have been on board of ship in a storm at sea. However the gale passed away without rain and though the wind blew furiously till about 10 it subsided then without doing any damage.

June 15th. Sabbath day finds us on our way at ½ past 5 as usual with prospects of a pleasanter time than we have had the last 2 days which were so intolerably hot. We meet or pass the stage daily which runs on the Leavenworth-San Francisco route. The stage stations are from 15 to 25 miles apart. We passed by the beginning of one to day a tent with a half finished pole house close by. One of our horsemen rode up to ask for fresh water & was told that all the wood & water they had was brought 10 miles. Some of the houses are made of boards some of poles & then again of sods laid up like brick work. We saw several herds of Buffaloes & Antelopes at a distance to day also 2 tame Elks feeding near the road. Our Cal. friends brought in an Antelope to day which they gave to us reserving only a hind quarter for their own use. After traveling 27 miles we came to the Platte river a little off from which we camped for the night. I had almost forgotten to say that which threatened us last night came to day about noon a most terrific thunder storm coming nearer & nearer till the flash & report were instantaneous almost blinding & deafening our senses. However it passed over in a short time and we were again on our way well pleased with the change in the air by the lightning & the dusty roads by the rain

June 16th. Started at ½ past 5 & the first mile of our road being a sort of marsh formed by the overflowing of the Platte was quite difficult for our teams to get through but after that the road was smooth & fine as ever. At 10 A.M. we came to Fort Kearney composed of barracks garrison house & government stables. A short distance further on & we came to Kearney City a place of 12 families as many groceries and grogshops & a cobblers & blacksmith shops. All the houses here were made of turf cut out 4 inches thick & 1 to 1½ feet long & laid up the same as brick work. For floors the ground is covered with canvas or carpets & the walls are whitewashed or lined with coarse cloth & on the whole looking very cool & tidy. This style of Architecture is adoby or Doby. An Orderly Sergeant in the regular service was training round on his horse near our carriage & upon our praising his horse (which was certainly a fine one) he begged to know if we would accept a little wine & without waiting for a reply scampered off returning in a few moments with a bottle of the best imported wine which of course we accepted with many thanks. The men here seemed to be of a rough cast & we were told by a gentleman who had been waiting here 2 weeks to join our co[mpany] that drinking gambling cursing & fighting was the order of the day in Kearney. Made 18 miles & camped on the Platte. After supper went with one of our men to fish. Caught 2 and he caught 6 which made a good meal for the next morning.

June 17th Our road to day has seemed to be perfectly level although it is said to be a gradual ascent for 300 miles. The river is much higher than common & the current very rapid so that it will be impossible for us to cross at the usual fording place. Rode 30 miles & camped on Plum Creek where we have plenty of water but no wood but a few little sticks that we picked up on the road & Buffalo chips (you may guess what they are) which we can gather up any where on the Prairie.

June 18. Passed 3 or 4 solitary Doby houses & saw herds of Antelopes at a distance several times. The last house we passed was a private dwelling post office & store all in one. The building was built of hewn logs & contained 2 rooms. In front of one was a small yard filled with flower roots in bloom rose bushes lilacs flowering currants & although suffering from the drowth looking the most like civilization of anything I have seen in a long time. 2 young Antelopes lay in the corner of the yard with their long ears erect and their bright saucy eyes looking around at all there was to be seen. For 3 or 4 days we have seen no attempt at farming not so much as a garden & the country has a very barren appearance. The few people along the road depending upon what they can make out of the emigrants. Potatoes are 1½ dollar per bushel corn the same sugar 20 to 25 cts. per pound salt 8 cts flour 6 cts &c so to night we had Indian pancakes bean soup cold boiled bacon hard bread apple sauce tea & those who wished it had mush and milk. Our Co[mpany] is divided into 6 messes. The men all help to harness & unharness the mules & get wood & water & the women all help about the cooking. In my mess is George Robinson & Mr. Kennedy from St. Louis & Miss McClung of Findley Mary & myself. George sees to the wood & water business & Maggie & myself take turns about one doing the cooking & the other washing dishes. We have 3 stoves among us but I prefer a fire on the ground. G. digs a little short trench in the ground just wide enough to let the frying pans & camp kettles rest on the edge & we can cook capitally with this.

June 19th Jogged along to day after the same old fashion over the smooth level road with nothing to be seen but an occasional Doby house & the frequent emigrant trains which now fail to attract hardly a passing glance as they all bear the same monotonous appearance. About noon we came to a camp of Sioux (pro Sooz). The women & children came out of their tents to wonder and admire our omnibus the first of the kind probably they had ever seen. We looked in one of their tents a dirty smoky filthy place filled with dried Buffalo skins, & various other articles. The women wore a blanket fastened round the neck & waist their arms & legs bare beads round their necks & hanging from their ears brass rings round their wrists & fingers & their faces & at the parting of their hair painted with sort of red paint. Some of the children were in a perfectly nude state. Others had a short cloth tied round their waist & 2 or three of the boys had on a pair of old pants. Drove 31 miles & camped near some bluffs.

June 20th. Passed 2 ranches (all the houses whether fenced in or not are called ranches) to day and 1 Indian village. Our outfit which is said by every one to be the best that has ever crossed the plains attracts a great deal of attention & especially among the Indians. We traveled 21 miles to day & camped on the open prairie about 3 miles from the forks of the Platte about noon.

June 21st. Started at 6 oclock & traveled 8 miles to a fording place on the Platte. Here Mr. Smith equipped himself & mounting the pony went about two thirds of the way across where he dismounted & walked back going in some places to his shoulders. He decided that it would not be safe to cross here on account of the quick sand although it would have saved us 55 miles travel & a piece [sic] of bad road. In a short time again we were on our way & for 3 miles our road was a very hard one over hills & gullies of sand but after that we came into the valleys again where our road was again level & smooth. Traveled 34 miles & camped on the Platte at another fording place which we shall try to morrow. A train of 6 wagons came in just after we did with 5 yoke of oxen attached to each wagon. They started from near Omaha City about 150 miles back & had large fat oxen but their drivers like nearly all the drivers I have seen on the road are a cruel brutal set of men lashing their beasts who covered with welts would shrink from their approach & manifest the greatest fear but there was no mercy for them. Although there is plenty of grass & water for teams on the road we have passed by the dead carcasses of an ox on an average of once a mile from Leavenworth to this camp just literally drove to death. But enough of this unpleasant subject.

June 22nd. Have just found that there is an office here where I can leave my letter & so I will close it up & sent it on. Mr. Smith is out trying the ford so I do not know if we are to cross or not. I will try to write you again in a week or so. I do not have time to write to any one but you & if any of the friends wish to hear from me they can do so through you. If you go over to the Debolt neighborhood give my love to the friends there & if you like you can let them read my letters. At Salt Lake I will try to write to Uncle John. I would give much to hear one word from Home. I might have had letters all along the road as well as not. All the rest have had letters but me but I hope at Salt Lake I shall find I am not forgotten. I hope you will save my letters as I have written a great deal that I have not in my journal & when I come back I should like to have them to refer to or look over but I must close.     Good bye.

Your affectionate daughter          Louisa Cook.

LETTER III

Jewsburg [Julesburg, Colorado] June 24th/62

Dear Mother & Sisters

I sent a letter some 2 or 3 days ago to you but I am much afraid you will never get [it] as I sent it to an office by an emigrant a perfect stranger & on the plains one does not know who they can trust. I will drop you a few lines here at Jewsburg where we intend to cross the Platte although I have not collected much to make a letter interesting yet I think even a short letter will be welcome from one so far away. I will resume my journal where I left off & if you do not get my last you must imagine the deficiency or I can supply it at another time.

June 22nd. At ½ past 7 we broke camp & drove down to the river bank where Mr. S. was prospecting as to the chance of fording the Platte river. After riding swimming & walking in the water about 2 hours he was forced to give up crossing & we came on 16 miles & camped by a Frenchmans ranch & an Indian lodge. The squaws & children came round our tents & where we were cooking watching every motion nor could we drive them away by any signs or motions. Some were covered & looked rather clean while others were entirely naked. Just imagine 27 of us on our camp ground near the river bank 3 large covered baggage wagons & 2 carriages ranged in a row at a sufficient distance apart to admit of our tables in their shade 3 of the messes cooking by as many stoves & camp fires. Our suppers are soon ready & our tables which are converted out of our provision boxes are set & 27 of the hungriest folks you ever see are soon set too. some on camp stools & more on the ground ready to fall to at the meal of warm pancakes bacon applesauce & tea with a hearty relish & to complete the picture some ½ dozen little greasy naked or ½ dressed Indians hanging ready to devour you with their eyes & your victuals with their mouths & you have a faint idea of how we looked the night of the 22nd.

June 23 rd. Rose at 4 dispatched breakfast the mules were brought in & preparations were made for getting our wagons on the other side which the Frenchman had kindly agreed to do with his five yoke of oxen for the moderate sum of $20 dollars (By the way mules are the most timid animals about going in the water you most ever saw & at the same time being rather obstinate at times it will not do to risk going across with anything but oxen as getting set in the middle of a river ½ a mile wide would not be so pleasant). Before the Franchman with his oxen got into camp one of our Findley [Ohio] friends thought he would try it & waded in till he got into water to his armpits when they concluded that was rather too deep & so we started on. Passed several ranches & 2 Indian lodges. Our road to day has been equal to any turnpike a hard gravelly road & wide enough for 4 teams abreast. Rode 22 miles & camped on the Platte.

June 24th. At daybreak our camp was astir & by 6 we were on the road. Our road to day has been a very hard one on account of the sand. The passengers have been obliged to walk a good deal through the sand banks & we passed a good many teams who were the next thing to fast with five or six yoke of oxen to a wagon. You would be astonished to see the amount of emigration that is going west. A gentleman who came in to night from Denver City 5 days on the road 190 miles says he counted 756 wagons on the way all going west. Besides this a great many ford the river here so we intend to do saving some 175 miles of extra travel by the same means. A person can hardly realize that they are traveling on the plains as emigration teams are to be seen almost any time & three or four times a day we pass a ranch stage station grocery or blacksmith shop. The town of Jewsburgh is made up of 6 dwelling houses a stage station & 2 blacksmith shops. Made 14 miles to day & camped about 10 oclock A. M.

June 25th. This morning I was out of the omnibus by ½ past 3. Got breakfast & my messmate Miss McClung5 is washing dishes & I will finish my letter & drop into the office here which is on this side of the river. Mary is out as usual scouring round as far outside of the camp as she dares to go bringing more flowers fancy stones & other treasures than would load a mule at every camp. She is well & gets along with all the company nicely. We have a young man along who speaks German & she has taken a particular fancy to him. My health has been good all the time except a bad cold & cough. I was like to have that old pain in my side again but I steeped up about half of the Spignut roots6 that I brought & it cured my cough in about 3 days. I am real glad I brought them & only wish I had more. We have got now where we do not have any dews & in a few days will be beyond storms or rains. We have been highly favored about storms for though every night there has been apparently heavy storms around us we have only had a little taste of them. Last night there was a heavy black cloud in the west lightning & distant thunder but we had nothing of it but a heavy wind. Mary & I with 3 others sleep in the omnibus. The seats are on the sides & we have boards which we lay across & a cushion & our blankets make a real comfortable place to lie on. Mrs. Skader [Shaden?] at the corners7 gave me a pillow which comes real acceptable here. Our Kerney friend has been quite sick on the road with a bowel complaint. He stopped at one of the groceries to get some medicine but was told there was no call for such things & the man said he was the first sick man he had seen since he lived here. This is a very healthy climate I have no doubt but our company with the exception of 2 or 3 myself among the number have been more or less affected with a diarrhea caused I suppose by drinking so much water & change of diet. We shall hardly know how to act when we get into civilized society again. When we get into a house we shall be looking round for a blanket or sachel to sit down upon & call for our tin plates & cups to eat & drink from. (I was broke off here by breaking up of camp & not being able to leave my letter will resume my journal). About 7 we were down to the bank where some 25 or 30 wagons were waiting to cross the river nearly all families moving to Oregon Washington Territory or Cal. A Government train lay here & Mr. S engaged them to help him cross the river which was about a third of a mile wide with their ox teams & large wagons which had a water tight box. The wagons & carriages were hitched together in 2 trains & with 10 yoke of oxen to each of the three loads we crossed the river the mules having been swum over before. Our wagon boxes had been raised about ½ their width so that the water did not run in & we got safely across. We were about 2 hours getting ready & crossing our bill for helping being 30 dollars. Came out about 5 miles & camped on a creek.

June 26th. Started from camp at ½ past 5 & traveled 30 miles. About noon we passed a stage station the only thing life like we have seen to day. A thunder storm last night cleared the air which was very oppressive but to day is very refreshing. Camped on Pole creek.

June 27th. Started at 6 A. M. Traveled 4 miles when we came to the stage station & what has been very rare for a few days a good well of water. Our road here led up on to a ridge some 26 miles in length quite hilly & destitute of creeks springs & 2 attempts to dig wells having proved a failure although one had been dug to the depth of a hundred ft. Drove 31 miles & camped on Muddy springs within sight of the Black Hills & close to a stage station. In the evening Platt took his fiddle & our co went over to stage station & danced cotillions till 10 oclock.

June 28th. Although we retired late last evening we were up so soon after 3 & by 5 we were on the road which proved to be a hard one on account of the sand. About 6 or 7 we came in sight of Court house rock a vast pile of sandstone & soapstone some 400 ft above the level & deriving its name from the shape of the top which is like the dome of a court house. The rock seemed to be a short distance from us but when we had driven 4 hours at the rate of 4 miles an hour we had just arrived opposite it & though it seemed to be just over yonder Mr. S. told us it was distant about 6 miles. About 9 we came in sight of one of the greatest natural curiosities I ever saw Chimney rock. We traveled 4 or 5 hours after it seemed very near us & when we camped it still seemed to be about a quarter of a mile ahead of us. Some of our party thought they would give it a closer inspection & as they went off I noticed a sly laugh on Mr. Smiths phiz which was fully explained when they came back having walked some 10 miles. The main body of the pile is the shape of a mound about 300 ft high & from the center of this a round spire or chimney rises or formerly rose to the height of 400 ft but it has crumbled away till now it is but 150 ft making the top of the spire about 450 ft from the level. A ridge of bluffs run about 6 miles from & parallel with the river between which is our road but the bluffs which I have mentioned stand out distant from the ridge. Drive 21 miles & camped on the Platte.

June 29th. At a very early hour we were on our way & soon after passing chimney rock we came in sight of another what shall I call it, vast pile of rock & sandstone & which at a distance resembled closely the first sight of the penitentiary at Jefferson City [Missouri] but as we came nearer looked exactly like some of old castle as I have seen them pictured out before now. If I were only a word painter I would try to give you a description of it but Nature has blessed me with no such gift & so I can give you no idea of it but only tell you that it was grand splendid & magnificent. It seemed to cover hundreds of acres rising up in some places abruptly in others with a gradual slope to the height of 5 or 600 ft in some places covered with grass & flowers in others perfectly bare or with a few scattering pines or firs irregular shaped & divided into 2 distinct parts between which lay our road. From one side rose a lofty bastion or tower perfectly round from other places were chimneys & spires & it needed but little fancy to convert the whole into the ruins of some old castle. Although we came in plain sight of it by 6 we did no[t] reach it till about 2 in the afternoon. Drove 37 miles & camped on the Platt.

June 30th. At 6 we were on the road which to day has been a very good one quite level. Traveled 14 miles & camped at 11 on Horse Shoe Creek near a stage station. The boys borrowed a seine & caught a fine lot of fish while the girls having borrowed a couple of tubs had a general good time cleaning up. About 6 a shower came up but did not last long, & by 8 the camp was all quiet. Are within 35 miles of Laramie.

July 1st. Started about 8 this morning & traveled 26 miles. The first part of the road was quite sandy & hilly but the last 11 miles was quite level lying close to the river on one side & steep rocky bluffs upon the other in some places so near as to just admit of but one team passing over the road. Camped on a creek a branch of the Platte at 3 in the afternoon 9 miles from Laramie which place we will pass through to morrow. All the co are looking for letters from home there but poor Louisa. At Laramie we are 525 miles from Salt Lake City. We have had a very warm day to day as warm as any first of July day I ever experienced in Ohio. I am sitting in the mouth of Mr. Smiths tents with a board on my knee on which I am writing. Mr. S says tell your mother that we had some of the best fish for supper that was ever eat & that her girl gets along with the journey over the plains much better than he expected she would. So much for him. We have just come in sight of Laramie where I am to leave my letter. Mr. Smith says give my love to your mother. I can hardly write when the carriage is going as you will see. When I write next I will tell you about a war dance I saw to day. O how I wish I was going to get a letter to day as the rest expect to. My love to all the friends. I do not write to any one but you.

Good bye              Mrs. Louisa Cook

LETTER IV

July 15

1 days drive from the summit of the Rocky mountains My Dear Mother & Sisters

A very hard days drive yesterday has so fatigued our teams that we must lay by to recruit today & I embrace the opportunity to write beginning where I left off with my journal.

July 2nd. Left camp at 6 & passed through a variety of scenery at times level & again hilly with high rocky bluffs rising up to a great height. About 10 we came to an Indian village numbering some 300. Near the center of the encampment a sort of flag was raised & round this was a circle of warriors dancing or rather hopping round & round to the tumming of a drum & tinkling of a little bell & their own monotonous war song. They were decked off in all their finery & occasionally as some of them got tired they would drop out & others would take their places. On inquiry at a ranch near by found that these were Sioux who had just returned from a fight with the Pawnees bringing home 4 scalps & were now celebrating the victory. We saw several Indian graves near by being a sort of box some of them painted & decked with feathers & raised to the height of 12 or 15 ft on poles. About noon we came to Fort Laramie where some 600 troops are stationed. There were some very neat looking houses here built of Adoby & painted over the residence of the officers. We were told that there were but 2 white women in the place. Made 16 miles & camped on the Platte.

July 4th. No thundering of cannon rattling to & fro of carriages filled with pleasure seekers or attractive displays announced to us that to day is the anniversary of our national independence & yet not unfit is it that quiet & stillness should reign when we realize at what fearful cost our Government is struggling to maintain those rights which our ancestors have handed down to their posterity. Later than usual our camp was astir this morning for at the request of the gentlemanly keeper of the station near where we camped Mr. S had promised that we should lay by till noon & give the boys an opportunity to fish. Accordingly about noon a coach & four came rolling up from the station & taking on our passengers were soon out of sight & returned about 11 with a good supply of splendid fish. By 12 we were on our way over the roughest road we have found yet. We are among the Black hills & it has been some down & a good deal up all the afternoon. Twice they were obliged to fasten ropes to the omnibus & keep it from tipping over on the sidling hills but we got to camp safe & sound after traveling 14 miles.

July 5. Broke camp at ½ past 6 & resumed our journey over 26 miles of as rugged road as one could wish to see. Laramie peak is still in view & all around are high rocky hills bluffs & peaks covered with cedars or pines or else with rocks pebbles & hard heads. At noon we laid by on a creek with a red sandy bottom & bordered with forest trees. Rested an hour or two & went on till 3 when we camped near Chiles Ranch.8

July 6th. Rose at 5 & dispatched breakfast washed dishes & wandered around camp till 8 when we resumed our journey. Found the road very hilly & rocky the rocks being of a bright red color. Passed a ranch on the banks of a creek & at 3 camped on Box wood Creek9 having traveled 18 miles.

July 7th Started at 6. Passed through the creek & over a very rough road until about 10 when we came down again into the Platte bottoms where the road was more level. Through all our journey we have found many flowers that remind us of home. Among these are the larkspur which grew in great perfection June pinks Morning star snowdrop flowering currant &c &c. Hear many reports about Indians & some of the ladies are very much frightened. Musketoes have troubled us for several nights.

July 8th. Was on the road by 6. At 10 came to the Platte bridge.10 Laid by an hour or so when the teams were again hitched up & we crossed over paying a toll of 5 dollars a wagon & 50 cts for horsemen. After crossing we struck into the tide of emigration from Omaha City. Saw our Cal friends for the first time in a good while. Drove 28 miles & camped on the Red Butes near the Platte.

July 9th. At the first ranch we came to our horsemen staid behind & borrowed a seine to fish but after making 5 hauls & catching 2 fish came on & overtook us about 12. Met a mountaineer from whom Mr. S bought a part of an Antelope. Drive 22 miles & camped by one of the best springs I ever saw where the water bubbled up between the rocks at the foot of a hill.

July 10. Was up before sunrise but did not get on the road till 7. We found the road quite sandy. About 12 we reached Sweet Water Bridge11 where a party of the Ohio 6th cavalry are stationed. Crossed the bridge and passed Independence rock a large body of solid rock or layers of rock some 300 ft high & a mile in circumference. 5 miles after we came to the Devils Gate the most wonderful sight I ever saw. To the right of the road was a vast pile of rocks & 4 or 5 of us left the carriage to ascend to the top. About the center of this vast pile we came to the Gate which is a cleft or Gap looking to us as we looked down as though the mountains had parted in the center & each quarter settled back leaving a chasm apparently a thousand ft deep at the bottom of which the sweet water river run[s] bubbling along as clear as a crystal. I ascended to the highest peak & looked over & it seemed as though I could never catch my breath it was so awfully grand. This rock as well as Independence rock was covered with the names of travelers. Near by was the grave of a man who becamp dizzy at this Gap and fell over killing him instantly. Drove 26 miles & camped on a little creek of the purest of water but very poor grass for our teams.

July 11. Our campgrounds was so bare that to day we went but 7 miles & laid by for the day. 6 of the boys went out to hunt in the bluffs or mountains which appear to be a mile off but are really 7. We are now on very elevated ground but there are hills or ridges that rise to a great height. The boys found snow 5 or 6 ft deep & had a game of snow ball. They saw some game but the emigration has thinned & frightened them so much that they could not get near them.

July 12. To day we have passed bluff & rocky ranges & several emigrant trains drawn by oxen. Snow is visible at the highest point. Met a party of soldiers who were leaving this road which is being changed to another route. Traveled 25 miles & camped on Sweet Water.

July 13th. Sabbath day finds us on our road & perhaps not one half of the co will once think that this is Sunday to day. We have found the road very hard on account of sand & have been obliged to walk a good deal. About noon we found a grave near the road. On a board at the head we were informed that John Scott had been killed by Youngs who was traveling with him & that he was buried here by emigrants July 6th. Further down the board we were told that Youngs had been overtaken by Emigrants tried & shot & 2 miles further on we found his grave. Drove 25 miles & camped.

July 14th. To day we passed the graves of 2 white men who were killed by the Indians about a week ago. They had fallen behind the train when the Indians attacked & murdered them taking their teams & whatever of value they had in their wagons. We are appraoching the summit of the Rocky range & have had several long hills to climb to day traveled 35 miles & camped near some bluffs.

July 15th. Our teams were so much jaded by yesterdays drive that we lay by to day to recruit. Spent the day in washing cooking & c. A train of 16 wagons drawn by mules & horses passed by bound for Washington Territory. 1 of the wagons was covered with a large flag looking very conspicuous with its red white & blue stars & stripes.

July 16th. By six we found ourselves traveling over one of the best roads I ever saw smooth gravely & hard as a pavement & very level. At noon we came opposite the snow or wind river mountain which we have traveled in sight of 3 or 4 days. It has the appearance of an irregular shaped mound & the snow which crowns the top looked like a bright silver cloud against the blue sky. About 3 we came to the summit of the Rocky Mountains or what is called the South Pass where the Sweet Water river runs to the east & the Pacific Springs run to the west. Soon after we passed a snow bank about ½ mile off the road apparently but little higher than our heads. The nights for 2 or 3 of the past days have been very cold & this morning I ate my breakfast shivering with my shawl wrapped close round me. When I combed my hair there was so much electricity about it that I could scarcely get it done up. For the last 200 or 300 miles the soil in places is strongly impregnated with alkali or saleratus so as to be white with it in spots. The grass is much greener in these places & is very bad for teams. I will send you a little in this letter. We find some fine stones which I would like to send you specimens of cornelian & Agates &c.

July 17th. Started about 7 & traveled 18 miles over an excellent road with but few hills & very little sand. The country is said to be almost level here for 80 miles on the summit of the mountains. Snow is visible all the time.

July 18. At an early hour we were on our way passing 2 camps one of 25 & 1 of 18 wagons all drawn by cattle ½ of which are cows. All the trains we pass nearly have cows yoked in to the wagons. A long line of mountains are visible covered with snow lying to the north of where we passed through. Crossed the Big and Little Sandy before noon & after traveling 28 miles we camped on the Big Timbers creek at 3 P. M.

July 19. Started at 7 & passed a long train bound for the west. All the trains we come to we pass & never see them again. Even our Cal friends who have bid us good by 4 or 5 times because they were going ahead have concluded to travel behind us. 1 of their co has joined us Charles Williams by name. There are no trees in view scarcely any grass & it is quite difficult to find feed for our teams. The whole country is covered with an herb resembling wormwood in appearance & smell but called wild sage. It grows about 2 ft high in bunches as large as a ½ bushel & the stalks about as large as a bean pole die down every year making very good fuel & indeed is all we have had to burn a good part of the time since we left the land of Buffalo Chips. About 11 we came to Green River which we were obliged to cross in an old tub of a thing dignified by the name of ferry boat.12 A rope was attached to each bank which were about 40 rods apart. To this the boat was attached by 2 ropes or pulleys & being drawn up to a sort of staging not far from the bank the men waded out to it & pulled on the wagons by ropes taking over 1 wagon & 2 or 3 mules at a time. We were 1½ hours crossing paying a ferriage of 30 dollars. All the streams of water are much higher this spring than they were ever known before & when Mr. S went through here before he drove through them all without any trouble. Drove 19 miles & camped at 2 P. M.

July 20th. Ate our breakfast of Johnny cake bacon & coffee just as the sun was coming up & were soon on our way again. About 10 we came to Hams Fork which being much higher than usual was very difficult to cross & the soil being a sort of quick sand only heightened the difficulty. The wagon beds were raised so that the water should not run into them & they crossed over one by one. The omnibus was too heavily loaded & 2 of the ladies & myself rode over on mules drawing our clothes & feet up under us to keep from getting wet. After we got across one of the wagons & the hind team went down in the quicksand clear to the wagon box & the other teams had to move as fast as they could till we got up on higher ground. Drove 13 miles when we came to an excellent spot of grass on the banks of a creek where we camped for the night.

July 21st. At an early hour we were on our road which we found rather hilly. About noon we came to Black Fork a branch of the Green river but it was so high that we were obliged to go 10 miles out of our way to cross. We have 3 or 4 cases of mountain fever Mrs. Smith among the rest. The patients are very sick for 2 or 3 days but Mr. S soon breaks it up with Blue Mass13 & quinine. Drove 31 miles & camped near Fort Bridger.

July 22nd. I expect we shall have a chance to put in letters here so I will close & seal this up. We are within 100 miles of Salt Lake & I look forward anxiously for letters from home. My health is good & so is Mary. I have lost that sallow sickly look that I had at home and am only black now. Remember me to the friends & let Uncles folks & any who wish read my letters. I will send this to Emma & she can send it on to Mother. If we stay long at Salt Lake I will write you from there & let you know my ideas of Mormonism.    Good Bye

Your affectionate daughter & sister
Louisa

LETTER V

On the plains near Boise river Oct 1214

Dear Sister Emma

I wrote a letter to Mother last night & will put in a few words to you In the first place this is one of the greatest old trips that was ever heard of & we had the full sight of the Elephant you may be sure15 Only think of not sleeping in a bed for 6 or 7 months not eating at a table drinking out of tin cups eating on tin plates spread on the ground no letters from home no news about the war or the country wandering for weeks among the mountains teams nearly worn out provisions nearly gone & then talk about seeing the elephant well we are with the soldiers now & as we are all right now & look forward to getting through sometime this fall you would laugh to see us come into camp about 3 every afternoon tired hungry & of course cross ragged shoes every article of clothing trimed with fringe (all the style here) hoopless spiritless & disposed would we give way to our feelings to be disatisfied with every thing but after supper what a change some 6 or 8 camp fires burn brightly round the corell & round these a cheerful group of men & women seated on a box inverted pail or true Indian style squatted on the ground laughing over the exploits of the day & cracking jokes at one anothers expense truly with all that is disagreeable there is much that is enticing about this wild gipsy life I suppose you have enjoyed yourselves at home as usual this summer grumbling if your biscuits werent light enough your coffee sweetened too much or not enough potatoes are done sweet cake heavy apples too sour & so on never thinking how glad your sister Louisa has been to get a dry piece of bread & a tin cup of coffee thinking it was sumptuous fare if there was only enough of it well I dare say I relish my meals much better than you do but if ever I get into civilized society again wont I know how to enjoy it I have been much disappointed in what I have seen of the Indians I thought when I got away from the white mans settlements where they could roam at will & live uncontaminated by society that we should see some of those noble qualities that have been attributed to them by so many writers but O dear what a contrast filthy degraded deceitful & treacherous they seem to me to be but a little above the brute creation They often visit us in camp to beg or steal no difference which sometimes a blanket around them or perhaps an old shirt or vest or coat seldom but I single garment There have been a good many emigrants killed along the route by Indians but we have been very watchful never being without from one to four guards but one night since we left Leavenworth & then we lost 2 oxen we know that we are watched all the time but they do not like to attack a good sized train & we stick close together Indeed we do not realize that there is any danger only when we hear of others being killed or loosing stock we often pass graves where some poor emigrant has died or lost a wife or child A week ago we passed three little graves & on coming up to the soldiers last night the parents of 1 of the children the father very sick & I fear unlikely to recover His disease like most others is Mountain Fever There are no children but Mary in Mr Smith’s train but in the waggons accompanying him there are some 24 well I can think of nothing else & will close write often & do not wait to get an answer or if you do not hear from me for a long time you must not think I am dead or married (might as well be one or the other) but keep writing Direct to Portland Oregon.

Your affectionate sister
Mrs. L. C. Cook

LETTER VI

Walla Walla Jan 11/6316

Dear Mother

Nearly a month has elapsed since I wrote to you & indeed I guess over but every hour brings along its work with it & I seldom find leisure for writing or but little for reading. We are having beautiful weather for the time of year hardly any cold or wet weather. A very little snow fell one night but was off by noon. My health is excellent. Have had a slight cold but not such colds as I used to have at home. The most that I miss here is the news as they happen along every day. All we get here are from four to five weeks old & then of doubtful authority. Everything we do hear however puts such a discouraging aspect on our side of affairs that it makes me sick almost to read it. How much I would like to hear from home & all my friends as they are now. I have found but very few acquaintances here. People do not visit here as they do at home. It is more as it is in a city. One hardly knows their next door neighbor. As far as I can learn there is quite a sympathy for secessionism not only here but throughout the whole coast. Lieut Col Maury17 with whom I am staying is a graduate of West Point a Unionist & a gentleman but the Col of the regiment who lives next door is believed to be secretly a strong secessionist. So is Gen Alvord18 & many of the officers who are high in rank. I think however a majority of the soldiers are loyal union men as well as the mass of the people. A meeting was held in town a few days ago to discontenance the passing of the greenbacks but finally broke up without accomplishing anything. Every thing is very dear here. If you want a pen holder or a brass thimble you have to pay a quarter for it. I got me a pair of shoes for myself & Mary the other day for which I paid 6 dollars 4 for mine & 2 for Ms. They were the third pair I have got for her since I got here. She has had several presents which have come very good & this morning she was out to play & found a gold dollar. With what she has had given to her she has three dollars & a quarter of her own. I am sorry I could not have brought a supply of things to last till I go to Cal as I expect things are more reasonable there than here. We have no Sabbath here at the fort. I have not been to church since the 4th of May the last Sabbath that I was at the corners. I dont know whether I wrote to you that Mr Surles & Mr Atherton called on me or not. They have gone to Auburn [Baker Co., Oregon] about 100 miles from here. I have not heard from Mr Smith since I left them only that they got through safe to Portland. I suppose we passed through a good deal of danger from the Indians without knowing any thing about it. A good many emigrants have been murdered on the Snake river route as well as on other routes farther south. I have seen very few here as they are not allowed to come on to the reservation. New Years night was celebrated here by a grand Military ball got up by the soldiers. I did not go over but was told that it was a nice affair. The room was large allowing eight set to dance at once with cannon field pieces & other weapons of war arranged around the room interspersed with evergreens & the national colors arranged in a most tasteful manner. There is a great scarcity of girls here say perhaps one to every 100 men. In town they say there is not ½ a doz unmarried ladies to be found. I have no particular arrangements for the summer yet but think perhaps I shall go on to California. I have written to Uncle Robert but have no answer yet. I wish you would send me a Toledo paper once in a while especially when they mention anything about the third Cavalry. Write to me as often as you can & if [I] leave here before they get here I can have them forwarded. M says tell Grandma she hung up her stockings & got them full of candy & nuts a doll a pin cushion & a little flatiron with a goose on it & a little stand to set it on & that she washes her dolls clothes all the time so as to iron them with the little flatiron. If I was sure you would get this I would send Sarah a dollar to have her likeness taken to send me. They only cost 2 dollars on patent leather here.

Goodbye     Louisa

1Emma Crane, wife of Amos Crane.

2For a discussion of the “Leavenworth Road” see Merrill Mattes Great Platte Road (Lincoln, 1969), pp. 149ff.

3For a discussion of these obstacles to settlement see Walter Prescott Webb, The Great Plains (Boston, 1931), passim.

4Here she adds another variation to the spelling of the name of this significant stopping place on the overland trail. The fort was named for General Stephen Watts Kearny, but the name was changed with usage to Kearney. Lilian L. Fitspatrick, Nebraska Place Names (Lincoln, 1960), p. 25.

5There were numerous McClungs crossing the plains to Oregon during the 1862 migration. We have not been able to identify this single woman.

6Spikenard.

7By “ the corners” she means Cook’s Corners, Ohio. This crossroads lay about half way between North Fairfield and Monroeville, in Huron County.

8The only reasonable explanation for this reference is that she heard the words, “ Chiles Branch” wrong. There was an alternate trail that began in the vicinity of Fort Laramie called the “ Fur Trappers’ Road” or “Chiles Route.” It was in 1850 that the overland trail oldtimer, Joseph B. Chiles, guided by an old friend, Joseph Reddeford (Joe) Walker, a mountain man, turned off the main trail to follow a different route on the north bank of the Platte. Helen S. Giffen, Trail-Blazing Pioneer: Colonel Joseph Bellinger Chiles (San Francisco, 1969), pp. 35–47. See also Gregory M. Franzwa, Maps of the Oregon Trail (Gerald, MO, 1982), pp. 108–121.

9This was probably Box Elder Station on the east side of Box Elder Creek. Aubrey L. Haines, Historic Sites Along the Oregon Trail (Gerald, MO, 1981), pp. 170–71).

10As yet there were no military persons stationed at Platte Bridge. Soon after Louisa Cook’s mention of the bridge and its overland station, however, the locale became the center of activity of a single unit of the 2nd Battalion, 6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry. It was a “ one-company post.” The main reason for its station there was to protect the overland telegraph. Robert A. Murray, “ Trading Posts, Forts and Bridges of the Casper Area — Unraveling the Tangle on the Upper Platte,” Annals of Wyoming (Spring 1975), VII, pp. 22–73.

11Sweetwater Station was also occupied by the Ohio cavalry unit during the Civil War. Haines, op. cit., p. 196.

12This is an apt description of Lombard Ferry. Haines says this was the most important of many crossing places in the vicinity. Op. cit., p. 250.

13A preparation in pill form containing finely divided mercury.

14This letter is among the collection of Louisa Cook letters in the Toledo-Lucas Public Library, Toledo, Ohio. All others are in the Yale collection.

15“Seeing the Elephant” was an expression for having lived through the total experience of the overland journey. Professor John Walton Caughey of the University of California defined the phrase as “going through a trying and unpleasant experience and getting the best of it, or at least as coming out alive.” J. Rea, “Seeing the Elephant,” Western Folklore, XXVIII, N o. 1 (Jan. 1969), pp. 21–26. See also Peter Tamony, “To See the Elephant,” Pacific Historian, XX (Winter 1968), pp. 23–29. Merrill J. Mattes has an entire chapter in his classic book, The Great Plane River Road (Lincoln, Nebr., 1969), on “ Elephants of the Platte,” pp. 61–102.

16At this point the journal across the plains is missing. The story is resumed three months later.

17Lt. Col. Reuben F. Maury was a veteran of the Mexican War, who had crossed over to Oregon in 1852. He joined the First Oregon Cavalry and served throughout the Civil War, both at Fort Walla Walla and in Indian campaigns in western Oregon and Washington. He was a West Point graduate. He died in Jackson County, Oregon, in his 85th year. Quarterly, Oreg. Hist. Soc., VIII (March 1907), pp. 77, 328.

18General Benjamin Alvord (Aug. 18, 1813-Oct. 16, 1884) was a prominent military leader in Oregon during the Civil War. He was a West Point graduate who had fought in the Mexican War. When the Civil War broke out he was in Oregon as Chief Paymaster and was placed in command of the Department of Oregon. He raised troops to form the First Oregon Cavalry. Most of the action seen by Alvord was against the Indians of eastern Washington and Oregon. From 1872 he was Paymaster General of the U.S. Army. Howard McKinley Corning, Dictionary of Oregon History (Portland, 1956), pp. 6–7. Thomas M. Spaulding, in his article on Alvord in the Dictionary of American Biography, describes him thus: “ A kindly, unassuming, studious man, his interests were scholarly, and his abilities of a sort little appreciated in an army whose duties lay chiefly on the frontier.” (N.Y., 1928), pp. 235–36.