Item Detail
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17704
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0
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0
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English
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Diary
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Trails of Hope (Internet Database)
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Provo, UT
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Utah Academic Library Consortium
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January 1, 1863 to December 31, 1867. Larkin writes of his life in Cambridge, England as a police detective and tending to his church duties. He also takes an interest in local politics, attending party and neighborhood meetings. He immigrates to the US on the Amazon and crosses the Plains with the Daniel McArthur Company, mostly on foot. US soldiers for a detour to Ft. Bridger, where US citizens swear oaths of allegiance and immigrants declare their neutrality regarding the Civil War. Arriving in Salt Lake, Larkin becomes a member of the city watch and Brigham Young's gatekeeper. He and his wife, Sarah, take out their endowments, and he marries Ruth Coe as a plural wife. The family moves into the Folsom House, where discord leads Ruth to move into the Lion House. Larkin enjoys socializing with friends from England and often does so. He notes local mourning for President Lincoln and William Seward, who is erroneously reported dead as well. Larkin records family events such as births, deaths, and marriages. He builds a new house and farms, amid high tensions between Mormons and non-Mormons in Salt Lake. 1867 is a bad year for Larkin, seeing frequent Indian hostilities, a severe Mormon cricket invasion, two sons to St. George, and the death of Larkin's infant daughter and granddaughter.