Isaac Daw

Isaac Daw

Born: December 21st, 1826 

Trull, Somerset, England

Died: January 12, 1913

Buried in the Cedar Fort, Utah, Cemetery

Isaac Daw became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Thursday, November 9th, 1848.  He married Jane Davswell Balls. They had 2 children. Together they made plans to join the main group of saints in Utah.  

"They set sail for America on the ship Samuel Curling on April 22, 1855."  When they reached America, they joined the saints at Mormon Grove.  They spent 3 months preparing for their overland journey. While there, black cholera struck the settlement.  Jane took ill with cholera.  She passed away on June 7th.  It is said that she and her baby were buried in the same grave in Hutchison (Atchison also known as Mormon Grove), Kansas Territory.    

The night before their departure, Milo Andrus was asked to lead this group to the valley.  He had not been planning to leave Mormon Grove.  He was the one who had procurred their teams and provisions.  He accepted the call and was determined to get this company to the valley.

The company began their journey at Mormon Grove quite late in the year (later than the Willie Company a year later).  They departed on August 3rd. Two days later, they were 30 miles west of their beginning point.  In a letter written by the captain of their company to Salt Lake City, Utah, on August 22nd, he said that they were pushing forward as quickly as possible due to their late departure.  The previous day they traveled 25 miles and were planning to push as far forward as possible because he expected to hit inclement weather when they reached the Rocky Mountains.

They had troubles with the Indians.  Indian attacks were very common during the beginning of their trip.  More than one person died.

By the time the company reached Fort Bridger, they were moving slowly.  Their teams were worn down due to lack of feed and the loss of several of their animals.On September 9th, 1855, they reached the Salt Lake Valley during a terrible snowstorm.

 

Isaac and his son, Walter, stayed with Bishop Gardner in West Jordan.  A few short months passed, and Walter died.  Isaac was alone.  He had left his native land; lost his wife and baby; lost his only son; and was in a strange land. 

And yet, life went on.  His testimony of the eternal nature of the human soul, the plan of salvation, and the hope of resurrection and reunion with his loved ones helped him to move on- to put one foot in front of the other and take another step each and every day.  

Written by: Dari Peterson Thacker, May 11, 2014.  3rd great-granddaughter. 

Sources for this: 1)"History of Isaac Daw" written by his grandson, Albert William Daw.

2) https://history.lds.org/overlandtravels/companyDetail?companyId=52

3) Photo found on familysearch.org.