A 20,000-Mile Religous Exodus by Ship

On February 4, 1846, the ship Brooklyn sailed from Manhattan's Old Slip. Chartered by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the ship carried men, women, and children to California as part of the epic movement of Mormons to the West. By coincidence, on the same day, the Mormons began their famous migration by crossing the Mississippi River from Nauvoo, Illinois, on their way across the Great Plains to the Salt Lake Valley.

The chartered ship, captained by Abel W. Richardson, was 125 feet long, was rated at 445 tons, and carried 234 passengers. The Brooklyn stopped at Juan Fernandez Island and Honolulu before reaching Yerba Buena, later named San Francisco, on July 31, 1846. Eleven passenger deaths and two births marked the six-month passage. The more than 20,000-mile voyage is the longest recorded religious exodus in history.

When the ship left New York City, California belonged to Mexico. By the time the ship arrived, the United States had claimed California as a result of the Mexican-American War. Led by Samuel Brannan, the Mormons of the ship Brooklyn were among the first United States citizens to settle in California prior to the gold rush.

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