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Nauvoo National Historic Landmark - Into the Unknown Exhibit Audio Description
Transcript
002 (Grade 6) Slanted Wayside Panel: Into the Unknown 505 words / Panel Description: 3.5 minutes
In front of you, is a slanted panel 3 feet wide by 2 feet tall, and about 3 feet off the ground, on your left, is Parley Street. On your right, is a flat grassy park with scattered deciduous trees. Perpendicular to the panel, is a wood fence with posts about every 4 feet, 3 horizontal wood rails run between the posts. Immediately to your right, there is an opening in the fence, about 4 feet wide. Go through this opening to get to the park. On the other side of the opening there is another exhibit panel. About 150 feet, or 50 meters, ahead of you, is a life-sized replica of a ferry with a covered wagon. The river is about 80 feet, or 25 meters, past the ferry.
There is a black banner across the top on the panel. Left side text reads Nauvoo, Illinois. Right side of the panel has the white, orange, and black triangular logo for the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail.
Title: Into the Unknown. Main Text: Nauvoo was the Latter-day Saints’ home for 7 years. But they faced increasing conflict with their neighbors. Church leaders planned to leave Nauvoo in the spring of 1846. Latter-day Saints gathered supplies, built wagons, and organized into companies. They hoped to build a new community west of the Rocky Mountains. However, threats of violence persisted. Brigham Young advanced the departure of the first 2,000 emigrants. Despite the cold, they felt compelled to leave in February.
Their journey began by taking a ferry across the Mississippi River—the first of several river crossings. Already cold temperatures plummeted further. The river froze, enabling 500 more people to cross and join the group. Their hasty departure left many ill equipped for the road ahead. Winter weather made conditions even worse. It took them a month to travel the first 100 miles, or 160 kilometers, instead of the expected 10 days.
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In the top right corner, is a quotation from the February 1, 1846, issue of Times and Seasons, a Latter-day Saint newspaper. Text reads: To see such a large body of men, women and children, compelled by the inefficiency of the law, and potency of mobocracy, to leave a great city in the month of February, for the sake of the enjoyment of pure religion, fills the soul with astonishment… End of Text
A colorful illustration fills the rest of the panel. The bottom half of the illustration shows a riverbank with patches of brown, yellow, and green grass and some snow. The treelined riverbank stretches across the middle of the illustration. In the foreground, several pioneers are shown packing supplies into and around a covered wagon pulled by yoked oxen. In the middle of the illustration, two ferries are shown crossing filled with people, covered wagons, supplies, and livestock.
In the bottom right corner of the panel, is a QR code that you can scan with a mobile device to explore more about this wayside, including audio description.
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Listen to the audio description Nauvoo National Historic Landmark - Into the Unknown exhibit.
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NPS
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