Levi Savage: Willie Handcart Company

Levi Savage Levi Savage was a man who showed amazing leadership, saved the lives of many people, and risked his life for others even though he didn’t have to. He changed the lives of many that were of the Willie Handcart Company. He helped them survive through the traitorous winter. Levi did many things that benefited the Mormons. Levi Savage was born on March 23, 1820 in Greenfield, Ohio. His family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when he was 23 years old. They left to Utah Valley to join the other saints on May 5, 1846. He was baptized in June that same year. In 1852, he was called on a mission to Thailand (called Siam at the time). They arrived in Burma, but found out it was unsafe to cross over into Siam, so he stayed in Burma to serve his three years as a missionary. In February 1856 he had made it to Boston hoping to get home and to see his son again. When he traveled to Iowa he learned that he was asked to help the …show more content…
Savage thought otherwise… he said “The lateness of the season was my only objection to leaving this point for the mountains at this time”. He knew that leaving so late could result in many deaths, but the company wanted to go on. Even though he didn’t think he should go he still went because he felt he needed to do what he was asked to do. So they pressed on and had to cross different bodies of water. Deaths occurred while traveling everyday. Some days they would wake up and find people froze to death during the night. They couldn’t bury most because of how frozen the ground was so they dug as far as they could and then covered them with snow. By the time winter started they weren’t even close to getting there. Levi didn’t travel as fast as he could because he was constantly helping others with their carts in the snow. The company arrived in Salt Lake in November 1856, with the help of some rescuers they finally had the supplies to keep