“You don’t forget the horror of having your father gasp for breath and grow limp, while you have your arms around his neck, screaming with terror. You don’t forget the blood-curdling war-whoops and the banging of guns all around you. You don’t forget the screaming of the other children and the agonized shrieks of women being hacked to death with tomahawks. And you wouldn’t forget it, either, if you saw your own mother topple over in the wagon beside you, with a big red splotch get­ting bigger and bigger on the front of her calico dress.”

— Sarah C. Baker Mitchell, 3 years-old at the time of the Mountain Meadows Massacre and last surviving member of the wagon train.

William A. Aden (1838-1857) – Born in Tennessee about 1838, Aden left Tennessee bound for California in 1857. An artist, William sketched scenery all along the route and on his arrival in Utah, went to Provo, about 47 miles south of Salt Lake City. There, he did some scenic painting for the Provo Dramatic Association. However, when the Fancher Train arrived, he decided to join them on their trek to California. When the party was besieged by what they thought were Indians on September 7, 1857, Aden and another man were sent to Cedar City for assistance on September 9th. They were attacked by white men at Richard’s Spring and Aden was killed. However, his companion returned to camp, at which time the wagon train figured out that the Indians were being helped by or instigated by the Mormons.

Abel Baker (1838-1857) – Born in Jackson, Alabama to John Twitty Baker and Mary A. Ashby Baker, he was killed at the massacre, along with his father, and brother, George, sister, Sarah C. Baker Mitchell, and their families.

George Washington Baker (1830-1857) – The son of John Twitty Baker and Mary A. Ashby, George was born in Jackson, Alabama in 1830. By 1850, both George and his father John Twitty Baker were living in Carroll County, Arkansas. He married Manerva A. Beller and the couple had four children, Mary Lavina, Martha Elizabeth, Sara Frances, and William Twitty. They were also traveling with Manerva’s younger siblings, Melissa Ann Beller and David Beller. George, his wife Manerva, their seven-year-old daughter, Mary Lavina, and both of their wards were killed in the massacre. Their three younger children were spared because of their ages.

John Twitty “Jack” Baker (1805-1857) – Born about 1805 in either Kentucky or Tennessee, John married Mary A. Ashby in 1830. The couple had eleven children including John H., George Washington, Hannah, Sarah, Abel, Silas M., Mary Jane, Mariah, Peter, Roseana, and Pleasant. Though John Baker had a primary role in the formation of the Arkansas wagon train, and it was at first referred to as the Baker Train, but for whatever reasons, later became known as the Fancher train. Baker was traveling with his sons, Abel and George, George’s wife, Manerva A. Beller Baker, and their children, Mary Lavina, Martha Elizabeth, Sara Frances, and William Twitty Baker. Years later one of the surviving children of the massacre would say: “Captain John T. Baker had me in his arms when he was shot down, and fell dead.”

Manerva A. Beller Baker (1832-1857) – Born in Alabama in 1830, Manerva married George Washington Baker and the couple had four children, Mary Lavina, Martha Elizabeth, Sara Frances, and William Twitty. They were also traveling with Manerva’s younger siblings, Melissa Ann Beller and David Beller. George, his wife Manerva, their seven-year-old daughter, Mary Lavina, and both of their wards were killed in the massacre. Their three younger children were spared because of their age.

Martha Elizabeth “Betsy” Baker [Terry] (1852-1939?) – Martha Elizabeth Baker was the daughter of George Washington Baker and Manerva A. Beller Baker, born in Carroll County, Arkansas on March 7, 1852. Five years-old when the family left Arkansas, she traveled with her parents and three siblings, Mary Lavina, Sara Frances, and William Twitty Baker. In the tragic massacre, her parents and older sister, Mary Lavina were killed, but Martha, and her younger siblings, Sara Frances, and William Twitty Baker would be spared due to their ages. The children were split up and placed in the care of three different Mormon families. Martha was placed with the Amos Thornton family at Painter Creek, Utah.

Two years later, the surviving children were returned to Arkansas. At the age of 22, Martha was living in Boone County, Arkansas when she married J.W. Terry on January 25, 1874. Through the years, Martha lived in both Arkansas and Missouri but would spend her last days in her hometown of Harrison, Arkansas. Though the attackers of the wagon train thought they had eliminated anyone who might remember the affair, this was a “mistake,” as there were several, including Martha, who would publish their memories years later. Martha wrote her own personal account and in her 86th year, she described the event in an interview with the Arkansas Gazette in 1838. She was predeceased by her brother, William Twitty Baker in 1937, but outlived by her sister, Sara Frances Baker Mitchell, who also provided an account American Weekly in 1940, as the last living survivor of the massacre. Read her account HERE

Sara Frances “Sallie” Baker [Mitchell] (1854-19??) – The daughter of George Washington Baker and Manerva A. Beller Baker, Sara was born on November 20, 1854, in Carroll County, Arkansas. Her parents and her older sister, Mary Lavina, were killed in the tragic event, but three-year-old Sara, along with her sister Martha Elizabeth, and brother, William, were spared. After the massacre, the children were split up and Sara was placed with the Charles Hopkins family of Cedar City. Two years later, the surviving children were returned to Arkansas. Sara would be the last surviving member of the ill-fated wagon train. Before her death, she provided an account to the American Weekly magazine in 1940. (See HERE!)

William Twitty “Billy” Baker (1856-1937) – The son of George Washington Baker and Manerva A. Beller Baker, William was born in Carroll County, Arkansas on November 15, 1856. Just nine-months-old at the time of the attack, both his parents and older sister, Mary Lavina, were killed in the massacre, but Wiliam, along with older sisters Martha Elizabeth and Sara Frances Baker, were spared. After the attack, the children were split up and William was placed with the Ingraham family of Pocketville, Utah. Two years later, the surviving children were returned to Arkansas. William lived near Harrison, Arkansas for many years before he moved to Marshall, Arkansas in Searcy County. He died in 1937.

Martha Cameron (1806-1857) – Born in Illinois about 1806, she married William Cameron and the pair moved to Alabama and then Arkansas. They bore eight children, Nancy, Tillman, Malinda, Isom, Henry, James, Martha, and Larkin. All but Nancy, who wasn’t on the journey, and Malinda, who had taken the northern route from Salt Lake City, were killed at the massacre.

William Cameron (1806-1857) – Born in Illinois about 1806, he married Martha Cameron and the pair moved to Alabama and then Arkansas. They bore eight children, Matilda, Nancy, Tillman, Malinda, Isom, Henry, James, Martha, and Larkin. The Cameron family, with the exception of Nancy, all left Arkansas with considerable wealth loaded in two heavy wagons. Also traveling with them was William’s niece, Nancy. They headed to California with 24 oxen, 30 head of cattle, and a full blood racehorse valued at $3,000, and another $3,000 hidden in a compartment beneath a wagon. Traveling with the inter-related groups of Jones, Tackitt, and Miller families, and a veteran trail hand named Basil Park. As they crossed the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory, they were joined by William’s daughter, Malinda Cameron Scott, her husband, Henry D. Scott, their four children, and Henry Scott’s two brothers and a sister. However, once the family arrived in Salt Lake City, the group split up, with the Scotts believing that the stock could be better fed with taking the northern route. With the exception of just a few wagons, the rest of the train decided to take the southern route, and meet up with the Scotts later. But, alas, Malinda Cameron Scott, would never see her parents or siblings again. After waiting for them for seven days and hearing nothing, the Scott caravan continued on to California. Of the Cameron Group, only three children of Josiah Miller and Matilda Cameron Miller survived. Malinda Cameron Scott Thurston charged in 1877 that Mormons, under the authority of Brigham Young; killed eleven of her relatives, kidnapped the surviving children, and stole the property of her family. As to the outcome of that charge, we could not find the final result.

Allen P. DeShazo (1837-1857) – Born about 1827 to Jeams DeShazo and Nancy Turbyville, Allen’s family were neighbors of John T. Baker in Carroll County, Arkansas. DeShazo decided to go with the caravan, taking with him seventeen head of cattle, and his personal possessions estimated to have been worth about $300. Allen, who was traveling without any other family members, was killed in the massacre.

Jesse Dunlap, Jr. (1818-1857) – Born on March 14, 1818, to Jesse Dunlap, Sr. and Mary Williams Dunlap in Warren, County, Tennessee, Jesse married Mary M. Warton on March 1, 1828, in Madison County, Arkansas. The couple had 10 children, including Ruth Ellenor,  Nancy Rachel, James D.,  Lucinda, Susannah, Marguerette, Mary Ann, Rebecca, Louisa, and Sarah Elizabeth. In April 1857, the family, along with Jesse’s brother Lorenzo’s family, joined the John T. Baker train in Marion County, Arkansas. Jesse’s family traveled with 9 oxen, 30 head of cattle, 2 horses, provisions, and cash that were valued at more than $2,100 at the time. In the massacre, the entire family was killed, with the exception of the three youngest daughters, Rebecca, Louisa, and Sarah Elizabeth. The three girls were placed in the Mormon family of Jacob Hamblin, in Santa Clara, Utah. However, after two years, they were rescued and returned to Carrollton, Arkansas, where they were raised by their uncle, James Dunlap.

Georgia Ann Dunlap [McWhorter] (1855-1920) – Born on February 1, 1855, in Arkansas to Lorenzo Dow Dunlap and Nancy Jane Wharton Dunlap, Georgia was the youngest of eight children. In the Mountain Meadows Massacre, her parents and six of her siblings were killed. Only she and her five-year-old sister,  Prudence survived. The two sisters were separated, with Georgia with the Joseph Smith family in  Cedar City, Utah. When the girls were rescued, they were returned to Marion County, where they resided with William C. Mitchell, a friend of Lorenzo Dunlap’s. Georgia married George Marshal McWhorter on March 19, 1875, and the couple had four children. They moved to Texas somewhere along the line. Georgia died on September 22, 1920, in Dallas, Texas.

Lorenzo Dow Dunlap (1815-1857) – He was born in Stokes County, North Carolina on February 21, 1815, to Jesse Dunlap, Sr. and Mary Williams Dunlap. However, by the time he married Nancy Jane Wharton in 1839, he was living in Arkansas. The couple had eight children, including Thomas, John, Mary Ann, Talitha, Nancy, America Jane, Prudence, and Georgia Ann Dunlap.

In April 1857, the Dunlaps joined the John T. Baker Company to travel to California from Marion County, Arkansas. The family was traveling with four oxen, 12 head of cattle, and other supplies, valued at about $920.00 at the time. Lorenzo and his wife, Nancy Jane Wharton Dunlap, as well as their children, Thomas, John, Mary Ann, Talitha, Nancy, and America Jane were all killed in the massacre. However, five-year-old Prudence and 18 month old, Georgia Ann were spared due to their age. Prudence was placed with the Sam Jakes family of Cedar City and Georgia Ann with the Joseph Smith family, also of Cedar City. When the girls were rescued, they were returned to Marion County, where they resided with William C. Mitchell, a friend of Lorenzo Dunlap’s.

Louisa Dunlap [Linton] (1853-1926) – Louisa was born on November 10, 1853, in Arkansas to Jesse Dunlap, Jr. and Mary Wharton Dunlap, the 9th of ten children. In the Mountain Meadows Massacre, her parents and the seven oldest siblings were all killed. Four-year-old Louisa, along with her six-year-old sister, Rebecca, and one-year-old sister, Sarah Elizabeth, were spared due to their ages. The three girls were placed in the Mormon family of Jacob Hamblin, in Santa Clara, Utah. However, after two years, they were rescued and returned to Carrollton, Arkansas, where they were raised by their uncle, James Dunlap. Louisa grew up to marry James M. Linton on December 15, 1875, and the couple had three children. Somewhere along the line, they moved to Muskogee, Oklahoma, where Louisa died on May 2, 1926.

Rebecca J. Dunlap [Evans] (1851-1839) – Rebecca was born on June 4, 1851, in Johnson County, Arkansas to Jesse Dunlap, Jr. and Mary Wharton Dunlap, the 8th of ten children. In the Mountain Meadows Massacre, her parents and the seven oldest siblings were all killed. Six-year-old Rebecca, along with her four-year-old sister, Louisa, and one-year-old sister, Sarah Elizabeth, were spared due to their ages. The three girls were placed in the Mormon family of Jacob Hamblin, in Santa Clara, Utah. However, after two years, they were rescued and returned to Carrollton, Arkansas, where they were raised by their uncle, James Dunlap. Rebecca grew up to marry John Wesley Evans on November 30, 1874. The couple then moved to Calhoun County, Arkansas where they lived until December 15, 1895. They had five children. Later, they moved to Drew County, Arkansas. Rebecca died on August 4, 1914.

Sarah Elizabeth Dunlap [Lynch] (1856-1901) – Sarah was born on August 13, 1856, in Mulberry, Arkansas to Jesse Dunlap, Jr. and Mary Wharton Dunlap, the youngest of ten children. In the Mountain Meadows Massacre, her parents and the seven oldest siblings were all killed. One-year-old Sarah was shot in the arm during the massacre, but survived, along with her sisters, six-year-old Rebecca and four-year-old Louisa, who were spared due to their ages. The three girls were placed in the Mormon family of Jacob Hamblin, in Santa Clara, Utah. However, after two years, they were rescued and returned to Carrollton, Arkansas, where they were raised by their uncle, James Dunlap. After their rescue, there were allegations that the girls had been neglected and that Sarah Elizabeth Dunlap’s blindness was a direct result of the negligent care. Young Sarah never recovered the full use of her arm and due to her very bad eyes, attended the blind school in Little Rock, Arkansas until she graduated.

During the years following their recovery in Utah by U.S. Army Captain James Lynch, the officer would often visit the survivors, who all had fond memories of the man. When the Dunlap women heard that Captain Lynch was seriously ill, the women were concerned, and Sarah Dunlap, wrote to him, offering to come to help him and be his nurse. In the meantime, Lynch’s health improved but the correspondence continued. The couple was married on December 30, 1893, when the groom was 74 and the bride 37. Lynch ran a store in Woodberry, Arkansas and Sarah taught Sunday school. They eventually moved to Hampton, Arkansas where Sarah died in 1901. Lynch died in 1910 and was buried next to his wife in the Hampton Church of Christ Cemetery in Calhoun County, Arkansas.

Mary M. Wharton Dunlap (1818-1857) – Mary Wharton was born in Tennessee in 1818. However, by the time she married Jesse Dunlap, Jr. in March 1828, she was living in Arkansas. The couple had 10 children, including Ruth Ellenor, Nancy Rachel, James D.,  Lucinda, Susannah, Marguerette, Mary Ann,  Rebecca, Louisa, and Sarah Elizabeth. In April 1857, the family, along with Jesse’s brother Lorenzo’s, who happened to be married to Mary’s sister, joined the John T. Baker train in Marion County, Arkansas. In the massacre, the entire family was killed, with the exception of the three youngest daughters,  Rebecca,  Louisa, and Sarah Elizabeth. The three girls were placed in the Mormon family of Jacob Hamblin, in Santa Clara, Utah. However, after two years, they were rescued and returned to Carrollton, Arkansas, where they were raised by their uncle, James Dunlap.

Nancy Jane Wharton Dunlap (1815-1857) – Nancy Jane Wharton was born in Tennessee in 1815. However, by the time she married Lorenzo Dow Wharton in 1839, she was living in Arkansas. The couple had eight children, including Thomas, John, Mary Ann, Talitha, Nancy, America Jane, Prudence, and Georgia Ann Dunlap. In April 1857, the Dunlaps joined the John T. Baker Company to travel to California from Marion County, Arkansas. Nancy, her husband, and all of their children, with the exception of five-year-old Prudence and 18 month old, Georgia Ann were killed.

Prudence Angeline Dunlap (1852-1918) – Born on January 9, 1852, in Jackson, Arkansas, to Lorenzo Dow Dunlap and Nancy Jane Wharton Dunlap, the seventh of eight children. In the Mountain Meadows Massacre, her parents and six of her siblings were killed. Only five-year-old Prudence, and her 18 month-old sister, Georgia Ann, were spared. The two sisters were separated, with Prudence residing with the Sam Jakes family of Cedar City, Utah. When the girls were rescued, they were returned to Marion County, where they resided with William C. Mitchell, a friend of Lorenzo Dunlap’s. Prudence married Claiborne Hobbs Koen on December 31, 1874. The couple soon moved to the Central Texas community of Caradan, where they raised their children. She died on November 5, 1918, in Mills County, Texas.

William M. Eaton – A native of Indiana, Eaton was living in Illinois in the mid-1850s where he owned and operated a farm. Early in 1857, he met some men from Arkansas who were visiting relatives in Illinois before they moved to California with the Fancher Wagon Train. Eaton, who had a niece who lived in Salt Lake City, was intrigued, and soon sold his farm, and with plans to move his family to California, he “temporarily” he took his wife and young daughter to stay with family in Indiana before joining the Arkansas company. As the wagon train was ready to pull out of Salt Lake City, Utah to continue their journey westward, Eaton wrote a cheerful letter to his wife stating that all was well. It would be the last communication from the group. He was killed in the Mountain Meadow massacre in September 1857.

Captain Alexander Fancher (1813-1857) – Born in Overton County, Tennessee to Isaac and Anne Tully Fancher, Alexander was familiarly known to his friends and family as “Piney Alex.”  He moved with his parents and siblings from Tennessee to Illinois around 1823. On May 12, 1836, he married Eliza Ingram in Coles County, Illinois. The couple would eventually have ten children, all but two of whom would be killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre. In 1841, the couple and their children moved to Missouri, and a few years later, they were living in Carroll County, Arkansas. There, Fancher served in the County Militia in the 1849 Tutt-Everett War, an event that grew out of a feud between two powerful Ozark families.

Over the years, Fancher worked as a farmer, a cattleman, and was said to have made three different trips to California in the 1850s. In 1852 Alexander Fancher was back in Carroll County, Arkansas where he purchased 40 acres of land and by 1854, he owned more than 200 acres. In April 1857, Fancher led a number of families on the trek to California.

Starting near present-day Harrison, Arkansas, the group included some 120-150 men, women, and children, primarily from northwestern Arkansas, 20 wagons, four carriages, as well as hundreds of draft and riding horses, and about 900 head of cattle. It was one of the richest wagon trains ever assembled, carrying with it some $100,000 in cash, property, and livestock. In September 1857, after the wagon train had been besieged at Mountain Meadows, Utah for five days, Fancher surrendered under a flag of truce.

He was killed anyway, along with his wife, Eliza, sons, James and his wife, Frances “Fanny” Fulfer Fancher, sons, Hampton, 19, William, 17, and Thomas, 14; daughters, Mary, 15, Martha, 10, and twins, Margaret and Sara, 7. Only his two youngest children, Christopher “Kit” Carson Fancher, 5 years old, and his daughter, Tryphena, were spared. The two youngest children were taken and placed in Mormon homes initially, but two years after the massacre, they were returned to Arkansas, where they were raised by a cousin.

Christopher “Kit” Carson Fancher (1853-1873) – The eight of the nine Fancher children, Christopher was born to Alexander and Eliza Fancher in 1853. Just five-years-old at the time of the massacre, he witnessed his father being killed. He and 22 month-old sister, Tryphena, were the only ones in the family who were spared.  He and his sister were then placed with a Mormon family in the area, where the boy was called “Charley.” After two years, they were returned to Arkansas where they were raised by a cousin, Hampton Bynum Fancher, and his wife Eliza in Osage, Arkansas. During the Civil War, Kit traveled to Texas with James F. Fancher, the father of Hampton Bynum, and returned to Osage in 1866. Before his death in 1873, he had been initiated into the Osage Masonic Lodge with his closest friend and cousin, Spencer Jarnigan Morris. At the age of 20, he died, unmarried, at the home of Hampton Bynum Fancher, and is buried in the historic family Fancher-Seitz Cemetery in Osage, Arkansas.

Eliza Ingram Fancher (1820?-1857) – Born in Illinois around 1820, or perhaps earlier, Eliza married Alexander Fancher in Coles County, Illinois on May 12, 1836. The couple would eventually have ten children, all but two of whom would be killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre. In 1841, the couple and their children moved to Missouri, and a few years later, they were living in Carroll County, Arkansas. The Fanchers and all their children were caught in the Mountain Meadows Massacre of September 1857. Alexander, Eliza, and their children, Hampton, 19, William, 17, Mary, 15, Thomas, 14, Martha, 10, and twins, Margaret and Sara, 7, were killed. Only their two youngest children, Christopher “Kit” Carson Fancher, 5 years-old, and daughter, Tryphena, were spared.

Tryphena D. Fancher (1855-1897) – The youngest of the Fancher’s nine children, Tryphena was born to Alexander and Eliza Fancher, on November 18, 1855. Twenty-two months old at the time of the massacre, she and her five-year-old brother, Christopher, were the only ones in the family to survive. She and her brother were placed with a Mormon family for two years, where she was referred to as “Annie.” Afterward, they were returned to Arkansas where they were raised by a cousin, Hampton Bynum Fancher, and his wife Eliza in Osage, Arkansas. Tryphena grew up and married a farmer named James Chaney Wilson on July 8, 1871, in Carroll County, Arkansas. The couple had ten children. Tryphena died on April 30, 1897. Her husband, James remarried, and he and his new wife raised those children not yet grown. James died On May 1, 1923.

“The scene was one too horrible  and sickening for language to describe. Human skeletons, disjointed bones, ghastly skulls and the hair of women were scattered in frightful profusion over a distance of two miles.”

— A traveler passing through the area in 1859

Elisha Huff (18??-1857) – Probably related to the other Benton County, Arkansas Huffs traveling with the Caravan, Elisha was married, but her husband’s name is unknown. She and her husband, as well as two sons, whose names are also unknown, were killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

Nancy Sophrina Huff (1853-18??) – The daughter of Peter and Salidia Brown Huff of Benton County, Arkansas, Nancy was born in Benton County, Arkansas in 1853. Her father, Peter, was the only fatality of the wagon train before it reached Mountain Meadows. Bit by a spider, he was buried near Fort Bridger, Wyoming. Nancy’s mother Salidia was killed in the massacre, but four-year-old Nancy survived. She was taken to live with the John Willis family, first in Cedar City, then to Toquerville, Utah. Two years later; however, she was returned to Benton County, Arkansas. Later, she went to Tennessee to live with her grandfather, Alexander Brown. By 1875, Nancy was married to Dallas Cates and living in Yell County, Arkansas. She is buried in the Antioch Cemetery, near Perryville, Arkansas.

Peter Huff (18??-1857) – Peter Huff was married to Salidia Ann Brown Huff and the pair had one child, Nancy Sophrina Huff when they began the trek to California from Benton County, Arkansas. He was the only fatality before reaching Mountain Meadows., dying from a spider bite and buried near Fort Bridger, Wyoming. His wife Salidia was killed in the massacre, but their four-year-old daughter, Nancy Saphrina, was spared.

Eloah Angeline Tackitt Jones (1830-1857) – Eloah Anegeline Tackitt was born to Martin and Cynthia Tackitt in Pope County, Arkansas in 1830. The couple had two children, including a daughter, whose name is not known, and a son named Felix Marion Jones. Also traveling with them on their ill-fated journey were Eloah’s widowed mother, Cynthia Tackitt, and Eloah’s siblings, Jones M. Tackitt,  Marion Tackitt, Sebron Tackitt, Matilda Tackitt, James M.Tackitt, and Pleasant Reaves Tackitt, and his family. Of the Jones-Tackitt family, all were killed at the Mountain Meadows Massacre, with the exception of Eloah’s 18 month-old son, Felix Marion Jones, and two of Pleasant’s children, 4-year-old, Emberson Milum and 19 month-old, William Henry Tackitt.

Felix Marion Jones (1856-1832) – One of the few survivors of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, in September 1857, Felix was just 18 months old when the tragedy occurred. Born to John Milum Jones and Eloah Angeline Tackitt Jones on December 15, 1856, in Johnson County, Arkansas, Felix was their second child. Both his parents and his older sister were killed on that tragic day, but Felix was spared due to his young age. Initially, he was placed with a Mormon family but was returned to Arkansas two years later. However, by the time that Felix married, he was in Texas. Wedding Martha Ann Reed in Copperas Cove, Texas on January 19, 1882, the couple had five children. He died on May 31, 1932 in Copperas Cove, Texas.</style=”margin-top:>

John Milum Jones (1825-1857) – Born in Paint Rock, Alabama in 1825 to John and Martha Jones, John would grow up to marry Eloah Angeline Tackitt. The couple had two children, including a daughter, whose name is not known, and a son named Felix Marion Jones. Also traveling with them were John’s brother, Newton and Eloah’s 49-year-old widowed mother, Cynthia Tackitt, and her children, Pleasant Reaves Tackitt and his family, Marion, Sebron, Matilda, James M., and Jones M., whose ages ranged from 12 to 25. Amongst the good they traveled with included a number of provisions, several oxen, and about 60 head of cattle. Another family from Johnson County, Arkansas, the Poteets, were also traveling with the Jones-Tackitt clan. However, the Francis Marion Poteet family, whose goal was to look for gold, left the wagon train near Cedar City, Utah, and were thus spared the tragedy. Of the Jones-Tackitt family, all were killed with the exception of 18 month-old Felix Marion Jones and two of Pleasant’s children, 4-year-old, Emberson Milum and 19 month-old, William Henry Tackitt.

Frank E. King (18??-??) – King and his wife joined the Fancher wagon train in Pacific Springs, Wyoming, traveling with them to Salt Lake City, Utah. However, when Mrs. King got sick, they remained in the city until December 1857, thus sparing them from the massacre. When they left, they first traveled to Beaver, Utah. Upon the advice of the area Mormon Bishop, they wintered in Beaver, but were not met by friendliness, ordered at least twice to get out of the area by Beaver residents. In May, the couple left, once again heading to southern California, but when they reached Cedar City, they were ordered to leave by Mormon counselors, John M. Higbee and Elias Morris. Fearful of the Mormons, King returned to central Utah, settling in Marysville, where they lived for a number of years before moving to Oregon.

Josiah “Joseph” Miller (1827-1857) –  Married to Matilda Cameron Miller, Josiah and his family, including children James William, John Calvin, Mary, and William “Joseph” Tillman Miller, left from Johnson County, Arkansas along with the Tackitts and the Camerons. Both Josiah and Matilda, as well as their nine-year-old son, James William Miller, were killed in the massacre. However, six-year-old John Calvin, four-year-old Mary, and one-year-old William “Joseph” Tillman Miller were spared due to their age.

Matilda Cameron Miller (1830-1857) – Married to Josiah (Joseph) Miller, the couple had four children including James William, John Calvin, Mary, and William “Joseph” Tillman Miller. When they left Johnson County, Arkansas, they were traveling along with the Tackitts and the Camerons. Both Josiah and Matilda, as well as their nine-year-old son, James William Miller, were killed in the massacre. However, six-year-old John Calvin, four-year-old Mary, and one-year-old William “Joseph” Tillman Miller were spared due to their ages.

John Calvin Miller (1851-??) – The son of Josiah and Matilda Cameron Miller, six-year-old John, along with his four-year-old sister, Mary, and one-year-old brother, William “Joseph” Tillman Miller were spared due to their age. John Calvin and his, brother William, were placed with the Mormon family of E.H. Groves in Harmony, Utah, while their sister, Mary was placed with the John Morris family in Cedar City. John Calvin, when rescued, said he was near his mother, Matilda when she was killed and pulled arrows from her back until she was dead. He also stated that he had two older brothers, one named James and another named Henry. However, records don’t indicate that he had a brother named Henry, but did have an Uncle Henry Cameron, who was 16 years old and killed in the massacre. His parents and nine-year-old brother, James, were killed in the tragic event. John Calvin; however, and his four-year-old sister, Mary, and one-year-old brother, William “Joseph” Tillman Miller were spared due to their age. In December 1859, John Calvin Miller, along with Emberson Milum Tackitt, were both taken to Washington D.C. by Jacob Forney, the non-Mormon Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Utah, to give their accounts of the massacre to the government. Interestingly, no records of their accounts appear to exist. John Calvin and his siblings were returned to Arkansas, where they were raised by Nancy Cameron Littleton in Crawford County.

Mary Miller (1853-??) – One of the few survivors of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, Mary was born to  Josiah and Matilda Cameron Miller of Johnson County, Arkansas. While her parents and older brother, James William Miller, were killed in the tragic event, four-year-old Mary, and brothers John Calvin, 6, and William “Joseph” Tillman Miller, 1, were spared due to their ages. Afterward, Mary was separated from her brothers and sent to live with the John Morris family in Cedar City, Utah. However, two years later, the three children were rescued and returned to Arkansas, where they were raised by their aunt, Nancy Cameron Littleton in Crawford County.

William “Joseph” Tillman Miller (1856-1940) – The son of Josiah and Matilda Cameron Miller, Johnson County, Arkansas, William was one of the few survivors of the tragic event that occurred at Mountain Meadows, Utah in September 1857. While his parents and older brother, James William Miller, were killed in the massacre, one-year-old Joseph, his brother, John Calvin, 6, and his sister, Mary, 4, were spared due to their ages. Afterward, Joseph and his brother John Calvin were placed with the E.H. Groves family in Harmony, Utah. Two years later; however, they were rescued and returned to Arkansas, where they were raised by their aunt, Nancy Cameron Littleton in Crawford County. When he grew up, he married Brancy Ann Miller, and the couple had six children. A rancher, William and his family lived in Texas until 1876, when they moved to California, first establishing their home at Colton, before moving to Los Angeles, then Oakland, and finally to Turlock. William’s wife died in 1932 and he died in 1940, at the age of 84.

Sarah C. Baker Mitchell (1836-1857) – Born in 1836 in Alabama to John Twitty Baker and Mary A. Ashby,  Sarah married Charles Roark Mitchell in 1856. Just a year after they were married they produced a son named John and were on their way to California. All three were killed in the massacre.

Charles Roark Mitchell (1832-1857) – Born to William C. Mitchell and Nancy Dunlap Mitchell on February 29, 1832, in Tennessee, Charles married Sarah C. Baker in 1856. Just a year after they were married they produced a son named John and were on their way to California, along with Charles’ brother, Joel D. Mitchell. Within their possession that had 13 oxen, 74 head of cattle, and various cash and property totaling more than $2,500. All four Mitchells, including the infant boy, were killed in the massacre.

John Robert Page (1819-??) – From Madison County, Arkansas, John was married to Frances Ralston Page and the couple had nine children, Elizabeth Emley, Clarisa Jane, James K., Moses Caleb, John Robert, Jr, Lewis Johnson, Sarah Frances, Samuel M., and Henry Towel Page, who ranged in ages from infant to 16 years old. Like the Henry Dalton Scott family, the pages also took the northern route from Salt Lake City, sparing the entire family. They safely reached California, where they settled in Eldorado County.

Levi Poteet (18??-??) – Somehow related to the Tackitt and Jones family of Johnson County, Arkansas,  the Poteet family traveled with the rest of the group on the pioneer train to Utah. Levi was married to Katherine Basham and the couple had three sons. However, their original plans were to look for gold and separate from the wagon train near Cedar City, Utah, thus barely sparing them from the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

Milum Lafayette Rush (1828-1857) – Born in Rhea County, Tennessee in 1828, Milum would later be in Carroll County, Arkansas when he married Draden Deatherage. The couple had two children, Alfred and Martha, born just before Milum’s ill-fated trip to Utah. Leaving his wife and children safe in Arkansas, Milum was traveling alone when he joined the Fancher wagon train in Fort Smith, Arkansas in late March 1857. He was killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

Henry Dalton Scott (18??-1857) – Married to Malinda Cameron Scott, Henry and his family left Clarksville, Arkansas, traveling with Henry’s brothers George and Richard Scott, and Henry’s sister Martha. They joined the Baker-Fancher wagon train in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and were soon on their way to California. It was during this journey that Malinda gave birth to their fourth child. However, once the family arrived in Salt Lake City, the group split up, with Henry Scott believing that the stock could be better fed by taking the northern route. With the exception of just a few wagons, the rest of the train decided to take the southern route, and meet up with the Scotts later. Along the way, Henry got into a dispute with another wagon train member and was shot and killed. Malinda and her children; however, continued the journey to California, safely arriving in October 1857.

Malinda Cameron Scott [Thurston] (1829-1921) – The oldest daughter of William and Martha Cameron, Malinda was born in Alabama in about 1829. In 1848, she married Henry Scott Dalton and the couple had four children, Joel, Martha, George, and Sue Scott. The family left Clarksville, Arkansas, traveling with Henry’s brothers, George and Richard Scott, and Henry’s sister Martha. They joined the Baker-Fancher wagon train in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and were soon on their way to California. It was during this journey that Malinda gave birth to her fourth child. Almost every member of Malinda’s family was on the California-bound wagon train, including her parents, siblings, Tillman, Isom, Henry, James, Martha, Larkin, and sister, Matilda, her husband and children. However, once the family arrived in Salt Lake City, the group split up, with the Scotts believing that the stock could be better fed by taking the northern route. With the exception of just a few wagons, the rest of the train decided to take the southern route, and meet up with the Scotts later. But, alas, Malinda Cameron Scott, would never see her parents or siblings again. After waiting for them for seven days and hearing nothing, the Scott caravan continued on to California. Along the way, her husband Henry got into a dispute with another wagon train member and was shot and killed. Malinda and her children; however, continued the journey to California, safely arriving in October 1857. Malinda would later learn that of her family, only the three youngest children of Josiah and Matilda Cameron Miller, survived. Malinda remarried a Mr. Thurston in February 1859 and in 1877 she charged that the Mormons, under the authority of Brigham Young; killed eleven of her relatives, kidnapped the surviving children, and stole the property of her family. Her case would drag on for almost 35 years. Unfortunately, we were unable to find the final result of the case.

Charles Stallcup (1832-1857) – Married to Winnie Wood Stallcup and living in Marion County, Arkansas, the couple had two young children, Rachel and James, who stayed at home when Stallcup set out on the journey with brother-in-laws William and Solomon Wood. The three men were thought to have been hired to help care for the large cattle herd that was accompanying the wagon train. Their plans were to check out the prospects in California, and perhaps later bring back their wives. Instead, all three men were killed and when William’s wife heard about the massacre, she miscarried her second child.

Armilda Miller Tackitt (1835-1857) – Probably somehow related to the other Millers from Johnson County who traveled on the ill-fated pioneer wagon train, Armilda married Pleasant Reaves Tackitt, a young preacher. The pair had two children named Emberson Milum and William Henry Tackitt. Armilda and her husband, Pleasant, were both killed in the massacre, but their two young sons were spared due to their ages.

Cynthia Miller Tackitt (1808?-1857) – Probably somehow related to the other Millers from Johnson County who traveled on the ill-fated pioneer wagon train, Cynthia had been married to Martin Tackitt who died before the wagon train took off for California. the couple had seven children, including Eloah Angeline, Pleasant, William, Marion, Sebron, Matilda, James M., and Jones M. Tackitt. Cynthia, along with six of her children — all but William, were traveling with the pioneer wagon train involved in the Mountain Meadows Massacre. The entire family, with the exception of 18 month-old Felix Marion Jones, son of Eloah Angeline Tackitt Jones, and the two young sons of Pleasant Reaves Tackitt – Emberson Milum Tackitt, 4 and William Henry Tackitt, 19 months, were killed.

Emberson Milum Tackitt (1853-1912) – Emberson was born to Pleasant Reaves Tackitt and Armilda Miller Tackitt in Johnson County, Arkansas on May 29, 1853. When he was just three-years-old, his parents loaded him and his younger brother William Henry Tackitt in a wagon train bound for California. His parents, his grandmother, and several aunts, uncles, and cousins were killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre. However, Emberson, who had turned four by that time, would be spared, along with his 19 month-old brother, William Henry Tackitt. The boys were placed with a Mormon family in Cedar City, Utah, but two years later were rescued and returned to Arkansas where they lived with their maternal grandparents in Carroll County, Arkansas. In December 1859, Emberson Milum Tackitt, along with John Calvin Miller, were both taken to Washington D.C. by Jacob Forney, the non-Mormon Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Utah, to give their accounts of the massacre to the government. Interestingly, no records of their accounts appear to exist. When Emberson grew up, he made his way, first, to Kansas, then to Prescott, Arizona, where he served as a deputy sheriff. He died on June 12, 1912, of tuberculosis and is buried in Prescott. He must have married somewhere along the line, as his obituary lists a son named Edward, of Flagstaff, Arizona, as his son.

William Henry Tackitt (1855-1891) – William Henry was born to Pleasant Reaves Tackitt and Armilda Miller Tackitt in Johnson County, Arkansas in 1855. When he was just a baby, his parents loaded him and his older brother, Emberson Milum in a wagon train bound for California. His parents, his grandmother, and several aunts, uncles, and cousins were killed in the Mountain Meadows Massacre. However, William Henry, who was just 19 months-old at the time, would be spared, along with his four-year-old brother, Emberson Milum. The boys were placed with a Mormon family in Cedar City, Utah, but two years later were rescued and returned to Arkansas where they lived with their maternal grandparents in Carroll County. Somewhere along the line, he married and moved to Taney County, Missouri. He died there in 1891 and his widow later moved to Fresno County, California.

Pleasant Reaves Tackitt (1832-1857) – Born about 1832, the son of Martin and Cynthia Tackitt, Pleasant would grow up to marry Armilda Miller Tackitt and the pair would have two sons named Emberson Milum and William Henry Tackitt. In 1857, they left Johnson County, Arkansas with the Jones-Tackitt clan, which included Pleasant’s mother, Cynthia, and several siblings. Pleasant, who was a preacher, carried a large tent with him so that he could hold religious services. He and his wife were killed in the massacre, but his two young sons were spared.

Richard Wilson (1830?-1857) – From Marion County, Arkansas, Wilson was believed to have been born between 1830 and 1834. He was married to Elizabeth Coker Wilson and the two had one son named John William, who was less than a year old when Wilson joined the California-bound wagon train. Traveling alone, family history indicates that he was headed to the California gold mines, but instead, was killed at the massacre.

William Edward Wood (1831-1857) – Born in Arkansas to George Washington Wood and Nancy Jane Coker, Wood was married to Manerva Jane Hudson about 1850. The couple had one small child and Nancy Jane was pregnant with the second when he joined the wagon train along with his brother Solomon and brother-in-law, Charles Stallcup, who were thought to have been hired on to help care for the large cattle herd that was accompanying the wagon train. Their plans were to check out the prospects in California, and perhaps later bring back their wives. Instead, all three men were killed and when William’s wife heard about the massacre, she miscarried her second child.

Solomon R. Wood (1937-1857) – Born in Arkansas to George Washington Wood and Nancy Jane Coker, Solomon was the brother of William Edward Wood and brother-in-law of  Charles Stallcup. Records indicate that he was not married. The three men were thought to have been hired on to help care for the large cattle herd that was accompanying the wagon train. All three men were killed in the massacre.

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated January 2021.

Also See:

Mountain Meadows Massacre – 1889 Account

Primary Assassins

Mountain Meadows Massacre Historical Accounts

Brigham Young – Leading the Mormons

Mountain Meadows Massacre (primary article)

Sources:

Mountain Meadows Association
Mountain Meadows Monument Foundation
1857 Iron County Militia
Gibbs, Josiah F., The Mountain Meadows Massacre; Salt Lake Tribune Publishing Co., 1910.