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Mount Pisgah - On the Brink Exhibit Audio Description
Transcript
009 (Grade 5) Slanted Wayside Panel: On the Brink 593 words / Panel Description: 4.5 minutes
In front of you, is a slanted panel 3 feet wide by 2 feet tall, and about 3 feet off the ground. You are on a short concrete sidewalk that extends about 23 feet, or 7 meters, to your right. Near the middle of the sidewalk, there is a second angled sidewalk that extends ahead and to your right. The ground slopes slightly downward ahead of you. Follow the sidewalk to pass through a short, wrought iron fence. Continue about 100 feet, or 30 meters, to reach the Mount Pisgah Monument. Around you, are scattered deciduous trees. The ground slopes down into a valley with more scattered deciduous trees. Behind you, is a gravel road. On the other side of the road, is a 1-story brick restroom building.
There is a black banner across the top on the panel. Left side text reads Mount Pisgah. Right side of the panel has the white, orange, and black triangular logo for the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail.
Below the banner, on the left side of the panel, is green and black text on a bright blue background:
Title: On the Brink. Main text: The Mormon pioneer Vanguard Company arrived here in mid-May 1846, on the edge of the United States’ settled land. With a nearby spring for drinking water, Mount Pisgah was an ideal location for a second camp and resting place. Within a few days, additional emigrant companies arrived. Over 2 weeks, they built cabins and planted several thousand acres of crops for future travelers. Then they continued westward. They crossed the Grand River, off in the distance in front of you.
Over 200 Latter-day Saints stayed here to farm the fields and welcome later travelers. The population grew to 700 by summer. This way station provided comfort but was also sorrowful. In the winter of 1846 to 1847, over 700 emigrants across Iowa died from exposure, malnutrition, and disease.
End of Text
Below the text, is a quotation:
“Being pleased and excited at the varied beauty before me, I cried out, this is Mount Pisgah.” –Parley P. Pratt, May 11, 1846
The view reminded Pratt of the biblical mountain, from which Moses first saw the Promised Land.
End of Text
To the left of the quotation, is a historical photograph of Parley Pratt, a man with a receding hairline and bushy hair around his right ear. He wears a dark suit with a white shirt and a dark tie. His mouth is a straight line.
To the right of the main text, is a scanned copy of a sketch of large landscape. The sketch, in dark ink, shows a rolling hill across the foreground with a flat valley stretching out behind it. Near the bottom left corner, is a seated man with a wide-brimmed hat, looking out at the landscape. Along the rolling hills, are 2 people and a scattered group of animals. There are small tents, covered wagons, and scattered trees in the valley. In the bottom right, in cursive handwriting text reads: Forenoon Sunday 18 May ‘46. Along the right side of the sketch, is the artist’s signature.
Text below sketch: Peter O. H. Kimball sketched the rolling landscape around you on May 18, 1846. End of Text
Across the bottom, is a color photograph of rolling green and light brown hills, with scattered clusters of leafy green trees.
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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