In the summer of 1856, three companies of handcarts were outfitted and sent west from Iowa to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. All went well, and they arrived without undue incident. But two additional companies—one captained by James G. Willie, and the other by Edward Martin—left England late in the season. When they arrived at Iowa City, they were long past the time for safe departure across the plains. By the time they left Florence,