In 1844 fifty brave immigrants crossed the United States starting in Council Bluffs, Iowa making it to Sutter’s Fort, California. These immigrants were driven to take this journey believing in Manifest Destiny (a belief from the 19th century that the United States was destined to expand across the continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans). They also wanted religious freedom, escape from the diseases in the East, and finally the promise of opportunity and the tales of California’s beauty and richness.

The Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party (STM) were the first emigrants to successfully haul their wagons over Donner Summit and make it to Sutter’s Fort intact.

Who made up the STM Party?

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Two years before the ill-fated Donner Party and four years before gold was discovered in California, this band of emigrants planned well for this trip. They specifically did not make the mistakes that the Donner Party made. The Party was made up of a strong leader who kept the families working together, a doctor, a blacksmith, a gunsmith, a guide and others with significant mountain experience. They used lighter wagons which were made for the trip, and many in the party were in their prime being between 20 to 40 years old.

Their leader was Elisha Stephens who was elected captain for his frontier expertise leveraging years as a mountain man and blacksmith. His leadership style blended pragmatism with unyielding resolve. He also knew to trust his guides Caleb Greenwood and Isaac Hitchcock on which route to take. His ability to maintain cohesion under pressure earned him the group’s unwavering trust.

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Dr. John Townsend was the Party’s physician and recording secretary where he documented the journey. Regrettably, his diary was later lost. Dr. Townsend became California’s first licensed physician and pioneered healthcare in Sacramento.

Leading 23 family members, Martin Murphy Sr. balanced kinship with logistics. Being Irish Catholic, he sought religious freedom but it was his managerial skills that sustained the Murphys. When food dwindled in the Sierra, he enforced food rationing, prioritizing children and pregnant women.

At supposedly 81 (or younger) years old, Caleb Greenwood was an inspiration and his trapper-honed instincts were indispensable. His communications skills bridged cultural divides. Years of living with the Crow tribes had taught him negotiation skills which he employed to diffuse tensions with Indigenous groups.

Isaac “Old Man” Hitchcock’s 1830s fur-trading ventures in California helped the group find the best routes. He proposed a cutoff that shaved 3-5 days off the journey, a gamble that worked thereby ensuring a Sierra crossing before heavy snows. He joined the expedition to protect his widowed daughter and her children. He later established Santa Cruz’s Masonic Lodge.

Finally, the Paiute leader, Chief Truckee, mediated between the party and the land. Using gestures and sand drawings, he guided them to the Truckee River, a lifeline through the Sierra. His communication prowess was both cultural and linguistic having learned Spanish in California and later teaching his tribe how to navigate settler dynamics. He believed in long-term co-existence with the new immigrants.

Breaking into Three Groups

Starting in May 1844 and covering 10-12 miles a day, the STM Party walked thousands of miles while oxen, not horses, pulled their wagons. It was November when they finally approached the Sierra with its vast granite cliffs. The cliffs, plus the knowledge of winter coming, must have put terror in their hearts.

On November 14, 1844 the party split. Four men and two women headed on horseback up the Truckee River from what is now Truckee and went to Lake Tahoe. The other group headed for Donner Lake and the Summit. The group split again at Donner Lake where six wagons and three people were left while five wagons and the rest of the Party headed up the Summit.

The “Horseback” Party followed the Truckee River to its source at Lake Tahoe and were the first non-native Americans to set foot on its shores. They made it safely to Sutter’s Fort on December 10, 1844.

Meanwhile the snow at Donner Lake by the end of November was 2 feet deep. On November 20th the main party struggled through the snow with the five wagons. At around 1000 feet above Donner Lake in elevation, the snow was now up to the oxen’s chests. At this point the wagons were unloaded and the food and household goods were carried up the mountain. The oxen were then double teamed to pull the wagons through the snow up to the mountain. Along the way they were stopped by a ten-foot-high rock ledge and could go no further. Thinking all was lost a miracle happened. A cleft was found in the rock and the oxen were led, one at a time, through the opening. The wagons were dismantled and the oxen were chained at the top of the ledge. Men at the bottom lifted while the oxen pulled bringing the wagons up the ledge.

On November 25, 1844 the STM Party reached Donner Summit. It had taken five days. The Party slogged through the snow for another two days until they got to today’s Big Bend and could go no further. The children and oxen were exhausted. The men decided that they would again split up leaving one man (and a boy), the women, and children behind while they would go to California for help. That left 2 men, 6 women, and 17 children at Big Bend. The oxen were slaughtered for food and little “cabins” were built. Seventeen men headed to Sutter’s Fort in mid-December for help.

The men got waylaid by a revolt and helping John Sutter and did not start back to Big Bend until mid-January. They arrived with the much-needed provisions for the families on February 24th.

The Group of Three at Donner Lake

The two men and 17 year-old Moses Schallenberger were not doing well at the Lake. They thought the snow would melt, like it did back East, and game would be plentiful. Neither was true. They feared death by starvation and decided to hike out to California. They got to the top of the pass when Moses could no longer go on. He realized he had to go back to the lake, alone.

He made it back to the makeshift cabin and started thinking about how to get food. He remembered some traps in the wagons so he set them out. He first caught a coyote and later stated that the taste was horrible no matter how he tried to cook it. He later caught two foxes which he found delicious. To keep busy he trapped, kept the fire going, and read the numerous books that were in John Townsend’s wagon. Moses stayed at the lake for more than two months when Dennis Martin came back to rescue him.

Collective Triumph Through Incredible Adversity

The STM Party left with 50 people and made it to Sutter’s Fort with 52. Two children had been born along the journey. Unlike the Donner Party, not a single person was lost.

The Party succeeded due to their decisiveness, organization, grit, and communication skills. Their wagons were lighter and not overloaded, the families worked together, they stayed on the planned route, and they were blessed with a late winter.

Conclusion

The Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party paved the way for a wagon route over the Sierra Nevada into California. In 1846, two years later, 1500 people and 500 wagons would come to California via this route.

To learn more about the Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party please join Ron Grove for a presentation on Tuesday, June 10 at 6 p.m. that goes into more detail of their extraordinary migration. The presentation will be held at Truckee Airport Meeting Room, 10356 Truckee Airport Rd, Truckee, CA 96161.