One such group, the Military Immigrant Train, was led by William G. T'Vault. It was one of three groups planning to leave together from St. Joseph. It was under Commander T'Vault that the Riggs and Allen families planned to travel. The T'Vault Military Immigrant Train alone included 66 wagons, almost 300 people, and nearly 1500 head of stock. The two companies joining them would be led by Lawrence McNary and John Herron. These groups were piloted by John Clark, a local trader, who agreed to guide them as far as "Burnett's Trace" - also known as"Independence Road".
William G. T'Vault,
Companies leaving near the same time were led by Samuel Parker, Samuel Hancock, Presley Welch, A. Hackleton, and Solomon Tetherow. Each company established themselves in an orderly fashion. Perhaps they named their group, and they hired officers and assigned roles. The leaders often included a captain, treasurer, secretary, lieutenants, and others with duties related to hunting, scouting, and safety. Bylaws specifying acceptable conduct on the trail were often adopted. Males of sixteen or older could join a group by agreeing to the constitution and paying an initiation fee of one dollar. Members agreed in advance to the authority of the officers of the company.
In the constitution for one of the groups, an article stated that the majority would rule in all cases, and the men were all held to the Military Law of the United States. Bylaws were more specific. For example, murder was punishable by death, an adulterer would receive 39 lashes on their bare back, and dogs running loose around the camp shall be shot at the discretion of the Captain. The constitutions adopted by the other groups were likely similar.
On this day, April 11, in 1845, the Riggs and Allen families had less than a week remaining to make their final preparations. They would leave their homes on the 16th to join T'Vault and the other companies in St. Joseph and prepare for departure.
No comments:
Post a Comment