The Donner Party - chronological record of events

April 15, 1846 The families of James Reed, George and Jacob Donner, five teamsters, a total of thirty one people in nine wagons leave Springfield, Illinois bound for California.

July 19 Little Sandy River Wyoming, a group of emigrants that have merged together make decisions and some of the group decide to take Hastings Cutoff, a new route. They elect George Donner their captain, thus creating the Donner Party. The other emigrants depart for the customary route by way of Fort Hall.

August 6-10 The Donner party reaches Weber River and finds a note from Hastings advising them not to follow him down Weber Canyon. They camp near modern day Henefer Utah, while James Reed and a small party go ahead to find Hastings to get advise. Reed returns back to the party and the company votes to try Reeds route rather than backtrack to Fort Briger. The Donner Party now numbers 87 people in 23 wagons.

September 4-9 After crossing the Salt Desert the emigrants rest and repair their wagons, some wagons have been abandoned. They have lost many cattle and livestock. Supplies are very low so a small party goes ahead to Sutter’s Fort to bring back supplies.

October 5 James Reed kills a teamster in a dispute and he is banished from the group leaving his wife and children. Reed goes ahead to bring back supplies.

October 15-30 They reach the Truckee River and rest at Truckee Meadows, present day Reno. Snow is starting to fall. One of the men who went ahead for supplies has returned with 7 mules packed with supplies. They begin their ascent of the mountains. A broken axle holds up the Donners in the Alder Creek Valley, George injures his hand while repairing it. The other emigrants continue on to the lake, now known as Donner Lake.

October 28 Reed reaches Sutter Fort and makes preparations to bring supplies back to the party.

October 30 - November 4 The larger group that has gone ahead reach the lake, the pass is just a few miles away. They make several attempts to cross but the snow thwarts their efforts. They retreat to the eastern side of the lake where they find an existing cabin. They build 2 more cabins. The sixty people huddle in the 3 cabins hoping the snow will melt so they can continue over the pass. The Donners and others, a total of twenty one people, are about 6 miles away at Alder Creek. They have constructed hasty shelters constructed from tents, quilts, buffalo robes and brush.

November 5 - December 5 Reed and party attempt to reach their stranded companions but are unable because of the snow. The Mexican War has drawn virtually all able-bodied men, so a rescue attempt will have to wait. Not knowing how many cattle the emigrants have lost Reed mistakenly believe that the Donner Party will have enough meat to last several months.

December 16 At the lake after the weather clears, many people set out on snowshoes to cross the pass. Several turn back after the first day but fifteen of them continue; they are weak from hunger and have few provisions.

December 21 A man returning from the Alder Creek reports that Jacob Donner along with some others has died.

December 25-29 A blizzard catches up with the group on snowshoes. They try desperately to keep a fire lit; with nothing left to eat the survivors tearfully resort to cannibalism.

January 4-8, 1847 Mrs. Reed, along with one of her daughters and two others, makes an attempt to cross the pass but gives up and all return to the cabins.

January 18 Seven survivors from the first snowshoe party reach safety. Of the eight dead, seven have been cannibalized. News of the desperate emigrants reaches San Francisco and funds are raised to organize a rescue party.

January 31 The first rescue party leaves Sutter’s Fort.

February 7 Reed spends 2 weeks rounding up men, horses, equipment and supplies for the second relief party.

February 18 First relief party reaches the lake. Eleven emigrants have died and the others are in bad shape physically and emotionally. They have been eating boiled rawhide, leather, bones, dogs and mice.

February 19 The rescuers reach Alder Creek camp. The Donners inform them that they will start eating the dead if they can’t find the cattle lost under the snow in the next few days.

February 21-26 Reed leading the second relief party heads to the lake the same day the first relief party leaves the camp with twenty three refugees.

February 27-28 En route down the mountain the first relief party meets the second relief party where Reed is reunited with his wife and some of his children. Reed continues on to the lake camp.

March 1 The second relief party arrives at the lake camp where they find evidence of cannibalism.

March 2 The Donners at Alder Creek have also resorted to cannibalism.

March 3 Reed and the second relief party leave the lake camp with seventeen emigrants.

March 5-7 Blizzard traps the second relief party. When the weather clears Reed and a friend carry the two small Reed children and continue. The others are too week to travel.

March 12 The third relief party reaches the stranded emigrants at Alder Creek. Some have died and others have been cannibalized. One of the rescue party stays to help them out of the mountains while the others continue to the lake camp.

March 13 The third relief party arrives at Alder Creek, George Donner is dying from his infection in his hand he had injured while repairing an axle. His wife Tamzen refuses to leave her husband but sends her three children with others on without her. Later that month another rescue party sets out but is unable to continue because of snow.

April 17 the fourth relief party reaches the camps finding only one person alive.

April 29 The last of the Donner party arrives at Sutter’s Fort.

Eighty one were trapped in the mountains, sixty at Donner Lake and twenty one at Alder Creek. Out of the eighty nine member party, forty one died en-route or got trapped in the mountains.

For more information on the Donner party please check following web sites:

www.utahcrossroads.org/DonnerParty/Chronology.htm