Fanny's Story
Birth: March 7th, 1849 | female | in Nebraska
Death: June 27th, 1850 | 1 year old | East of Salt Creek on the Mormon Trail
Memorial: Stone 1 | right column
Fanny Esther Barnum is the second child of Charles Davids Barnum and Nancy Kittle, both of Canada. Charles and Nancy were married 1846 in Winter Quarters, Nebraska.
The family joined the William Snow/Joseph Young Company to journey west to the Salt Lake Valley with other members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Exhaustive travel conditions, disease, injury, lack of food and medicine, prematurity, and extreme weather were some of the greatest threats to pioneers. After a week on the trail, Fanny succumbed to cholera (a bacterial disease caused by contaminated water) and is buried along the Mormon Trail by Salt Creek.
From the journal of William Snow: “Thursday 27th. Continued our journey. Came to Salt Creek, crossed over. Passed Br. Whipple and company. Traveled about 5 miles where we camped for the night. Here 2 children died with cholera, Br. [Charles David] Barnham [Fanny Ester Barnham] and Br. Samuel Smith.”