The Sioux came out on top during that skirmish, and Grattan's body was recovered riddled with arrows. Meanwhile, Reed and McCutchen had headed back up into the mountains attempting to rescue their stranded companions. They were attacked on September 9, 1860, and 11 died in the two-day confrontation. Ironically, on the very day that theIllinoisparty headed west from Springfield, Lansford Hastings prepared to head east from California, to see what the shortcut he had written about was really like. On the third day in the desert, their water supply was nearly exhausted and some of Reeds oxen ran away. Never for a moment could they feel secure; every trip promised to be their last, and many a time, the coach dashed up to a station only to find it in ruins and surrounded by dead. At Fort Laramie, James Reed ran into an old friend fromIllinoisby the name of James Clyman, who had just traveled the new route eastwardly with Lansford Hastings. Time was supposed to heal all wounds, he wrote, but that was B.S. George Bent had for father the famous Colonel William Bentof Bents Fort, but his mother was a Cheyenne woman. It could attack a perfectly healthy person after breakfast and he would be in his grave by noon. She died near Twin Falls, Idaho, and the children ranging from 13 years old to a newborn were orphans for the first time. A history project by Sandy Wilbur. Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations. The party elected George Donner to serve as its leader, and at its peak the Donner party would number some 87 people29 men, 15 women, and 43 childrenin a column of 23 ox-drawn wagons. Elijah P. Utter led a wagon train of 44 emigrants along the Oregon Trail. Practical things were left, too, by people needing to spare their oxen from dragging the heavy loads. A large, well equipped wagon train rolled toward California in 1846. After the publicity, emigration toCaliforniafell off sharply and Hastings cutoff was all but abandoned. Patrick Breen was a member of the Donner Party and kept a diary of their ordeal during the winter of 1846-47. They lived, met, married, and had a son you probably know of: Butch Cassidy. When they finally reached the end of the grueling desert five days later on September 4th, the emigrants rested near the base of Pilot Peak for several days. With George were his third wife, Tamzene, their three children, Frances, Georgia, and Eliza, and Georges two daughters from a previous marriage, Elitha and Leanna. S8, Ep2. He had shot White Wolf several times.. While on a scout with his troop from Fort Union, New Mexico, Bell came upon White Wolf and an equal number of Apache. A combination of military forces compelled the allied tribes to make professions of peace, and for a few months, relieved the trail of its horror. Encountering few problems along the trail, the pioneers reachedFort Laramiejust one week behind schedule on June 27, 1846. Also in the group were the families of George and Jacob Donner. Such accidents could cause the loss of life and most or all of valuable supplies. You had no idea the decision to ferry or ford the river was so gross, did you? Wagon Train is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957-1962), and then on ABC (1962-1965). Patriarch Henry Sager took ill by the time they reached the Rockies, and they buried him alongside Green River. When he sees an opportunity at the bank, it leads to tragedy. Ross is a woman who gets handed a double Two rescuers, Jean-Baptiste Trudeau and Nicholas Clark were left behind to care for the Donners, but soon abandon them to catch up with the relief party.