It's soon Pioneer day in Utah. July 24th, 1847 is when they came into the Salt Lake area led by Brigham Young. Many of my Mormon Pioneers were driven out of Nauvoo Illinois by mobs then to Winter Quarters, Nebraska and then across the plains 1000 miles to the Great Basin of Utah because of religious persecution. Some of them came in covered wagons drawn by oxen, a few pushed handcarts. They were searching for freedom of religious expression. Compiling their histories has brought me closer to them as I’ve developed a love for them because of their many sacrifices to come to Utah. (Check out the link above-it has a pioneer trail map, histories and diaries.)
Pioneers, what constitutes a pioneer, some-one who does something first? The dictionary says "as a noun-a person or group that is the first to do something or that is a forerunner in creating or developing something new; somebody who goes into previously uncharted or unclaimed territory with the purpose of exploring it and possible colonizing or settling it/as a verb-to experiment with or develop something new."
Are you a pioneer in your family? Tell us what you've done in a comment or tell us about a pioneer in your family. I was the first in my immediate family to graduate from college, now all my sons have graduated or are in college.