Mormon Handcart Expeditions (1856-1860): History & Tragedy

LDS Perspective

Between 1856 and 1860, approximately 3,000 Latter-day Saint pioneers crossed the North American plains using handcarts—wooden carts pulled by the immigrants themselves rather than ox-drawn wagons. This method was initiated under the direction of President Brigham Young as a low-cost, efficient alternative to assist impoverished European converts who could not afford traditional wagon outfits. The Perpetual Emigrating Fund Company (PEF) provided loans to help these Saints make the journey, allowing them to repay the funds after settling in Zion so others could receive similar assistance. Only 10 of the more than 350 Latter-day Saint emigrating companies traveled by handcart, yet this mode of travel became an enduring symbol of faith and sacrifice in Church history. For most handcart compan

Historical Perspective

Between 1856 and 1860, approximately 3,000 Latter-day Saint emigrants participated in one of the most controversial migration experiments in American western history. On October 29, 1855, Brigham Young announced the handcart system as a cost-saving measure when the Perpetual Emigrating Fund—used to loan money to needy converts—had been depleted and traditional wagon-and-ox-team transportation proved too expensive for the growing number of European converts, particularly factory and agricultural workers from Britain. The Church constructed approximately 650 handcarts at outfitting points in Iowa City (later Florence, Nebraska after 1857), each designed to carry 400 to 500 pounds of foodstuffs, bedding, and cooking utensils, requiring two able-bodied individuals to pull while five people wer