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Show l'ORhON SETT.LEHhNT Ufo' THE 'I'TL:b; CuLORADO CwNTRY 1873 nearly all of te Mormon expeditions made from Utah into the Lit t l.e Colorado drainage cast,n were "mi.s st.one ry" in c'rar-act.er-; and were made on The peaceful, pueblo-dwelling 11oquis, horse or mul.e-back with pack animals. the were T!1e scattered N8va.joes were far called mainobjective. later Hopis, and more ve to By religious. teaching, dangerous to wor-k among. less recept.i a ·.gEneral in well had t.he explored fairly country been, sense, 1873, hovever-, by these missi.oncry scouts; and the Church lEaders had dedded thBt t!1e time was ripe for an attempt at permanent colonization. Bero'e , Haight The lTnsuccessfu1 Co lony The pe o pLe for this venture it seems wer-e chosen from various locations in Utah; Ed their main lltieU to make them her noni.ous among themselves lias their religion; l:-ut as has been noted many times in the movements of memcers of the Cllrch of Jesus Crist of Latter-day Saints at earlier times in Utah and in the . J-.1ississiP1: i Va l.Ley these co-religionists, with ways that might seem almost Quaker-like to disre1ievers, rarely experienced serious disunion, or trouble among themselves. Such of t.h e rr-oup as could attend wer-e given general instructions by Presi The dent Brigham Youn« at Salt Lake City Har-en 8, 1873. Navajoes mic ht be some-s for the w!1at troublesome; and at Pipe Springs further Lnst.r-ict.Lon was given colonists friendly t.o be the redmen ammunition or overnment. 109 men, 6 women, "\.;it the guns, as Indians, they trusting; but not too were, and not to sell fighting against the Uriited States a child had.crossed the Colorado River "bar-rier" safely 22nd of that month arrived on te Little Colorado. the by May 11, 1873; of one been must have Ari'7,ona's "dry yearsl1, since t'ley found no green 1873 Rrass after leaving the Colorado; and water supplies were found Lnrr-equent.Iy, a..1 not, of very good quality; al.t.hough it seems evident that they f'o Ll.owed the end 2!1d on located new wagon-r0ad ing +.he roads blocked by Jacob Hamblin a s!1ort time cefore, via Navajo Springs, 7miles from Lee's Ferry, and Bitter Springs, some 10 miles om-lard; and Limestone Tanks. Even along t he Little Colorado itself they had to dig wells in the dry river channel. to procure V.le water needed. SOIDe 24 miles below Black Falls, find by drifted sand, they made their encampment. encampment, the leader of the expedition, Horton D. Haight, \-!itl a Ee-Pew companions, ascended t.he river on horseback, an Estimated 136 miles. the of a unfavorable report very Vlrning to the encsmpnent une 8th, they Rave that end of water little t.he poor quality, c omt.r-v hiQ'her up river-bed---very almost no avad Lacl,e timb€r, aL'cal.Lne f'Lat s , and no place that they considered Fr-om +h i s . suitable for a settlement. Te party retraced its incoming course, sending word. ahead to President Young of the conditions t.hey found; and sUP-'8:esting abandonment of t he colonization project.T'e reply from t!1e Church officia.ls was for them to remain in Arizona; cut wen t!lis word arrived, they had all ferried t.he Go Lorado on the homeward trip. Day. Goppy, they had met a party of 29 missionaries led by Henry Native heretofore, t.he Little Colorado Ei.ver- Valley is "Hy Land". It is evi dent t\lat t",Haight company came into the country dur-Ing I '1eather '1S perhaps generally rather unpredictable. 'mfavrabl€ season. have seen years with the river running at least a light flood nearly all * • At Moan - As ment.i.oned an |
