Determined and with Courage: Heading West

Copyright © 2022 Marlin L. Patterson.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents,

organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products

of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

844-714-3454

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Front cover photo

By Granddaughter and her husband, Samantha and Lance Goodwin also

granddaughter Kristy Woolford, With Loryann Balls at the camera.

Contact with the author:

[email protected]

ISBN: 978-1-6642-7206-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-7207-1 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-7205-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022912776

WestBow Press rev. date: 10/10/2022

CONTENTS

Author’s Note

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

AUTHOR’S NOTE

T his story has a little different format as it gives the reader a feeling and understanding of the daily routine of early pioneer life. It allows the reader to live the life of those the story is about. The story also will give the reader good feelings of giving, sharing, working and loving your neighbor and others and the things around you.

The stories of people working with animals in this book are not fiction, they are true experiences of the author, members of his family and close friends. These stories have been incorporated in this book to help the reader realize the intelligence of birds and animals. One needs to recognize the ability of other creatures as they can learn our language and can think on their own, remember past experiences, and what to do to help us in many ways. They can tease and play games with us, but can we learn their language?

Up until the late 1930’s to early 1940’s Horses were still used in farming. Families were using horse and buggy as the means of transportation. So there was a close working relationship with man and horse as well as with other animals. Many families, if they had place to keep them, had a cow or two to supply the needs of their families. This was the case with our family during the II World War. We got along real well as a family and had plenty to eat. Naturally we had a love for our animals and when we had to sell or part with one, there were often tears in our eyes of having to part with them.

Marlin L. Patterson

1

J ed jerked and sat up in bed, awakened by the rooster crowing out in the chicken coop. He had overslept the time he had planned to be up and moving. Today was a very special day in his life. Today, he was headed west to find his father. His father had left home three years previous, leaving his wife and two children to fend for themselves while he went west to seek a fortune in gold and a new place for his family to come and join him.

Jed jumped out of bed, quickly dressed, and put on his boots. He stepped out into main room of the house, which was the home of his sister, her husband, and soon a precious new baby. He had been living with them for the past month since finishing his apprenticeship with the neighbor down the road. He had taken on this apprenticeship to learn a trade that held a soft spot in his heart. It was in carpentry, woodwork, and wood carving. He loved this work and had spent many hours, evenings, and stormy days sitting by the fireplace and carving. Sometimes it was an animal, a bird, or a flower. He loved to see what he could create and how real he could make each look. But, for now, his love for woodwork would be on hold; he needed to find his father.

Jed moved about the room and gathered the last of his things to put into his packs to be placed on his packhorse. He tried to be really quiet as he moved about, but he was not quiet enough.

His sister, Elizabeth, had heard him and came out to help him and get him some breakfast.

Oh, Jed, I wish you wouldn’t go! I am really going to miss you. With Mama gone and Father being gone so long, you’re the only family I have left. Are you sure you won’t change your mind?

Jed stepped over to her, placed his hands on her shoulders, and looked into her eyes. He said, "Elizabeth, you know I must go and try to find our father. He doesn’t know about Mother’s passing. He needs to know, but remember, Sis, that I love you and that you and Jonathon and your new baby will constantly be on my mind.

I have to find him. That last letter we got from him told us he had struck gold somewhere in Arizona and that he would be in touch with us to let us know where. We know he is thinking of us since he sent some money, and we should hear from him again when he gets some land and builds a home for us. I would love to be there to help him build that home. He doesn’t know about Mama, your marriage, or the fact that he’s going to be a grandpa. It will certainly break his heart when he learns about Mama, but he will be happy to know about your baby. I’m determined to go find him and be of help to him.

Elizabeth said, I know you are determined to go. You’re just as determined as Papa was when he left to go find that gold. I’ll hurry and fix your breakfast while you finish your packing.

Jed finished collecting his things and placed them by the front door and started for the barn to saddle his horse, Blaze, and get the packsaddle on his second horse, Chip.

Jonathon was up and offered to help. As they readied the horses, he said, Jed, I realize you’re only seventeen, and you have a good head on your shoulders and should do well in whatever you choose to do. Think well in all the decisions you need to make, but don’t forget that you don’t have to make them all on your own. There is a God in heaven who is always ready to help you. All you have to do is call on Him, and answers will come that will help you.

They led the horses to the house and tied them to the small hitching rail near the front door.

As they entered the house, Elizabeth said, That didn’t take long. Wash up and come sit at the table; your breakfast is ready.

Jonathon offered a prayer for the food and made an additional request to God to protect Jed in his travels. As they ate, they reminisced about the good times. They talked about all the things that Jed would see and do while traveling.

Jed said he would be in touch with them when he found their father.

Jonathon mentioned his interest in owning a good farm and having cattle.

Jed assured them that he would be on the lookout for such a place to make them happy. When he finished eating, Jed stood up and announced that there were roads to be traveled that day. He had best be on his way.

All his things had been piled by the door: his cooking pot, frying pan, utensils, food, bacon, beans, rice, lard, flour, salt, pepper, extra clothing, bedroll, rain slicker, canvas to cover his pack, heavy coat, gloves, rifle, pistol, extra shells and of course a number of tools to do woodwork.

Elizabeth looked at Jed and asked, How about matches and an emergency fire starter?

Jed looked at her and gave her a loving wink. Yes, my dear. He had put a lot of thought into what he needed to take. He’d made a long list and had checked the items off as he’d put them in the pile by the door, including the tools. He had canvas pack bags for each side of the packsaddle, and he was careful to load them evenly for weight and proper balance for traveling. The things he would need most often were placed on the top and were easy to get to. He also filled two canteens of fresh water. He would carry one on his riding horse, and he hung the other one over the packsaddle.

Elizabeth remembered something she wanted Jed to take with him. It was the small family Bible his mother had kept at her bedside. She hurried to get it. When she got back, she handed him the Bible, and with tears in her eyes, she explained the great value it had been to their mother. She told him she hoped it would mean as much to him. She told him to read it daily and said she knew it would be a blessing to him.

He said, You should keep it for yourself, my dear, because it was our mother’s.

Elizabeth told him that she had her own personal Bible and that it would mean a lot to her to have him carrying their mother’s Bible with him. She knew it would be a great help to him to have it.

He thanked her very kindly and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. He shook hands with Jonathon and then rechecked his saddle and packsaddle to make sure all was secure. He realized tears were welling up in his eyes. He gave Elizabeth a final hug and a kiss on the cheek, mounted Blaze, and headed down the lane. He turned and gave a final wave before he went out of sight.

Lots of thoughts went through his mind. Am I doing it right? Is this too big a challenge? Will I be all right? Will I be safe? Will the money in my pack be enough to last me to Arizona? If not, I can always get a job doing something to earn enough to move me closer to my destination.

For the first mile or so, his mind kept going over things and reviewing all he had prepared to take. Is it enough?

When he’d gone to the barn to prepare the horses that morning, fog had hung low to the ground. A light mist had been falling. The mist was gone now, and the clouds in the sky were fading away. The sun was peeking over the clouds on the horizon. It looked like it was going to turn out to be a good day.

Johnsonville, Illinois, had been home to him since he was born. As he rode, he thought of the community he had been reared in. It was comprised mostly of Mormons who had not followed the thousands of others who had traveled west, starting in the winter of 1846. To the best of his understanding, many wagon trains were headed west. His family had not joined in with this group of Mormons, but they had found them to be good people and honest in their dealings. Their family had thought well of the Mormons, and they were treated as if they were one of their group. What good memories he had of his seventeen years.

But what about Father? Is he well? This thought would push him down the road and trails until he could meet his father again.

2

T he first day of travel went smoothly. Everyone he met along the wagon roads he followed was friendly. At noon, he passed close to a farmer’s home as the farmer was heading into the house for dinner. The farmer hailed him to come in and have dinner with them. He was a little reluctant because he knew it would take a little longer, but he graciously accepted. It turned out to be an enjoyable experience, and Jed’s horses got a little longer rest. He needed to allow his horses a little more rest time because they hadn’t been doing a lot of walking, and they needed to be toughened up slowly.

As they were eating, the farmer and his wife and two small children asked Jed lots of questions about where he was headed. They could tell that he must be traveling some distance. The children were excited to ask questions as well. They were cute and very mannerly.

After a pleasant but simple meal, he offered his thanks and headed out the door. He thought of the little carved animals and birds in his pack. He had not thought about why he would carry them with him, but he had brought them along anyway. He went to his pack and took out a little animal for the little boy and a bird for the little girl. They were so excited to have such a wonderful gift.

He watered his horses at the farmer’s water trough, thanked the family again, and headed down the road. By evening, he approached Centralia, a nice-looking little town that seemed quiet and peaceful. With only about an hour of light remaining, Jed pulled off the road and found a little draw with a clump of trees that offered a lot of green grass for the horses and a little water from runoff in the bottom. It was a good camping spot. He removed the saddles and tethered the horses.

Jed found some nice dry wood and started a small fire that couldn’t be detected from any distance. After eating fried bacon and the bread Elizabeth had packed for him, he rolled out his bedroll, tucked himself in, and spent his first night out on his road west.

He was awakened the next morning by the chirp of birds in the trees. He listened for a few minutes since it was not yet fully light. The horses were settled down and peaceful. Finally, he rolled out of his bedroll and began to fix some breakfast. He had a little more bacon and the rest of the bread. He had a drink from his canteen and untied the horses and led them to water. They drank their fill of water, and then he saddled and loaded them and covered the campfire with a good layer of dirt. They were on the road.

The day went well until just before noon when a group of riders approached from the west. They pulled up, stopped him, and roughly inquired where he was headed.

Jed explained that he was heading up the road to visit a friend.

They asked what was in his packs.

Jed explained it was just some clothes and personal things since he hoped to go to work for this friend.

They grumbled for a minute or two, but he didn’t know what they said. He assumed it wasn’t good. One of the men said, I think I see them coming. We’ve got to get out of here. The group of men spurred their horses and were gone.

In a few minutes, Jed saw more horses coming. The second group came up to him, reined up, and asked if he had seen a group of hard-looking men.

Jed told them about the group who had just passed.

They told him the first group had robbed a store a few miles back down the road and beaten the store’s clerk pretty badly. The posse was out to catch them, and they took off in a full gallop after the outlaws.

A short time later, Jed pulled off to a shaded area to take a break and rest the horses. He loosened their cinches and tethered them out to graze.

Jed sat on a log and chewed on some beef jerky and took an occasional drink of water. After he had eaten, he picked up a dry tree limb and began to carve with his pocketknife. It was such a pleasure giving those children a carved piece, and he had better keep his supply up. When he left home, he thought he would be giving up carving for a long while—at least until he was settled down again. He sat there for twenty minutes or so and carved out another small animal to add to his supply. When the animal was finished, Jed put away his pocketknife, went to the horses, and put the carved animal in the pack. Taking the horses one at a time, he tightened their cinches and put the bridle on his riding horse, and they were soon back on the road.

The afternoon went well, but he kept watching the sky to the west. The clouds seemed to be building and getting darker. If this continued, there would be a thunderstorm that evening. Close to evening he passed through the little community of Posey. It was so small that they didn’t have a livery stable. He hoped he could make the next town, which he was told was another five miles down the road.

It was getting darker, so he put the horses into a trot, which they maintained for nearly two miles. They pulled up in front of the livery barn just as it started to rain. Luckily for Jed, there was room for his horses and a place for him to roll out his bedroll for the night. He got the horses unloaded and into stalls and gave them hay. He inquired of the liveryman of a place where he might get something to eat.

The liveryman recommended a good one just across the street and a couple of doors down.

Jed pulled his hat down tight to keep it from blowing off and headed out into the rain. The restaurant was pleasant, and the food was really good. When he finished eating, he headed back to the livery stable. It was still raining fairly hard. When he got back to the barn, he put his bedroll on one of the bed frames that had ample straw on it to make it really comfortable. It wasn’t long before he was fast asleep. Jed had a comfortable night’s rest. The next morning, it had stopped raining, but there were still heavy clouds around.

Jed went back to the eatery for breakfast and then saddled his horses and loaded the packhorse. It started to sprinkle as he was getting ready to leave. He stood in the doorway for a few minutes and studied the sky. He decided to head down the road. He put the canvas over the packsaddle and tied it down. He put on his rain slicker, mounted, and headed down the road.

Throughout the day, there was a light rain, but Jed was able to stay dry. At noon, he stopped at a grove of trees along the road and ate some more jerky. He put some beans and water in a sealable container to soak until evening, and then he would put them on the fire to cook.

When he made camp that night, the clouds had pretty well cleared from the sky. He readied the horses for the night and started a fire. The wood was a little damp, but after a while, it was burning well enough to put the beans on. In his small pan, he boiled some rice and then fried some bacon. The rice and bacon made for a nice meal.

About two hours after dark, he checked on the beans and found them to be getting tender. He banked his fire and crawled into his bedroll. Before the fire would burn out, the beans would be done. He slept well, waking just once during the night, and he could hear the crunch as the horses cropped grass. He could appreciate good horses, and if there was anything amiss in the area during the night, they would whinny and wake him up.

In the morning, the birds were chirping, which woke him up. It had just started to get light. For fifteen minutes, he contemplated his day. The best he could figure out was that the town of O’Fallon was just a short distance from where he was camped. By noon, he would be at the Mississippi River. Jed had never seen it before and was eager to see a really big river. He would take a ferry across, and then he would see the largest town ever to his way of thinking.

He crawled out of his bedroll, got dressed, and checked his beans. They had finished cooking, and with the bacon, they were delicious. He decided to eat the leftover rice from the night before and some of the beans. The fire had gone out during the night, and he rekindled his fire. It didn’t take long for the beans to warm up. In short order, Jed had finished his breakfast and cleaned things up. He got the horses ready and loaded and was on the road. After two miles, he was going down the main street in O’Fallon. From there, it was fifteen more miles to the Mississippi River.

About two miles short of the river, Jed stopped for lunch. He had purposely put the container with the beans next to the horse’s hide to keep them warm. They were warm enough to eat anyway. After the horses had rested, and he had eaten, Jed tightened the cinches and headed for the river.

What a sight the Mississippi River was! Jed had never seen that much water in one place. The small lakes back home were nothing compared to this. Wow! It took a little while to locate the ferry and get across. The horses were a little fussy while boarding, and he had to stay with them and talk to them to keep them calm. After leaving the ferry, they took the riverbank road up into the city of St. Louis. Wow! Jed had never seen so many horses and buggies and wagons in his entire life—and to see them all at once in one place.

Jed saw an honest-looking man walking along the street. He pulled up his horses and asked the man for directions to head west out