Saga of the Sanpitch Volume 17, 1985 - Sanpete County

attempting to exterminate the pale faces from these hunting grounds, and the smaller settlements would be
first under attack. In 1851 the Indians had deeded the valley of the Sanpitch to the Mormon Church, but
Walker had no intentions of honoring the deedc Brigham Young also alerted the Manti people of the plight
of the Allred settlers and asked that they assist them in every possible way.
Manti was about twenty miles to the south. Although it was isolated from other communities by a
distance of nearly a hundred miles, it had survived for seven years and now had a population of 647 and two
forts for protection„ The "Little Fort," built in 1852, on what is now court house square, had been abandoned
in the summer of 1853 when the "Log Fort" was erected. (Both of these were later abandoned for the "Big
Rock Fort," 1854, across the street south.)
Brigham Young, whose leadership and wisdom were seldom questioned, had sent Danish immigrants
to the Allred Settlement as they arrived in Utah. Here they could be with others hale and hearty as
themselves. The Scandinavians were accustomed to long cold winters, frozen earth, and to making a living
from the soil under difficult conditions. Their homeland was in the far north, land of the midnight sun, where
northern lights flashed upon giant icebergs floating in towering waves on windy seas, and where the blood of
Viking warriors once flowed in their veins„ These people were stalwart and determined.
"Why do we have to leave here, Mama? Pa has worked hard to make this little house warm and safe.
He has two guns and he can. . ."
"Don't ask questions, child, "Do as you are told," interrupted Charlotta. Then she said to herself, "How
does one explain to a child that the food supply is exhausted, that the Indians , also fighting for survival, are
cruel and savage, that they may destroy our homes and us at any minute, that peace and brotherhood are
only dreams?"
Karen and Geraldine were dressed in all the clothing they owned. Charlotta took one last look around
her house and the things that must be left behind. Then she grabbed two dolls that she had hidden under the
trundle bed. "Here, take these," she said, "I was making them for Christmas gifts but goodness knows what
Christmas will bring. You may as well have them now."
The girls hugged the dolls as they climbed into the covered wagon; here was something they could
hang on to amid doubts and fears, then the girls found a place among the pots and pans while Charlotta,
heavy with child, sat beside them. Pa, Jens Hansen, tucked a red down quilt around them. This quilt, made by
his mother in Denmark, had given comfort to their lives wherever they traveled,, It crossed the ocean in a
sailing boat, the Forest Monarch, as winter storms tossed them over the heaving waves. It softened the seats
in this wagon as they bumped across hot, dry plains, and again when they journeyed the rocky terrain as
they made their way from the Salt Lake Valle.
"Giddy-up," called Jens in broken English to his oxen; then he added, "Gee," which meant, "turn
right." The oxen probably understood these words as well as he. They had been purchased from English
speaking traders in Keokuk, Iowa, while he was struggling to say any word in this new language.
The wagon wheels spun in the icy snow and groaned under the heavy load. The faces of the oxen
were already coated with frost from puffing the crisp, cold air. A few cows and sheep trailed the wagon ahead
of them and further back someone's chickens clucked in protest as they ruffled their feathers. Soon they
pulled out and the settlement was deserted.
Before they rounded a bend in the road, a call came to circle the wagons. Men, women and children
climbed from their seats and met in the enclosure. Looking back at the settlement, they beheld it in flames.
The Indians had lost no time in setting fire to homes, sheds and haystacks. The men had planned to return for
the hay and other valuables but now all were going up in smoke. Ruben Allred, leader of the group, offered up
a gracious prayer in their behalf, thanking the Lord that they had escaped. He compared their flight with that
of the Children of Israel in Egypt, and the Saints who fled from Nauvoo, and said that if they remained faithful
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