Released in 2011 by Excel Entertainment Group. Now available on Netflix.

I was moved to tears by the courage, determination, and faith of the Mormon pioneers depicted in this movie. The story is based on the real life experiences of members of 2 handcart companies traveling by rail and then on foot with carts, from the Eastern United States to Salt Lake City in 1856. They started with about 500 people; men, women and children and only lost 68 along the way.

A Miraculous Story of Faith

Levi Savage, the main character, is a man we can identify with. He does his military service and then marries and has a child. His wife dies and soon after he is called to be a missionary to Asia. He reluctantly leaves his baby with his sister and goes off to serve the Lord. Upon his return to the US, he is asked to assist the Willie Handcart Company as they journey to Salt Lake City. Setbacks with supplies and building their carts cause a late start and Levi is torn between his faith and his concern that they won’t arrive in Utah before winter.

Due to insufficient materials the carts can not pull as much weight and they have to leave behind heavy clothes and possessions. Their rations have been cut and the onset of a bitter winter leaves the pioneers unprepared and suffering as they cross the plains of the Midwestern United States. As the threat of cold and snow, starvation, illness, wolves, freezing river crossings, and death continue throughout their journey, the immigrants also experience divine miracles that enable them to complete their journey and arrive in Salt Lake City.

The Background Story

From 1849 to 1855, about 16,000 European Latter-day Saints traveled to the United States by ship, through the eastern states by rail, and to Utah by ox and wagon. Although most of these emigrants paid their own expenses, the Church established the Perpetual Emigration Fund to provide financial assistance for poor emigrants to trek west, which they would repay as they were able. (Wikipedia)

The handcart movement began due to failing funds and the people’s inability to pay off their travel loans. From 1856 to 1860 10 groups totalling nearly 3,000 Mormon pioneers from England, Wales, Scotland and Scandinavia made the journey from Iowa or Nebraska to Utah in handcart companies. These were the underprivileged who lacked the funds for ox or horse teams, but still had the desire to migrate to Utah which they considered their Zion. Even the elderly, crippled and destitute were allowed to go if they had faith and could pull their own weight.

Joseph Smith’s successor, Brigham Young, designed the handcarts and they resembled a large wheelbarrow, with two wheels and a single axle. Running along each side of the bed were pull shafts ending with a crossbar at the front. The crossbar allowed the carts to be pushed or pulled. The handcarts usually carried up to 250 pounds of supplies and luggage, but they were capable of carrying as much as 500 pounds.

Compared to Today

When I watch a movie like this I can’t help but compare the dire circumstances and sacrifices of these people to the luxuries and easiness of our current culture. Travel is relatively easy and our sacrifices are few. The comfort we experience today was built on the sacrifices of our ancestors regardless of what religion or belief system we may follow. For this we can be deeply grateful.

However, the relative ease of life that we enjoy now can also prevent us from knowing our true potential. Human beings are capable of the most amazing things, and sometimes it is only when we have nothing left to rely on but faith and hope that we can discover our own divinity. This movie shows us the potential strength of character people have when empowered by a strong belief.

Although I am not a Mormon I highly recommend this movie for all people of faith, and as a significant addition to our understanding of American history.