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By John Hernandez
On Friday, March 23, the Bingham Sacaton Ranch along the San Pedro River was the scene of a remarkable adventure for a number of teenagers. This youth activity was organized and sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS).
Approximately 150 youth ages 14 – 18 from San Manuel, Mammoth, Oracle, Catalina, Oro Valley and north Tucson participated in the re-enactment of the journey of the Mormon pioneers as they made their way to the Salt Lake Valley from Nauvoo, Illinois and the Midwest United States. The pioneers were fleeing persecution and searching for religious freedom to practice their beliefs in a safe place. The exodus began in 1846. After reaching Salt Lake, Brigham Young sent LDS leaders into Arizona to establish colonies there.
Close to 50 adult family members and church leaders also participated in the walk.
The 200 “pioneers” were dressed up in period costumes with the women wearing bonnets and long dresses while the men wore jeans and western style shirts and hats. One kid started the walk barefoot as some of the original Mormons who made the journey did so without shoes. The participants were divided into four companies composed of six “families.” The families were created and ma’s and pa’s were assigned as family leaders. Each family had a hand cart assigned to them. There were 26 carts that made the journey. These carts weighed 300 pounds each before they were loaded with food, water, bedding/sleeping bags and supplies. This was also historically accurate as families made do with what ever they could find to haul their life’s belongings.
The Mormon hand cart pioneers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints that migrated to Salt Lake City, Utah using hand carts to transport their belongings from 1856 to 1860. Most of these pioneers had immigrated to America from England, Scotland, Wales and Scandinavia. They did not have enough money for horse or ox teams with wagons. They made the journey in 10 companies from Nebraska and Iowa. Two of the companies met with disaster along the trail. In central Wyoming, they were caught by heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures. Of the 980 pioneers in these companies, 210 perished. The hand cart Pioneers became an important symbol in LDS culture. They represented the faithfulness and sacrifice of the pioneer generation. They are recognized in events such as Pioneer Day, church pageants and commemorations such as the youth re-enactment of the Mormon Trek.
At 10 a.m., the first company of pioneers began the trek into the Galiuros from the Bingham Sacaton Ranch. The trek followed a dusty sometimes rocky trail through the desert, into sandy dry washes and climbing steep hills pulling the heavy carts. Their destination was a place in the mountains known by the ranchers as the two-hole tank pasture. To get there was a nine mile walk. The temperature was in the 80s when the other companies started on the trail.
Along the way they re-enacted the time of the Mormon Battalion when many men from the trek west volunteered to join the United States Army during the U.S. – Mexican War in 1846. It would be the only religiously based unit in U.S. military history. They would help secure the west for the United States as they marched to California led by Colonel Stephen W. Kearny (Kearny, Arizona is named for him).
The LDS leaders viewed the battalion as a good public relations move and the $42 each enlisted man received for uniform allowance was donated to the church which gave the Mormons a good amount of money to buy badly needed supplies to continue their journey west. During the journey the women now had to work harder and do what their men had done before they volunteered for service. To re-enact this, the men and boys let the ladies and girls do all the pushing and pulling of the carts for awhile.
Upon reaching the two-hole tank pasture, they made camp for the night. After eating, they enjoyed themselves playing pioneer games and square dancing. Tod Polley, President of the Tucson North Stake and some of his counselors accompanied them on the walk. They shared some devotionals with the group, spiritual talk and taught lessons about pioneer heritage. The pioneers then settled in for some much needed sleep.
The return trip started the next morning. All the companies made it back to the Bingham Ranch around 3 p.m. and everyone was glad to be back. The kids were cheering and congratulating each other. When asked how the journey was, most of them said “it was awesome” or ”it was great”. They admitted it was tough but said they would do it again.
Curt Finster, one of the organizers of the youth activity said that they do the re-enactment every few years.
“Every year we do a youth conference with a different theme each year,” he explained. This year the theme is “arise and shine forth.”
Curt said that taking the kids on an outing like this gives them something to strengthen their testimony of faith in Jesus Christ and to better understand the sacrifice the pioneers made so they can worship. “It honors their heritage and what their ancestors went through all though in a simple way,” he said. “The pioneers traveled 1300 miles; we only did 18. It teaches kids that they can do hard things, to persevere. It builds character.”
Curt also said that the “Bingham family were wonderful” for allowing them to use their ranch as a base and helping with the activity. He especially thanked Jim and Linda Bingham.
Participants from the Tri-Community were San Manuel Bishop Lorin McRae, Lorelie McRae, Mary Ann McCrae, Jeremiah Ramsey, Rowdy Richards, Nicole Primero-Predgo and Cody Richards.
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