Death Comes too Soon

After arriving in Missouri John and his father walked 150 miles to Council Bluffs where they secured employment a few miles distance from each other. They needed to both work so that money could be saved for the family to go west.

Maria stayed with a Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Rogers but took ill and died at the Rogers in St. Louis, Missouri. The funeral was held at the Rogers home. The Rogers and her father, William were the only ones in attendance. John did not know of his sister’s death until sometime after the funeral.

After Maria's death, John and his father continued to work. They would visit each other every two weeks. One day John went to visit his father and knocked at the door. A stranger answered and told him his father had died 10 days prior and was buried in Bellville, Illinois. What a shock that was! John, at age 15 was now all alone in a strange new land.