What did pioneer children do for fun? What did they fear as they crossed the plains? Susan Arrington Madsen, author of The Lord Needed a Prophet, has collected actual accounts of thirty young people (under the age of twenty) who were members of Mormon wagon trains and handcart companies. B.H. Roberts describes how he and his sister traveled from England as virtual orphans until they joined their mother in Utah. Fanny Fry tells of her fear when she was nearly crushed to death by a heavily loaded handcart.

Living one's religion in peace was a luxury not afforded to the early saints, and this book takes a hard look at how that affected the youth of the church. Uprooted from their homes in England, Sweden, and other European countries, these children suffered weeks in the dark holds of ships. They emerged in America only to have to travel across its plains, a trek of nearly 1,200 miles, on foot in fair and foul weather. Many of them lost their parents, and gave up everything they had to be with the saints in Zion.

I Walked to Zion: True Stories of Young Pioneers on the Mormon Trail. This includes a chapter on my Great-great Grandfather, George Sudbury Humpherys, who immigrated from England with his family.