Widow Of The Trail

It is estimated that 65,000 people died along the Oregon/California Trails. If evenly spaced that would be one grave every 50 yards along those trails. Lucinda Brown and her husband Elias, left for Oregon from their home in Illinois in the spring of 1847. Along the Platte River in Nebraska, Elias became ill and died of typhoid fever less than half-way to Oregon. Lucinda, at 21 years-of-age had to bury her husband along the trail.


I was moved to try to capture this true story and make it come alive for others as they look upon Lucinda's grief and determination. Wiping the sweat from her brow, with her hand resting on the shovel, she must continue now to continue moving to the west, as there is no chance to catch any help moving back towards home. She looks away from the grave and the cross she fashioned and now faces west, into the wind and into the unknown. Her grief will accompany her and her three small children as she will seek their new home in Oregon.